Depression-Era FHA Tries to Save Mortgages

Many struggling homeowners not covered in deal

(NEWSER) - The $26 billion mortgage settlement announced yesterday will be a boon for some—but the terms of the deal leave many homeowners out in the cold. Recipients of loans owned by the Federal Housing Administration, for instance, won't directly benefit from the settlement; nor will those with mortgages held by private investors, the New York Times reports. Millions of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loans—about half of America's mortgages—aren't part of the plan, either. More»

Bombastic guru lists 10 signs of a real-estate turnaround

(NEWSER) - Jim Cramer has spent over a year “shouting in my usual unhinged way” about the bleak real estate market, he writes in New York. But now he’s so confident housing’s headed for a bottom that he’ll name the exact date: June 30, 2009. Why?

1. New home construction has fallen spectacularly, and "by next June we won’t be building enough homes to accommodate demand."
2. Congress has authorized $300 billion in FHA loans. Foreclosures and supply will both nosedive as a result.

Prez reportedly rejects calls to pull gov't out of housing market

(NEWSER) - Despite two White House proposals floated earlier in the year to get the federal government out of the housing market, President Obama will likely opt for the third option: reforming the housing market over the next decade but continuing to extend federal loan subsidies and insure most mortgages, reports the Washington Post . This option would also keep Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, albeit possibly under different names and with new regulations that might include larger reserve requirements, shrunken portfolios, and fees to create an insurance pool for bad mortgages. More»

But regulatory agency disagrees, and nothing has yet been filed

(NEWSER) - The SEC is making moves toward charging current and former Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac executives, sources tell the Washington Post , but the Federal Housing Finance Agency disagrees with the move. The SEC has sent notices to at least four senior executives over the past eight weeks warning them they may face civil charges, although nothing has been formally filed and the SEC could still change its mind. The executives would be charged with violations related to the housing market collapse, including a failure to provide investors with necessary information about the companies' mortgage holdings. More»

Taxpayers may foot the bill for defaulting homeowners

(NEWSER) - The Federal Housing Administration is staring down the barrel of a rash of foreclosures that could force it to dip into taxpayer money for the first time. The number of FHA borrowers who have missed at least three payments jumped by a third last year, to 9.1%, which means the agency is almost certain to see a lot of foreclosures soon, the Washington Post explains. More»