Senate Homeowner Aid Moves Big Step Closer

Fed chief outlines ideas for public, private sector to slow foreclosures

(NEWSER) - Ben Bernanke says more must be done to halt record US home-foreclosure rates, the New York Times reports. The Federal Reserve chief suggested several options today, including the government buying bad mortgages en masse and refinancing them through a government-insured program, and strengthening a scheme aimed at lowering homeowners’ monthly payments. More»

Proposal could save homeowners $85B annually

(NEWSER) - Help could be on the way for struggling homeowners with government-backed mortgages: The Obama administration is considering a proposal that would allow such homeowners to refinance their mortgages at today's interest rates, which hover around a low 4%. Many homeowners can’t currently refinance because they owe more than their house’s current value or have poor credit. Such a move could impact millions of homeowners and save them an estimated $85 billion a year, thus stimulating the economy by freeing up that money to be spent in other areas, the New York Times notes. More»

So-called rescue firms promise to negotiate lower rates, then take money and run

(NEWSER) - Mortgage brokers who made a mint during the housing boom setting up homeowners in toxic loans are now profiting from a different sort of shady deal. So-called foreclosure rescue firms are proliferating across the US, taking money upfront and promising to negotiate with homeowners’ banks for better interest rates. Instead, they mostly take the money and run. And so far, states have been largely powerless to stop them, reports Pro Publica. More»

Demand for refinancing shrivels as 30-year rates hit 5.75%

(NEWSER) - The steady rise in interest rates over recent weeks is threatening to trample the green shoots of recovery in the housing market, the Wall Street Journal reports. Rates on 30-year mortgages hit 5.79% yesterday, more than a point above the 4.75% "trigger" level analysts say spurred the wave of refinancing central to the White House's stimulus plans. More»

(NEWSER) - The country’s top lenders are slowly implementing the Obama administration’s plan to help otherwise ineligible borrowers to refinance their mortgages at the current bargain-basement rates, the Wall Street Journal reports. The program is open to those with mortgages owned by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae who are current on their payments, but who owe 80-105% of their home’s value. More»