Sleazy Middlemen Stiff Homeowners Trying to Refi

$50B plan proving ineffective as more mortgage holders lose their jobs

(NEWSER) - The Treasury's $50 billion loan-modification program is in danger of being swamped as the foreclosure crisis accelerates, the Congressional Oversight Panel said in a report yesterday. The Home Affordable Modification Program has met its target of 500,000 trial mortgage modifications started by November 1, but the watchdog warned that foreclosure starts are outnumbering modifications 2 to 1 as the crisis spreads from subprime to prime mortgages. 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»

Proposal would require HAMP to review all delinquent mortgage loans

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is considering kicking up the fight against foreclosures by banning any that haven't been reviewed by its Home Affordable Modification program. The move would prevent lenders from initiating foreclosure unless HAMP had screened the loan and found it unsalvageable. it would also require them to halt existing foreclosure proceedings when homeowners enter a trial repayment plan, Bloomberg reports. More»

But one thing's clear: it favors banks, not homeowners

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration’s mortgage modification program has been a big disappointment, and part of the reason could lie in the invisible hurdle troubled homeowners have to clear to get their mortgages renegotiated: the NPV test. Devised by the Treasury, the secret formula is designed to determine if modification is in the bank’s—not the homeowner's—best interests, Pro Publica reports. If the bank benefits more from foreclosure, the bank can tell consumers to take a hike. More»

(NEWSER) - Anybody seen $700 billion? The government watchdogs charged with overseeing TARP spending don't seem able to answer even basic questions about where the money went, Chris Adams writes at McClatchy. A special inspector general, a congressional panel, and eight other inspectors general are supposed to be keeping track of the funds, but they haven't been given the tools to do the job properly, Adams writes. More»