Yep, mortgage interest rates are low, but there's a catch: It doesn't matter how cheap rates are if you can't get a loan. The credit crunch has made it very difficult for many ordinary Americans to qualify for affordable mortgages.
The head of JPMorgan Chase said Wednesday that banks would not consider writing down mortgages for homeowners who can't make payments, an idea at the center of talks aimed at fixing the mortgage mess.
The Obama administration on Friday officially unveiled its plan to remake the mortgage market and reduce the government's role in housing finance by winding down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Sometime, somehow, the foreclosure crisis will ease. But probably not anytime soon.
Wells Fargo, in a settlement with California's attorney general announced Monday, agreed to provide $2 billion worth of loan modifications to nearly 15,000 homeowners.
At the height of the housing boom, millions of Americans treated their houses like ATMs, pulling out money through "cash-out" refis. Today, with millions of mortgages underwater, money is flowing in the opposite direction.
The government has bailed out Wall Street firms, giant banks, creditors of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- and is trying to bail out people who've defaulted or are about to default on their mortgages. But let's say you're a hardworking family that has done nothing wrong except buy a home when the housing bubble was at its peak a few years ago. Your mortgage is now way underwater, but you're still making payments because you want to stay in your home -- and you're actually honorable. You're paying for everyone else's bailout, but because you have no equity in your house, you can't refinance to take advantage of the ultra-low mortgage rates that Uncle Sam's bailout strategy has produced. To use the technical term, you're being screwed.
Categories: Economy, Interest Rates, Mortgage's, Refinance Tags: bailout, Creditors, Fannie Mae, Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac, freddie mac, Giant Banks, Housing Bubble, Low Mortgage, mortgage rates, Mortgage's, Uncle Sam, Wall Street, Wall Street Firms
For the growing number of struggling homeowners in this country, more help is on the way. Additional aid from the federal government will begin making its way to them next month -- one program would help qualified homeowners refinance their mortgages after seeing their property values fall below the amount they owe, and the other includes another round of funding to help the unemployed or underemployed with their payments.
Fewer mortgage borrowers are delinquent on their loan payments, according to the latest data from the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The Federal Reserve Board issued new rules Monday to protect consumers from abusive mortgage lending practices.
