Thoughts on the Housing Bill

The Housing Bill has passed in the Senate with some Republicans grousing that it is an unfair bailout at the taxpayer’s expense.
Some highlights:
Increase the Federal Housing Administration’s role.
Establish a stronger regulator for the GSEs.
Permanently increase “conforming loan” limits.
Create home-buyer credit.
Bar down-payment assistance for FHA loans.
Create an affordable housing trust fund. Give grants to states [...]

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NY Times on the Candidates and the Mortgage Crisis

I make no secret that I stand quite a bit to the right of the NY Times editorial board on most fiscal matters. In today’s editorialon the presidential candidates, the Times portrays McCain as a Whig and Obama as a Caped Avenger. Both portrayals are problematic. Most government solutions are window dressing at best and have terrible [...]

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Why Did the FHA Lose $4.6 Billion?

In light of my earlier post framing the FHA loan program as part of the solution to an industry recovery, the NY Times is reporting that the program has lost $4.6 billion. The article does not say if it was in the past 12 months or in 2007. It doesn’t matter. The problem is not the [...]

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New Deal to Rescue 2008

This is a commentary that I submitted to the Journal News recently that they have not (yet) published.
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With the problems facing the real estate and mortgage industries, I look to the Oval Office to be the catalyst in the recovery of the nation going forward. I am not referring to President Bush, nor am I [...]

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