The Obama administration Monday announced a much-anticipated initiative for state and local housing finance agencies to keep mortgage rates low and increase aid to lower-income borrowers. The strategy calls for a new bond purchase program to finance local lending. It also creates a temporary credit and liquidity program to give finance agencies greater access to capital, made available through lending instruments provided by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Loan originators are recouping nearly 60 percent of what they're owed on foreclosed commercial real estate, according to analysis by Real Capital Analytics. The firm says, though, that very little of the "distress" has been cleaned up. The study shows that commercial real estate loans in default, foreclosure, or bankruptcy currently total an estimated $130 billion. But to date, the firm says lenders have taken control and forced a sale on only $9.5 billion of those mortgages.
As foreclosures continue to rise, there is renewed interest in a homeownership vesting plan that met with only a tepid reception when first introduced in March. Rep. Joe Sestak says his bill (HR 1356) addresses many of the concerns raised by the Congressional Oversight Panel in its recent report on the administration's efforts to stem foreclosures.
According to leaked reports, the Federal Housing Administration will soon announce it's hiring a Freddie Mac veteran to be its first chief risk officer. But a new report by the FHA's government overseers suggests that risk officer will have his work cut out for him.
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