HuffPost - Extend and Pretend: The Obama Adminstrations Failed Foreclosure Program

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/04/extend-and-pretend-the-ob_n_668609.html
HuffPost - Extend and Pretend: The Obama Adminstrations Failed Foreclosure Program
Arthur Delaney
Shahien Nasiripour

First Posted: 08- 4-10 10:15 AM | Updated: 08- 4-10 01:21 PM

President Barack Obama's signature plan to combat the housing crisis has fallen short of its goals -- rather than significantly and permanently reducing home foreclosures, it is only delaying them.

The administration unveiled its Making Home Affordable plan in February 2009. Obama vowed in front of an audience gathered at Dobson High School in Mesa, Ariz., that MHA's signature effort, the Home Affordable Modification Program, would "enable as many as three to four million homeowners to modify the terms of their mortgages to avoid foreclosure."

The $75 billion initiative -- $50 billion from the bank bailout, $25 billion from government-owned mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- was designed to induce lenders, servicers and investors to modify distressed mortgages through a series of cash incentives.

It's not working.

Nope. Not working. A detailed and interesting and ultimately sad article.

[asdjrocky]

1. Sure didn't help anyone in my neighborhood. nt

[Hell Hath No Fury]

2. Massive failure.

The number of homes helped was fairly miniscule. :( I know three people who tried to apply to the program but could not qualify under the rather restrictive requirements.

[earth mom]

3. Obama should have bailed out the PEOPLE instead of the banks.

10 to 20K for every taxpayer would have done wonders for the economy.

Instead the bankster mo fo's are living it up on OUR DIME and people are STILL losing their homes. :grr:

[LostinVA]

+1

[Hell Hath No Fury]

10. That was my thought, too.

It was really more "trickle down" bullshit -- give $$$ to the banks so they could give $$$ to the people. Why the hell not have offered the homeowners low/no cost loans that would have saved their houses and paid back the banks??

[tridim]

4. I guess Arthur Delaney doesn't know about the foreclosure help in the new FinReg law.

Passage of FinReg Means $1 Billion for Unemployed Homeowners
http://washingtonindependent.com/91791/passage-of-finreg-means-1-billion-for-unemployed-homeowners

I'd ask why he doesn't know this, but I think I already know why.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

7. Thanks for posting that. I don't know how many are aware of that program

I googled a bit and found the funds are supposed to be released starting Oct.1

I hope this program has more success than the one in this article.

[tridim]

9. Yea, it's being completely ignored by the media (and huffpost).

As far as I know only a sliver of DU knows about it. Actually I take that back, HUD knows about it.

Good for me I guess, since I'm unemployed and about to enter foreclosure.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

11. Very good for you. I hope it works

We'll have to keep our eyes on this and publicize it. I know lots of DUers are hurting and close or into foreclosure. Why don't you make an OP about this program?

[tridim]

13. There have been a few OP's on the subject already.

And I continue to try to provide the info wherever it is needed to tell the whole story.

[katandmoon]

5. K&R.

[Javaman]

6. Wasn't it a matter of the money not being dolled out?

it's not a matter of failure, it's a matter of it not being properly implemented. Which I guess is a failure.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

12. Yes here is a thread regarding that - it also shows why Geithner doesn't like Warren

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8830860

[JuniperLea]

14. That's right...

This is only an Obama failure if you consider he doesn't read minds or that he can't see into the future. The banksters have made it very hard to jump through enough hoops, or high enough and long enough to actually make this work. There are a lot of community organizers jumping in now... and a lot of pro bono law groups helping to cut through the red tape. The FinRegs will help a lot as well. It's really sad that banksters find ways to block the good that others are trying to do... all in the name of greed. The longer they hold funds, the more money they make, so they piss it out in fits and starts.

[OhioChick]

8. K&R n/t