Washington, DC -- Pat V. Combs, 2007 president of the National Association of Realtors(R), released the following statement in support of Federal Housing Administration policy changes proposed today by President George W. Bush:
"The National Association of Realtors(R) strongly commends President Bush for his leadership in proposing a set of policies designed to ease the crisis in the mortgage industry and halt the rapidly increasing rate of foreclosures affecting many American families today.
"NAR has been advocating for many of these FHA changes since early 2007. In letters, testimony, speeches and meetings, we have encouraged both Congress and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban development to make meaningful changes to the FHA that would stem rising foreclosures.
"The proposed changes will allow more people to refinance with FHA insurance, like those that have fallen behind in their mortgage because of so- called 'exploding ARMs.' Many families who have been making their mortgage payments at the starter rate but were unable to keep them up after the loan reset have been unable to refinance through the FHA, but with this increased flexibility, FHA can now help many more families in jeopardy of losing their home.
"We will continue to use our voice and presence in Washington, pushing Congress to act quickly to enact other FHA program changes that will help ease the current crisis and protect consumers. FHA modernization should include increasing loan limits, eliminating or reducing the amount of cash down payments required for FHA loans, establishing risk-based pricing, revising prepayment penalty regulations, and increasing loss mitigation efforts.
"NAR also supports separate legislation to abolish the mortgage cancellation tax that consumers are hit with when their mortgage is forgiven by their lender. NAR believes in a comprehensive effort to ensure this crisis will not repeat itself and alleviate the burden for many families who are currently facing the nightmare of losing their home."
NAR and its 1.3 million members pledge to work with Congress to ensure that the rights of states are upheld in all industries, and that consumer rights are protected.
The National Association of Realtors(R), "The Voice for Real Estate," is America's largest trade association, representing more than 1.3 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
Information about NAR is available at http://www.realtor.org/. This and other news releases are posted in the Web site's "News Media" section in the NAR Media Center.
REALTOR(R) is a registered collective membership mark which may be used only by real estate professionals who are members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS(R) and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics. Not all real estate agents are REALTORS(R). All REALTORS(R) are members of NAR.
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First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:
Source: National Association of Realtors
CONTACT: Mary Trupo of NAR, +1-202-383-1007, mtrupo@realtors.org
Web site: http://www.realtor.org/
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