Current Housing Indicators |
| CURRENT | PREVIOUS | ||
| Existing Home Sales | 4.49m | ▼ | 4.74m |
| New Home Sales | 309,000 | ▼ | 344,000 |
| Housing Starts | 583,000 | ▲ | 477,000 |
| Building Permits | 547,000 | ▲ | 531,000 |
| HMI | 9 | UNCH | 9 |
| Existing Home Prices | $170,300 | ▼ (annually) | $199,800 |
| New Home Prices | $201,100 | ▼ (annually) | $232,400 |
More Videos
- Treasury On Mortgage Modifications
- Citi Mortgage Reveals What Treasury Won't
- Investors May Skew Housing Reality
- 100% Mortgage Financing From USDA
- Despite Government Aid, Foreclosure Crisis is Not Improving
- Housing Data Delivers Mixed Messages
- Appraisals Now Center Stage in Housing Recovery
- Underwater Mortgages Could Sink Even Deeper
- First Time Buyers Rescue Housing: Realtors
- Housing Recovery 'Still In Uncharted Territory': HUD Secretary
MOST SHARED
- US Shoppers Spent Less Over Black Friday: NRF
- Tiger Woods Wants to Protect Family Privacy: Agent
- Dubai Stocks Shed 7%, Abu Dhabi Tumbles 8%
- South Korea Sees Exports Bouncing, but Risks Remain
- Dubai's Nakheel Seeks Suspension $5.25 Billion in Bonds
- US Senator Opposes Fed Chief Bernanke Renomination
- Dubai is Harsh Reminder of Prolonged Global Recovery
- Sands China Ends 10.2% Lower in Hong Kong Debut
- Japan Won't Intervene to Weaken Yen: Finance Minister
- Tamminen: Copenhagen And Beyond
- Dubai is Harsh Reminder of Prolonged Global Recovery
- Tiger Woods Wants to Protect Family Privacy: Agent
- Portfolio Prep for Next Week: 'Don't Get Crazy'
- U.S. Stocks Fall on Dubai Worries
- Black Friday at Best Buy
- Strategists on Dubai: Avoid 'Rash Moves' Now
- Longer Lines, Fuller Carts This Black Friday
- Dubai Stock Market Fear Has 'Legs': Dennis Gartman
- What Black Friday Shoppers Spent on – And Where
- Dubai Stocks Shed 7%, Abu Dhabi Tumbles 8%
- Regulators Compile Global List of 'Systemic Risk' Banks
- Dubai's Nakheel Seeks Suspension $5.25 Billion in Bonds
- Partridge Demand Slump Doesn't Offset '12 Days' Costs
- US Senator Opposes Fed Chief Bernanke Renomination
- A Weak IPO Debut for Las Vegas Sands' Macau Unit
- Woods Has Nothing More to Say to Police: Agent
- Big US Banks May Be Forced to Raise Capital: Bove
REALTY CHECK VIDEO
RSS FEED
Realty Check
Text Size 
You may or may not have heard, Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, announced his legislation for mortgage lending reform today. This is expected to be the bill that will or will not change the way the mortgage business does business.
The 66-page bill (much like your mortgage) is designed to “diminish predatory lending while continuing to support a rigorous mortgage market.” That’s what Frank said on a conference call this morning, although he didn’t actually have a copy of the bill with him, nor did I have a copy of it in front of me. That came later.
The bill prohibits financial incentives for brokers and bankers to steer borrowers toward more expensive loans. It also prohibits prepayment penalties on subprime loans and limits prepayment penalties on prime loans. The penalties would actually have to expire three months before an interest rate on an adjustable rate mortgage would reset.
The bill also makes securitizers responsible for bad loans; yup, that’s you Wall St. Not totally responsible, of course, but there would be “assignee liability” to ensure that folks like Bear Stearns and the like are really making sure those new underwriting standards are enforced. The idea is that borrowers should not be given loans they can’t afford (did we need a law for that?? Guess so.)
Reaction? Mixed. The Fed Chairman, Ben Bernanke, has given a thumbs up in the past to limited assignee liability, but the Treasury Secretary, Hank Paulson has expressed concern that this would make investors slightly skittish. The issue among banking groups has to do with the fact that the bill leaves a lot of this stuff up to the states.
The Mortgage Bankers Association is looking for a more uniform national standard. "That will go a long way toward getting rid of confusion in the mortgage market place. It's a national mortgage market. Most of the funding comes out of the GSE's or Wall Street. Without that, the bill is a non-starter for the industry," Kurt Pfotenhauer or the MBA told me.
He also said the bill is extremely complex and "the possibility of unintended consequence is high." He'll be testifying at Chairman Frank's hearing on the issue Wednesday, so stay tuned.
Questions? Comments?
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes