. . . why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which we pay for, are reducing their mortgage requirements to a 3% down payment. If there is a good reason for it doesn’t the government owe taxpayers a clear statement of justification? This is why there is such distrust of government. We had the 2008 disaster which wiped out much of our savings already, caused by profligate mortgage lending. At the very least I want to know why our Representatives haven’t written to us explaining why our money is being gambled like this."
Sent by a friend.
Any comments?
Lois
The housing sector is lagging. Young people can’t make enough money (as the new economy’s jobs are at lower wages) to pay off (increasingly) high student loans and also save for a down payment on a house. There are many ancillary benefits to the economy when new home buyers come in to the market.
It’s a way to pump up the economy. But you are right to be concerned. If the primary problem, low wages, high debt, never corrects, we could see another version of 2008, someday.
The housing sector is lagging. Young people can't make enough money (as the new economy's jobs are at lower wages) to pay off (increasingly) high student loans and also save for a down payment on a house. There are many ancillary benefits to the economy when new home buyers come in to the market. It's a way to pump up the economy. But you are right to be concerned. If the primary problem, low wages, high debt, never corrects, we could see another version of 2008, someday.Yes, that is a big problem and no one is doing anything to prevent it. Did you lose money in the last crisis? I lost quite a lot. And not one Wall Street executive person has been convicted of anything--yet many received obscene bonuses, even while the companies were being bailed out by taxpayers. Can we expect a constant round of failures, bailouts and bonuses? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/13/wall-street-prosecution_n_3919792.html Lois
... Can we expect a constant round of failures, bailouts and bonuses? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/13/wall-street-prosecution_n_3919792.html LoisPast performance is not necessarily indicative of future performance, but my guess is "yes, eventually".
. . . why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which we pay for, are reducing their mortgage requirements to a 3% down payment. If there is a good reason for it doesn't the government owe taxpayers a clear statement of justification? This is why there is such distrust of government. We had the 2008 disaster which wiped out much of our savings already, caused by profligate mortgage lending. At the very least I want to know why our Representatives haven't written to us explaining why our money is being gambled like this."It is somewhat concerning, but I think it's a legit thing to do to increase home buying. What would be really concerning would be a return to the subprime mortgages that caused so many people to lose their homes, as well as causing a sudden, drastic drop in the real estate and construction markets. And, BTW, that was not the fault of the home buyers who "should have known better", as many pundits claimed, suggesting they were just as culpable as the banks. Yeah, right. They should have considered themselves smarter than the financial "experts" who told them buying a home was a good idea. Good logic there, pundits. And even if they "should have known better", so what? They were still the victims of predatory lending and the banks were still the predators. If a woman "should have known better" than to get drunk at a frat party, does that make it her fault when she gets raped? Is she any less the victim, and is the rapist any less the predator? Why am I even putting these propositions in question form? The answers are obvious.