| The corruption of wall street during the Bush years has unfortunately reached monumental proportions.
|
Posted on 07/13/2008 7:29:42 PM PDT by quesney
NEW YORK: In a country that holds itself up as a citadel of free enterprise, Washington has morphed from being the lender of last resort into effectively the only resort for home loans for millions of Americans engaged in the largest transactions of their lives.
Before, the government's more modest mission was to make more loans available at lower rates. Now it is to make sure the loans that matter most to middle class Americans are made at all.
The new reality is scorned by libertarians and conservatives, who fear intrusions by the state in the market, and by populists and progressives, who rue a society in which education and housing increasingly rest upon the government's willingness to finance it.
"If you're a socialist, you should be happy," said Michael Lind, a fellow at the New America Foundation, a research institute in Washington. "But you should really wonder whether you want people's ability to pay for housing and college dependent on the motives of people in Washington."
Why is this happening? Much of the private money that once surged into the mortgage industry has fled in a panicked horde, leaving most of the responsibility for financing American homes to the government-sponsored Fannie and Freddie.
(Excerpt) Read more at iht.com ...
Doesn’t the gov have a say in a certain number of board members / directors / etc., as part of the privatization? I seem to remember it that way, and that’s why I said what I said. Their hands are still in the kitty...
“Don’t know much about Alexander Hamilton do ya?”
Completely different situation and objective: instead of leaving revolutionary war debt to the states, he wanted to help forge a national identity among 13 discordant colonies by having the federal government assume that debt, which should’ve been the federal government’s responsibility anyway. It was war debt, for goodness sake. I doubt that what’s taking shape today is what Hamilton had in mind.
This is clearly a bad development. However, given the state of things, there were no good choices.
You’re right - and on so many fronts.
Mortgage Welfare
If banks can't sell the mortgage quickly (to likes of FNM) then they won't be offering any such mortgages. A mortgage is a long term loan, and banks just don't have the capital to freeze it for 30 years.
As result, a common man can't get a mortgage. Houses will be bought for cash only, which eliminates new homeowners, and those who want a larger house (or in a more expensive market.) The average price of a typical home will drop somewhat, following the lack of buyers. This will result in "house as an investment" schemes being thrown out of the window, and most people will see their assets reduced. Those who still pay mortgages may be forced to send the jingle mail (lose the house) because the property is no longer worth owning and paying for.
And in the process, driving down the value of all neighborhoods. Ain't the government grand?
| The corruption of wall street during the Bush years has unfortunately reached monumental proportions.
|
Hamilton didn’t just do it cause of the war debt. He truly believed we’d be a stronger country with a federalized banking system.
Just wait.
The morning will not be pretty.
Yeah, it’s a “GSE” or Government Supported Entity.
If banks can't sell the mortgage quickly (to likes of FNM) then they won't be offering any such mortgages. A mortgage is a long term loan, and banks just don't have the capital to freeze it for 30 years.
As result, a common man can't get a mortgage. Houses will be bought for cash only, which eliminates new homeowners, and those who want a larger house (or in a more expensive market.) The average price of a typical home will drop somewhat, following the lack of buyers. This will result in "house as an investment" schemes being thrown out of the window, and most people will see their assets reduced. Those who still pay mortgages may be forced to send the jingle mail (lose the house) because the property is no longer worth owning and paying for.
I understand your point completely. My question to him was how his mortgage being owned by either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac was going to affect his mortgage.
He answered none which of course is correct.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
<craig_ferguson>I knooowww</craig_ferguson>. The whole reason people are defaulting on their home loans, causing this big mortgage crisis, is that Bush caused corruption on Wall Street! And only you can see through the smokescreen!