You currently have two problems with the Alt-A loans, one structural the other caused by government.
Ask anyone in the mortgage business and they will tell you that refi applications are through the roof. They’ve never been busier processing applications for refis. But the appraisals are a bottleneck. It is difficult, if not impossible, in the current market to appraise a house. Have we hit bottom? Or will home prices drop another 20-30%? If you can’t answer that question, you can’t loan prudently.
The second problem is that everyone is now waiting for a government bailout. Why should I be the only chump paying my mortgage when so many others are getting the government to pay for theirs?