My Way News - Bernanke urges more action to stem home foreclosure crisis
Some 1.5 million U.S. homes entered into the foreclosure process last year, up 53 percent from 2006, Bernanke said. The rate of new foreclosures looks likely to be even higher this year, he said.
To provide more relief, Bernanke again called on Congress to give the Federal Housing Administration, which insures mortgages, more flexibility to help distressed borrowers at risk of losing their homes. He also again urged lawmakers to move ahead on legislation revamping Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE), which finance mortgages. And, he called on the two mortgage giants to quickly raise new capital.
House leaders plan action on those and other housing measures this week.
The Dem-controlled congress has very little incentive to do much about the housing mess at this point. The calculus they see is simple: the worse Americans feel about the state of their economy, the greater will be the Democrat’s victory over the GOP this fall. Only after President Obama is in the White House will we then see sweeping measures to “rescue” the little guy and his exploding mortgage, courtesy of the “caring, feeling” new Dem administration.
