White House deems home equity an unalienable right within the Declaration of Independence

Once again, the U.S. Government is initiating yet another

program to remove the burden of responsibility off the

shoulders of a specific group of American citizens.

According to the present administration, our

unalienable rights within The Declaration of Independence

 include life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness

and guaranteed home equity.

"Responsibility" Food For Thought

• Responsibility is the price of greatness. (Winston Churchill)
• We are responsible for actions performed in response to circumstances for which we are not responsible. (Allan Massie)
• You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today. (Abraham Lincoln)

By Nick Timiraos and Alan Zibel

The Wall Street Journal
12/7/10 

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are in talks with Obama administration officials to join fledgling government programs aimed at reducing loan balances of mortgages where borrowers owe more than their homes are worth, according to people familiar with the situation.

An agreement with the two government-owned mortgage giants to write down so-called underwater loans could reduce the threat to the U.S. housing market from the glut of homeowners believed at risk of default should their personal finances or home prices worsen. A deal would deepen losses at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which already have cost taxpayers about $134 billion.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which own or guarantee about half of all first-lien mortgages in the U.S., have been highly reluctant to reduce loan balances, especially for borrowers who are still making payments.

The Obama administration is pressuring Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, through their primary regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The administration wants the firms to join a program run by the Federal Housing Administration that allows banks and other creditors, which agree to write down mortgages, to essentially hand off the reduced loans to the FHA.

Federal officials estimate that 500,000 to 1.5 million homeowners could benefit from the program—a fraction of the estimated 11 million borrowers who were underwater as of June 30, according to CoreLogic Inc. That figure represents about 23% of all U.S. households with a mortgage. Complete article and chart








If people concentrated on their responsibilities, others would have their rights. (Stuart Briscoe)