© New York Times 2009  President Obama is likely to propose a fee on financial institutions to help reduce the federal deficit when he releases his budget plans in February, although the details remain unresolved, according to administration officials.  The bank fee would recover some of the money that taxpayers put up to bail out the financial system after its near-collapse in the fall of 2008, a rescue effort that has contributed to the largest annual budget deficits since World War II.  Read more.  ...
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© Reuters 2009 Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives briefed party members on Thursday on healthcare talks with the Senate, with competing approaches on taxes and the shape of new insurance exchanges topping the list of priorities. Read more. ...
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© Reuters 2009  Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Eric Rosengren said U.S. job growth will probably be slow and unemployment will stay “quite elevated” while the economy recovers, warranting continued low interest rates.  Employment growth “will not likely be rapid enough to put a large dent in the unemployment rate,” Rosengren said in a speech today in Hartford, Connecticut. “This should allow for accommodative monetary policy to continue to support the economy until the underlying demand of consumers and businesses becomes self-sustaining.” More >>

The Defense Department spending bill recently signed into law, included a 2-month extension of the authority for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). This gives Congress until February 28, 2010, to continue considering a range of reforms to strengthen NFIP's long-term financial viability. Without NFIP, property owners in federally designated areas across the nation would not be able to obtain a mortgage or flood insurance to protect their property. ...
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Last month, the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that funds continue to be available for SBA ARC loans and Microloans. In addition, the SBA announced an extension, to February 28, 2010, of the enhancements made possible under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to the SBA's 7(a) and 504 loan programs due to additional funding of $125 million. The funding was made available as part of the Department of Defense appropriations bill signed by President Obama on December 19th. The enhancements to the 7(a) and 504 programs include higher loan guarantees and elimination of borrower fees. Realtors® are eligible for all of these SBA loans. More >>

© Arizona Republic 2009Arizona State buildings will go on the market next week, as state officials look to raise $735 million to boost the state's depleted coffers.The offer, which includes the state Coliseum, prisons, the headquarters of the Department of Public Safety and legislative buildings, will go on the market Tuesday and Wednesday, said Alan Ecker, a spokesman for the state Department of Administration.  Investors can buy certificates of participation in the buildings in $5,000 increments by working through the state's underwriters, Morgan Stanley and Citi. Ecker said the certificates, which are tax exempt, will likely carry an More >>

© Business Week 2009 Taxpayer losses from supporting Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will top $400 billion, according to Peter Wallison, a former general counsel at the Treasury who is now a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. “The situation is they are losing gobs of money, up to $400 billion in mortgages,” Wallison said in a Bloomberg Television interview. The Treasury Department recognized last week that losses will be more than $400 billion when it raised its limit on federal support for the two government-sponsored enterprises, he said. The U.S. seized the two mortgage financiers in 2008 as the government struggled to prevent a meltdown of the financi ...
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13 Attorney Generals are challenging the constitutionality of part of the federal health care bill.  They sent a letter Wednesday to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reidwarning the congressional leaders that legal action may result if they do not remove a provision that gives Nebraska a break on Medicaid payments.  The group says the “Cornhusker Kickback” is unconstitutional and was added to secure the vote of Nebraska U.S. Senator Ben Nelson. Republican U.S. SE Lindsey Graham and Jim DeMint asked McMaster to look at the bill amended to win Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson’s support.  Below is a copy of the le ...
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Last week, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced the enactment of two appraisal Mortgagee Letters (ML) will be delayed until February 15, 2010.  ML 2009-28, Appraiser Independence, prohibits mortgage brokers and commission-based lending staff from ordering the appraisal.  In ML 2009-51, FHA announced it is adopting the Appraisal Update and/or Completion Report, Fannie Mae Form 1004D/Freddie Mac Form 442/March 2005.  ML 2009-28 and ML 2009-51 were initially to be implemented on January 1, 2010. According to FHA, the extension "will provide FHA and lenders additional time to adjust systems to accommodate the changes." More >>

On December 16, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) released Mortgagee Letter (ML) 2009-52, providing guidance to lenders and underwriters on short sales and short pay offs. The guidance is effective immediately and impacts FHA Handbook 4155.1, Mortgage Credit Analysis for Mortgage Insurance on One- to Four-Unit Mortgage Loans. The ML provides guidance to lenders for borrowers: 1) taking advantage of market conditions, 2) eligible for a new FHA mortgage, and 3) in default at the time of the short sale. According to the guidance, borrowers who enter into a short sale agreement to take advantage of a declining market to purchase, at a reduced price, a similar or superior property will not ...
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