Why should the elimination of Downpayment Assistance Programs with the signing of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act concern YOU?? READ THIS, BECAUSE THERE IS STILL HOPE AFTER OCTOBER 1ST!
I think we could agree that the housing industry is currently in a national... shall we say, "slump", right? And why is that? Because we have more sellers than buyers. So where can we find more buyers? hmmmm... renters maybe?? Yet 30% of all renters aren't buyers due to lack of down payment.
And here's how that affects EVERYONE whether they own real estate now or might want to in the future:
1. Renters can't buy starter homes because they don't have a down payment.
2. Move up buyers can't buy bigger because they can't sell their starter home.
3. And luxury home buyers can't enter that market because they can't sell their homes either!
There should be other reasons we want first time homeowners to have the ability to own homes besides our own desire to sell ours, though. Please read the summary of the report done by John Hopkins University covering The Effects of Home Ownership on Families. This report covers everything from the educational and income impact to teenage pregnancies!
BUT there could be a light at the end of the tunnel that you need to know about: HR6694 is the bill that was introduced to the House trying to bring back DPA, the very next day after President Bush eliminated all seller assisted down payment assistance programs with the signing of HERA.
Believe it or not, we are still debating whether the down payment assistance program is really going to be GOOD for the housing industry?? To see what other opinions on the subject are, go to WashingtonWatch. This site also allows YOU to cast YOUR vote on the subject. It also contains links to the bill, and links to your representative.
And if you're still not convinced whether or not to take action, go to: www.rallyforhomeownership.com to get the facts on the issue. (By the way, some of those in congress believes that DPA was the cause of 28% of the FHA foreclosures. HOWEVER, did you know that FHA didn't even track the source of down payment beyond "gift" until recently? Hello?)
YOU need to get involved NOW. Please call your Congressman and plead with them to support HR 6694. OH! And tell your friends and family to do so, too!
(NOTE: they reconvene on September 9th and the target adjournment date is September 26th. That means there is only 18 days for them to pass this bill before the Housing and Economic Reform Act kicks in on October 1st eliminating the program.)
I read this earlier this morning (http://activerain.com/blogsview/661557/Real-Estate-One-Liners):
The dream of the older generation was to pay off a mortgage. The dream of today's young families is to get one.
Is that funny?
Ruth: I just re-blogged this on my blog. I have written on this topic many times and I believe strongly (as you do) that we must do all we can to salvage seller-finded DPA. I am convinced this is one of the keys to reducing the length of the dry spell in real estate. The recovery will be felt much sooner with more qualified buyers in the market and these programs will just help to facilitate this process! Thanks for the great post and information!
Very informative, thanks for the links
www.rallyforhomeownership.com was a very informative site. thanks!
I really think that if they remove the program the mortgage industry will suffer even more than it already is. This will lead to a shortage of buyers for the already large amount of homes on the market. I beleive there are alot of buyers out there with the need for these programs, who just need the extra funds to get into the home, these borrowers have the money for the monthly payment, they just need the extra to get into the home. Please Keep this program alive
I found the Washington Watch link very interesting and helpful in understanding what this means to buyers and their ability to get a new home.
Thanks for the information. Just one more example of government 'coming to the rescue' only to make matters worse. We all need to do our part to bring this program back as keeping people from home ownership isn't good for ANY part of our society or economy.
Wow! Thank you for posting this!
Great information. Yet again the "government intervening on our behalf", with negative results. This program is needed. Not having this is keeping many people from the opportunity to be homeowners.
Ruth,
Fantastic post. I knew DPA was going the way of the Dodo, but it's nice to hear there's already a move to bring it back!
Cheers!
Jamie
Pretty scary statistics of the effects on a family if they rent versus own. Let's hope that when Congress reconvenes in a couple of weeks, that they themselves have put as much time and research into HR 6694 as you have.
If DPA's are not brought back in some fashion, it will definitely prolong the Real Estate recovery by limiting the number of buyers entering the market.
We need to be able to absorb the inventory across the board by starting with the first time buyers and moving all the way up through and to the mansion buyers.
Every entry level home being bought is another step to a lower absorption rate and to the purging of excess inventory.
Thanks for the great information and for the helpful links! It's always great to know about all of the options available for buyers.
Signing this bill into law was incompetent! They overlooked the charitable assistance elimination language. 700 pages or not, they all have staffers that should have recognized the issues surrounding the DPA. Charitable assistant programs was one of President Bush's major talking points in his campaign speeches. He must have forgot!
Great Blog Ruth:)
Thanks for sharing this! Great information to have and know in regards to DPA!
Good piece of information, thanks. Really enjoy the links and Ruth, clever photo, like it......DONNA