Corzine Renews Call for Federal Aid for Struggling Familes Making Home Payments

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a speech to regulators and professionals in the residential mortgage lending industry, Gov. Jon Corzine on Monday, Dec. 8 renewed his call for federal assistance to families struggling to make payments on their homes in these trying economic times.
“We’re here today to discuss the housing crisis – perhaps the worst housing crisis in the nation’s history,” Corzine said during the Office of Thrift Supervision Housing Conference in Washington. “It’s a crisis that has shaken our country to the core as we grapple with how we allowed more than two million homeowners and their families to be evicted, literally scrambling for shelter, deprived of their fundamental right to shelter.
“And it’s not just the worst housing crisis in American history, it’s the root of the current economic freefall that has erased so much of our nation’s wealth that was accumulated over the past decade.”
As such, Corzine said, a federal program needs to be implemented to address the housing crisis – or risk driving the nation even deeper into recession. Such a program must keep homes affordable and keep families in their homes, thus preserving local communities and their economies.
The governor said elements that need to be addressed are:
• Modification of bankruptcy laws to permit judges to adjust the principle on a mortgage, when necessary;
• Implementation of a structured mediation process that helps homeowners stay in their homes;
• Leveraging of Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds already allocated to financial institutions to modify mortgages;
• Make affordable mortgage money more readily available through state Housing Finance Agencies;
• Overhaul the federal regulatory system to better safeguard against predatory lending; and
• A three to six month foreclosure “time out” for certain qualifying homeowners.
“In total, all of these actions would help us to stabilize the foundations of our financial system and put our economy back on stronger ground,” Corzine said. “But at the end of the day, it’s important to remember this isn’t just about mortgage-backed securities and credit default swaps. It’s about people.”