Housing Program Guidelines Out

The Obama administration has unveiled the new housing assistance program. The guidelines (found on the program's official website) are not entirely clear, but the NY Times breaks it down for you in this graph here. Essentially the program is aimed at two classes of borrowers, strong borrowers whose mortgage balances are high in proportion to the value of their home because of a drop in value, and "at-risk" borrowers whose home value has dropped and who are struggling to make payments. But there are losers too; the program will not cover loans over $729, 750, or owners who owe more than 105% of the value of their home. As that article notes, estimates are that the program could save 600,000 to 2.6 million homes from foreclosure, though of course for many it will only stave off the inevitable.