Friday, May 22, 2009

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Dina Titus of Nevada’s Third District sent a letter to James Lockhart, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, today calling for more help for homeowners who owe more on their house than it is worth.  Titus is urging a change to the Making Home Affordable Program so that people whose mortgages exceed 105% of the value of their home could receive assistance as part of the refinancing provision of the program.

Below is the text of the letter:

May 22, 2009

James B. Lockhart III
Director
Federal Housing Finance Agency
1700 G Street, NW – Fourth Floor
Washington, D.C. 20552

Dear Director Lockhart,

I am writing to urge your support for raising the loan to value (LTV) requirement in the “Making Home Affordable” Program that would greatly increase the number of families who could benefit from this program. I believe that this change is of urgent need and should be made as soon as possible.

On May 6, 2009, the Wall Street Journal featured an article by Ruth Simon and James R. Hagerty entitled, “House-Price Drops Leave more Underwater” (copy enclosed). In this article you are quoted as saying that you are “considering” raising the loan to value (LTV) requirement for mortgage refinancing under the “Making Home Affordable” program which, as you know, is currently set at 105%.

Many homeowners across the county cannot qualify for this program because their LTV is over the 105% threshold. As noted in the article, it is estimated that almost 70% of homeowners in Southern Nevada are “underwater.” Every day, my offices receive phone calls from individuals who want to refinance as part of “Making Home Affordable,” but their LTV is greater than 105%, therefore prohibiting them from participating in the program. Increasing this threshold would offer assistance to countless families in my district and across the country who are looking for help to stay in their homes.

As you may know, the average value of a home in Las Vegas has fallen almost $110,000 in the last two years. Many people who purchased a home in the last few years have found that, due to no fault of their own, they are in negative equity. They do not want to walk away from their mortgages but have serious concerns about the actual value of their homes.

By enabling more families to refinance their current mortgage, we will not only allow them to stay in their homes, we will take an important step toward ending the current housing crisis. I respectfully request that you work to raise this threshold as quickly as possible.

Thank you in advance for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Dina Titus
MEMBER OF CONGRESS

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Tags: housing, Las Vegas