FHA: "Bailout Doesn't Apply." Those are not my words, but the words of HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan toward the end of a lengthy explainer on the FHA's annual actuarial report, released this morning.

submits: PRICE TRENDS / WAR OF THE WORLDS (Part 4): Property owners nationwide have lost only one dollar for every four dollars they can ultimately expect to lose on their home.

Biggest home construction companies will receive hundreds of millions in tax refunds, allowing them to boost cash reserves as they move toward recovery.

Written By: Stacey Sprain, Certified Ambassador Loan Processor (CALP) As announced in Mortgagee Letter 2009-32-Revised Streamline Refinance Transactions, major changes will be effective for cases requested on and after Tuesday, November 17th! Are you ready for these changes? For many years, streamline refinances have been a treat for FHA-insured mortgagors because they have offered the benefit of little required documentation, immediate interest rate and/or payment reduction, and the ability in many cases to roll in all costs without the need for any funds out of pocket. Starting Tuesday I suspect we won’t be seeing nearly as many of them or we will be seeing more of them done with the need for borrowers to bring funds to their closings. A number of things are changing with the implementation of the new requirements; one of them being a requirement for a minimum of six month’s seasoning on any FHA loan to be streamlined. In the past no seasoning has been required aside from investor overlays. Another requirement is the need for a strong payment history in the most recent 6-12 month period. If the mortgage being refinanced is seasoned less than 12 months, a perfect payment history must be verified. For those mortgages seasoned 12 months or greater, no more than 1 30-day late payment may have occurred in the most recent 12 month period and late payments cannot have been made in the most recent 90 day period. Streamline refinances must still clearly exhibit a tangible benefit to the borrower(s) but requirements have been detailed a bit more specifically within the Mortgagee Letter than in the past. Investor overlays have included the requirement for verbal employment verifications in some cases but starting Tuesday, the lender is required to certify that the borrower is employed and/or has income at the time of the loan application. This will lead to a requirement for verbal VOEs in all cases and if the lenders are wise, they will require that the employment be verified...

No news is good news, right? Well, that may work in raising teenagers but when it comes to public policy in general and housing policy specifically the American public deserves to know what is going on. Why? American taxpayers are picking up the tab, that’s why.

Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Acting Director Edward J. DeMarco today announced that he has reaffirmed the status of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle (Seattle Bank) as “Undercapitalized” under the FHFA’s Prompt Corrective Action Regulation. This determination continues the restrictions currently imposed on the Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle that prohibit it from redeeming or repurchasing any capital stock or paying any dividends. Acting Director DeMarco took this action because of uncertainty concerning collateral values and potential for future losses on the Seattle Bank’s private-label mortgage-backed securities portfolio.