| Bush hammers home on economy
Easing the housing crisis. The economic stimulus package proposed by House leaders also includes two housing measures intended to make it easier for consumers to obtain mortgages or refinance expensive subprime loans. In his State of the Union address, Bush pushed for three other housing measures, noting that "these are difficult times for many American families, and by taking these steps, we can help more of them keep their homes." First, he reiterated his call to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which guarantee the purchase and sale of home mortgages in the secondary market. Both Fannie and Freddie have been plagued by accounting scandals, and reform would subject them to more stringent regulation. But Democrats and Republicans disagree over just how the oversight rules should be changed and also over the inclusion of unrelated elements in the reform bill.
Refinance A Second Mortgage - The Right Choice To Save Money Every ...
There are many homeowners in America that have a second mortgage. If you're one of these homeowners, you may have wondered about refinancing your it. Can you refinance it, and if you can, should you? As with many financial questions, the answer to your refinancing question may be simple to answer, or it may be a bit more complex. It all depends on your particular financial situation. First of all, if you have a second mortgage, many lenders will try to get you to combine your mortgages when you refinance. That's great for them. They get a larger loan on their books that way. It may or not be the right course of action for you, however. It depends upon the terms and balances of both your mortgages weather you should combine your first and second mortgages when refinancing. If your first mortgage has a low rate it may be better to just keep it as it is.
RAMS rate jump prompts regulation calls
Calls for greater regulation of non-bank lending have increased after 50,000 RAMS home loan customers were slugged with a second interest rate rise in six weeks. The struggling RAMS was thrown a lifeline when Australia's fourth largest bank Westpac agreed to buy the troubled non-bank lender's branches, brand name and any business that might come its way from November 15, for $140 million. RAMS will retain its existing $14.5 billion mortgage book. Westpac has also promised to lend RAMS about $1.5 billion of the $6 billion it needs to refinance its existing short-term debt. Unlike Westpac, RAMS doesn't have a large deposit base to fund its loans and got into trouble because it sourced about half its funding from short-term debt markets, which choked in the sub-prime mortgage meltdown.
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