Castor Amends TARP Bill To Focus On Homeowners
Washington,
Jan 15 -
CONTACT: Ellen Gedalius
(813) 871-2817
Jan. 15, 2009
Congresswoman Kathy Castor successfully amended the new TARP Reform and Accountability Act by providing extensive new conditions on the future use of the next $350 billion in recovery funds and tackling the housing crisis. The amendment calls for enacting a holiday on foreclosures until the Obama Administration’s new housing and community stabilization plan is in place. Castor also secured language in the bill that will improve outreach to homeowners.
The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) bill requires the Treasury and FDIC to develop a systematic loan modification program by April 1. However, the program could take an additional month or two to be fully implemented.
The amendment stipulates that financial institutions that receive assistance from future TARP funds should stop foreclosures until the new housing and community stabilization program is fully in place. That will provide some much-needed relief for homeowners facing foreclosure. Castor worked with Congresswoman Doris Matsui of California on the amendment.
“This foreclosure holiday can give struggling homeowners a chance to work through their financial situations with loan counselors,” Castor said. “The mortgage industry, especially those institutions using taxpayers dollars, has a responsibility to allow this program to work before putting more people out of their homes.”
In her remarks on the House floor today, Castor said homeowners are yearning for help.
“They cannot get the banks and lenders on the phone,” Castor said. “They want to work it out. They want a little breathing room. They’re not asking for a bailout. They’re asking for a little bit of a break.”
Castor also secured language in the bill that requires private mortgage servicers to provide sufficient staffing, outreach and education at the local level to help homeowners on loan mitigation plans. That could be a job generator as well, as out-of-work Realtors and other housing experts can be trained to offer these counseling services.
The amended TARP bill is expected to pass the House next week.
The foreclosure crisis continues to hurt Florida. Just today, research firm RealtyTrac released new statistics on the number of foreclosures in our country. Florida posted the second-highest foreclosure rate in the nation in 2008, with 385,309 properties receiving a foreclosure filing. The Tampa Bay area had the 13th highest foreclosure rank in the country, with 53,630 filings in 2008. That is a 123 percent increase over 2007.
Castor last year held three foreclosure assistance workshops, which drew more than 1,000 people from all over the Tampa Bay area. Participants lined up, some waiting for hours, to meet one-on-one with bankers, lenders and counselors.
