Statement of Senator Clinton on Final Senate Passage of the Housing Reform Act

Press Release

Statement of Senator Clinton on Final Senate Passage of the Housing Reform Act

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton today issued the following statement on final Senate passage of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008:

"The Senate's historic action today marks the most comprehensive housing relief bill in decades. This landmark legislation will make a real difference for millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet because of the housing crisis, and I urge the President to sign this bill into law without delay so that homeowners can get the relief they critically need.

For the hundreds of thousands of families trapped in mortgages with skyrocketing interest rates and monthly payments, this legislation will enable them to refinance their mortgages through the Federal Housing Administration at affordable rates and allow them to stave off foreclosure and keep their homes.

The property tax relief included in this bill will ease the tax burden for millions of homeowners and nearly 1.5 million families in New York. Modernizing the Federal Housing Administration has been one of my top priorities and I am proud that this bill includes provisions I fought for to make FHA mortgages widely available to homebuyers throughout the country. FHA backed mortgages offer clear and workable terms to homebuyers and provide an affordable alternative to the subprime and predatory mortgages that created this crisis.

I am also pleased that the block grant funding included in the bill will help the hardest hit cities recover from this crisis by enabling them to reclaim and restore vacant properties and fight blight. Moreover the improved regulation and oversight of our financial institutions and lenders will be put in place to put the housing market on a path toward recovery and help prevent another crisis such as this one.

We have delayed too long in taking these important steps, and the President must act quickly to get this help to those who need it most."

In response to the housing crisis, Senator Clinton introduced the Mortgage Refinancing Initiative of 2008, which would provide an opportunity for at-risk households to refinance unworkable mortgages. Last year she reintroduced the 21st Century Housing Act, which strengthens the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), makes FHA loans available to more Americans, and expands access to a responsible and stable alternative to the subprime market. She also introduced the Home Ownership Preservation Act, which eliminates abusive lending practices, cracks down on unscrupulous brokers, expands the foreclosure prevention initiatives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and provides financial assistance to states to expand their foreclosure prevention programs. She called on the mortgage industry and Wall Street to observe a 90-day moratorium on subprime foreclosures, a 5-year freeze in rates on subprime adjustable rate mortgages, and proposed $30 billion in assistance to states and communities to fight foreclosures and offset the costs associated with mounting vacancies. Read more about Senator Clinton's response to the housing crisis here: http://clinton.senate.gov/issues/housing/subprime/

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