Housing

Since 2007, Arizona has been consistently ranked within the top four states in the nation for foreclosures.  Most Americans’ primary investment is their home and ending the mortgage crisis is vital to America’s economic recovery.  

I believe we must do all we can to protect and expand the American dream of home ownership.  Affordable housing is crucial to strong families, strong communities and a strong economy.

In February 2009, President Obama released his own Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan to seven to nine million families restructure or refinance their mortgages to avoid foreclosure—as well as their neighbors whose own house values will drop as a result of a nearby foreclosure.  The Obama plan takes advantage of historically low mortgage interest rates to:

• Help millions of families refinance into lower interest rate loans if they have mortgages issued or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and owe more on their houses than their current value; and
• Spur lenders into working with families stuck in unaffordable sub-prime mortgages to change the terms of those loans.

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In the 111th Congress, I am proud to support the following housing legislation:

Helping Families Save Their Homes Act
Provides key tools and incentives for lenders, servicers and homeowners to modify loans and to avoid foreclosures by:

• Reducing the current fees for homeowners and lenders that have discouraged them from participating in the Hope for Homeowners program;
• Offering new incentives for lenders to negotiate loan modifications with borrowers at risk of foreclosure under the Hope for Homeowners program;
• Strengthening consumer rights to housing information and the community banks; and
• Protecting the bank deposits and savings of consumers with a four-year extension of the increase in deposit insurance to $250,000.

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act
To create and save 3.5 million American jobs, jumpstart our economy, and transform it for success in the 21st century.  This legislation:

• Modifies the refundable first-time home buyer credit of up to $8,000 by eliminating the repayment obligation for purchases after Jan. 1, 2009;
• Extends and expands tax credits for energy-efficient investments in homes through 2010 such as furnaces, energy-efficient windows and doors, or insulation;
• $2 billion for Neighborhood Stabilization Program for local governments and state to purchase and rehabilitate vacant housing;
• $4 billion for Public Housing Capital Fund to rehabilitate units to improve energy efficiency, increase affordable housing projects, and address senior citizens’ needs; and
• $2.3 billion for HOME Program, block grants to state and local governments to create affordable housing for low-income households.

TARP Reform and Accountability Act
Tough accountability measure to overhaul the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), ensuring that funds will be spent responsibly and transparently to help stabilize our economy and get credit flowing again to families and businesses.  Among other measures, H.R. 384 will help Americans stay in their homes by:

• Calling on Treasury to immediately commit up to $100 billion of the second $350 billion TARP funding on a comprehensive foreclosure mitigation plan (to be developed by Treasury by March 15 and implemented by April 1);
• Protecting mortgage servicers who modify loan to stem foreclosures against lawsuits that are impeding modifications;
• Mandating that the foreclosure mitigation plan include at least $20 billion for a systematic program to guarantee loan modifications to help families in danger of losing their homes;
• Making changes to the Hope for Homeowners refinancing program to encourage more lenders to refinance home loans for borrowers at risk of losing their homes;
• Requiring Treasury to develop a program outside of TARP to ensure the availability of affordable mortgages by purchasing mortgages and mortgage-backed securities; and
• Requiring the TARP’s congressional oversight panel to report to Congress by July 1 on actions taken by the Treasury to mitigate foreclosures.

Housing Opportunity and Mortgage Equity Act
Would allow all current homeowners and qualified borrowers to receive a fixed 4-percent interest rate with a fixed 30-year term.

Affordable Housing and Community Development Act
Would increase funding for the Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG) to $8 billion for fiscal years 2011 and 2012.

In addition, I remain committed to fighting for Arizona’s fair share of Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding, the one federal program aimed at helping our country’s most vulnerable cope with extreme weather.  In the 110th Congress, I cosponsored the Warm in Winter and Cool in Summer Act (H.R. 6427), legislation that would nearly double funding for LIHEAP.  Arizona received $8.2 million in LIHEAP funds in FY 2008; H.R. 6427 would bring an additional $24,680,040 into the state.  I also signed a letter along with 89 of my colleagues sent to House leaders calling for at least $3.12 billion in LIHEAP funding, and another letter in September 2008 urging them to include at least $2.5 billion in any additional stimulus or supplemental appropriations bill for LIHEAP.  Low-income families, individuals with disabilities and seniors on fixed incomes in Arizona and across the country are struggling with high energy costs.  These people should not be forced to choose between cooling or heating their home and buying food or prescription medicine.