The Obama mortgage flim-flam: another stealth bailout for bankers.

[Karmadillo]

http://www.counterpunch.org/whitney04222010.html

The Real State of the Housing Market
By MIKE WHITNEY

<edit>

One final note. The U.S. Treasury Dept recently reported that the number of "permanent" mortgage mods under the Obama whizzbang program, have more than doubled since its kickoff just a few months ago.

According to economist Dean Baker, "This indicates that a very high percentage of the permanent modifications are likely to end in default."

But here's the shocker:

"The money that the government spends on a failed modification goes to banks, not homeowners. Typically, the government will have substituted an FHA insured mortgage for the original mortgage issued by a bank. This means that when a redefault takes place, the bank will have received most of the principle back on the loan, with the government incurring the loss on the redefault." (Dean Baker, CEPR, "Money for Failed Modifications Goes to Banks, Not Homeowners")

What does it mean? It means that the Obama mortgage flim-flam is another stealth bailout to shoehorn bankers into government-guaranteed loans so John Q. Public gets saddled with the bill again. Sound familiar?

[truedelphi]

1. Sung to the tune of "There's no business like show business"

There's no business like the show business
Of the Cheating Political Class
Every modification they make
Only makes us Pay
While the Banksters all make Hay
And no one ever can make the Dishonest
and Greedy go away
So now --
On with the show!

[ixion]

2. we pay the taxes, they steal the taxes

that's some government. :puke:

[The Northerner]

7. +1

[Riley18]

3. Why will the modifications fail? Aren't they supposed to be affordable?

[jody]

4. The more things change, the more they remain the same as corporatists tighten their strangle hold.

[BlueIris]

5. Ew. nt

[Karmadillo]

6. Kick for someone to maybe explain why the Obama administration is doing this to us.

nt

[Bluebear]

8. lol

good luck

[Karmadillo]

9. You just wait. That explanation will be posted any minute. I'm sure of it.

nt

[blindpig]

10. hater....

:7

k&r

[Karmadillo]

11. Darn it. Unmasked again.

:hi:

[Bluebear]

13. crickets. strange!

[Karmadillo]

14. That silence is the sound of deep thinking. I'm sure the results will show up here very, very soon

when someone explains why taxpayers should, yet again, bail out the rich.

[ima_sinnic]

12. I'm pretty sure it has something to do w chess, & being in ofc only 459 days, counting today (nt)

[QC]

15. YOU NEVER LOVED HIM TO START WITH!1!!!!!!111

:cry:

[sendero]

16. There is no explanation..

.... this administration has about 4 months to get tough on the banks or it is history. I think they finally get it, I'm just not sure they have the stones to do it.