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The Importance of a Homeowner Bill of Rights -
by Peter Swire and Jordan Eizenga
For more, see here.
by Jordan Eizenga and James Hairston
Manufacturing remains an integral part of our economy. Manufacturing companies provide well-paying, middle-income jobs. U.S. manufacturing wages are, on average, 19.3 percent higher than the private-sector average even though the sector employs an above-average share of those without a college education. Manufacturing also drives innovation. Manufacturing companies account for more than half of all public and private research and development in the United States, the benefits of which spill over into other sectors.
While U.S. manufacturing today suffers from lower employment levels and slower growth in output than in the past, the sector is by no means a lost cause. Much can be done to bolster its competitiveness. For one, the federal government can help create jobs and increase output by improving the performance of manufacturers by increasing their access to capital.
For more see
by John Griffith, Alon Cohen, and Jordan Eizenga
The new pilot program by housing finance giant Fannie Mae to convert foreclosed homes into rentals is a promising first step toward revitalizing neighborhoods and stabilizing local housing markets—providing homeowners and renters alike with much-needed help. That said, details are scarce about the new program, which President Barack Obama unveiled yesterday at a speech in Falls Church, Virginia. But so far we are encouraged by the care Fannie Mae is taking in screening potential participants given the impact this program will have in affected communities. (For more, click on the title above)
Getting to the Bottom of the Housing Crisis -
by Janneke Ratcliffe, Alon Cohen and Jordan Eizenga
Talk about critical timing. President Barack Obama’s newly formed mortgage crisis working group within the Department of Justice is charged with investigating fraud in the home mortgage market that led to the housing and financial crises and the Great Recession. The new group will begin its work just as state attorneys general from around the country are reportedly about to finalize negotiations with the nation’s leading mortgage servicers over a settlement for misconduct in the wake of the housing market collapse.
For more, see here.
Rehab-to-Rent Can Help Hard-Hit Communities and Our Economy -
by Alon Cohen, Jordan Eizenga, Bracken Hendricks, John Griffith, and Adam James
Half a million houses, many of them vacant and deteriorating, are languishing in a bloated U.S. real estate market, threatening to turn some cities into ghost towns, undermining the stability of working families, and proving to be an anchor on a shaky economy. Many of these vacant homes, nearly a quarter-million, are controlled by the federal government.
If the situation wasn’t already bleak enough, there are also more than a million additional American homes saddled with delinquent mortgages that are in the process of foreclosure. Chances are many of these homes will also end up as the property of the federal government. The only way to lower the inventory of decaying homes is to find a use for the ones we have before new ones swell the pool. Without assistance, the current “overhang” of foreclosed homes is expected to take four years to work back into the market.
The good news is the Obama administration and independent federal regulators are formulating plans to sell government-controlled foreclosed properties to investors who would bring them onto the rental market. (For more, see here).
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A Small Change to the Saver’s Credit Can Go a Long Way -
by Camille Busette and Jordan Eizenga
Homeownership has long helped low- and moderate-income families build wealth that allows them to start businesses, educate their children, and retire with dignity. As a result of the recent housing and financial crises, American families will not have the same opportunity to build wealth through homeownership anytime soon. While sustainable homeownership remains an important goal, policymakers should explore other avenues to help low- and moderate-income families build household wealth. If we want to put these families on the path to homeownership, then we have to develop a comprehensive set of national policies that provide opportunities for and incentivize savings.
Unfortunately, the existing government incentives to save, invest, and build wealth are poorly advertised to the households that could use them the most. (For the rest of the issue brief, see here.)
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Big Ideas for Small Business: The CDFI Bond Guarantee Program -
by Jordan Eizenga
The federal government has not yet implemented a program, authorized in legislation passed in September 2010, which, once up and running, will help so-called Community Development Financial Institutions invest in small businesses and communities hardest hit by the financial crisis. The 2010 CDFI Bond Guarantee Program will expand access to low-cost capital for Community Development Financial Institutions, or CDFIs. These are U.S. Treasury-certified entities that offer basic financial services to communities traditionally overlooked by banks. CDFIs provide low-interest loans, basic banking services, and other affordable financial products to low-income households and businesses. The more than 800 CDFIs range from small loan funds with less than $1 million to lend to large banks and credit unions with billions of dollars in assets. For more of this article, see here.