2008 Housing Bill

I can’t wait for the conspiracy theorists, finger pointers and complainers to start bad mouthing the recently passed housing bill. Though the bill is expected to help 400,000 American families from losing their homes, there is a provision in the legislation that requires the home owner to share the proceeds of sale with the government when the home is sold. Someone close to me, who shall remain nameless, asked me the other day if this was a scam by the government to take even money from home owners who are already hurting. I thought, “Oh boy, here it comes.”

Since the housing correction and credit crisis began, the collective sentiment of The Fed, Congress, the White House, the media and the public has been that there should be some kind of help but NOT a bailout. The provision of sharing profits upon sale is one way our legislators devised for the tax payers to avoid shouldering the burden of fixing the crisis we are experiencing. It is a sensible solution that should be applauded. But the same people who are now flooding the media with their horror stories will undoubtedly find a way to paint this as another evil scam perpetrated on the public.

From the chambers of our governing bodies to the board rooms of the banks, to the living rooms of the average family, no part of society or any level of the industry is innocent of helping to cause this problem. The Fed followed its mandate to stimulate the economy. Banks and investors took the opportunity to borrow cheap and lend money. Consumers let their emotions and desires overpower their logic and lost the ability to see that they were over extending themselves.

Certainly, there were bad actors at every level trying to take advantage of the situation. But there were also hard working, ethical and moral people working to create opportunities for themselves and others. There is nothing wrong with that. It is disappointing, however to see and hear accounts of those who are in over their heads seeing the crisis as an opportunity to point the finger at others rather than holding themselves accountable for their own decisions.

Now that some relief is being allowed to move through Congress and Bush has signed it, let’s all pull together and turn this thing around instead of trying to find the worst in everything and slander those who are trying to help.

Ronny Loew is the Move-up Specialist with The Minnesota Home Loan Partners. He can be reached at 952-808-2815 or rloew@houseloan.com