Irvine Housing Blog

This says more about the state of our corrupt political system than it does about the housing market. Score another one for the banks! They truly deserve kudos for that lobbying win. The sad part is I would’ve been surprised if the ceiling hadn’t been raised again.

Huge resistance to raising the GSE limits. Congress wants the Agencies gone as soon as possible. They carved out the GSE limit increase from the whole legislation, a clear signal that the GSE’s aren’t going to get higher limits anytime soon.

I’m OK with a higher FHA limit, but not if they continue to have such loose guidelines. A 620 FICO and a 48-50% DTI is A-OK with HUD (enough abbreviations for you?) which is mind numbing. Ratchet up the scores and lower the DTI and you’ll get high quality, low risk buyers. Had a $350kpy newly minted Doctor contact me last week. He had 10% down, perhaps 15%, but not 20% on a $800k home, a perfect candidate for a high balance FHA loan. If more of these borrowers were approved and less of the dregs, FHA wouldn’t be in the position it’s in today.

My .02c

Precisely what the housing market needs!

Just when the sickly patient was about to get off his gurney and stumble out the doors of Sunnyside rehab, Washingdumb offers him a “freebie” to pep him back up.

Smiling Congressman to zombie debt patient: “Man, thank goodness we arrived! Where would you be without us”?

“California Republicans should hide their faces in shame.”

I’m surprized that you’re surprized. Republicans have obviously jumped on the debt reduction issue as a political tool to make Obama a 1-term president specifically, and reverse Democrat gains generally, no matter what the cost to the country and anyone less than the super-rich. Look at where most of the deficit came from (Republican presidents and policies which bothered them not a bit at the time), and not what they say now. Or, check out the actual chance of Ron Paul to get the Republican nomination.

Republicans control the House, and if they wanted to block government help for rich people buying overpriced houses and some hidden flow of money to the banks they certainly would have. Too bad the Democrats aren’t clever enough to pick up the fiscal responsibility baton when it has been dropped. It’s a Bush tax cut issue now - none of them has the guts to kill it, just keep extending it time after time until some magical future moment when “the time is right”.

> Congress has voted to increase the FHA loan limit to $729,750 through the end of 2013.

I guess Washington can and will do anything to re-inflate bubble pricing.

Foreclosure auction pricing shows that without easy credit, Cali house prices would be almost half.

You have to wonder what BofA executives were thinking when they bought Countrywide. BofA had experience with dozens of mergers, yet made 2 huge investments in a steaming pile.

A female correspondent on NBR last week was asked, “BofA shares have declined. What is the risk in buying BofA shares?”

She replied, “None, since BofA is too big to fail.”

I wanted to throw up.