HOUSING: Will the Federal Role In Affordability and Lending Expand?
Thursday, November 9, 2006; Page D03
Housing affordability has long been a prime issue for Democrats and so is likely to gain attention on Capitol Hill.
Many prospective House leaders come from cities with sky-high home costs, including San Francisco and Boston. The House might try to expand Federal Housing Administration loans to more expensive areas.
  Rep. Barney Frank said he would back a national predatory-lending standard. (Neal Hamberg - Bloomberg News) |
"That'll definitely be on the front burner," said John Taylor of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.
Predatory lending will be debated. The lending industry has sought a national law to combat conflicting state rules. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), in line to head the Financial Services Committee, is willing to back such a bill if it includes consumer protections.
"The industry will be asked to do some soul-searching and work with the committee," said Kurt Pfotenhauer of the Mortgage Bankers Association.
The congressional turnover takes heat off housing finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The election removes from oversight power a persistent adversary, capital markets subcommittee Chairman Richard H. Baker (R-La.)
Yesterday, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight tightened its rules governing Fannie and Freddie. But it remains unclear whether Congress will follow through on plans to create a stronger regulator. Where some policymakers have focused on the risks the companies pose to the financial system, Frank has defended them as important instruments of housing policy.
-- Kirstin Downey and David S. Hilzenrath
