On Sept. 16, 2008 HR 6694 is being considered by the House Financial Services Committee. The Committee should be encouraged to pass the bill out of committee to be voted on by the entire House of Representatives.

Today, several lobbying groups representing rental property owners have issued declarations in opposition to HR 6694, the bill which would reinstate the use of seller assisted down payment programs with FHA mortgages.

Of course rental property owners would love to see the opportunity to own a home taken away from potential home buyers who can prove the ability to pay but are unable to save for a down payment. To justify their opposition, these organizations use the same flawed and faulty data used by HUD which has already been dismissed as inaccurate by the courts when it has been challenged.

U.S. housing markets are already almost down for the count, yet government officials are taking no action to protect the interests of the average citizen. Officials have been putting all their efforts into enacting programs to protect wealthy mortgage banking firms and real estate investors while giving lip service to the troubles of average citizens.

HUD data is extremely unreliable. Data from the lenders actually originating the loans shows that stricter underwriting and fraud control would essentially eliminate the gap in foreclosure rates between borrowers using down payment assistance and those making nearly meaningless 3% down payments.

Every effort should be made to save these valuable down payment assistance programs.

For more information on FHA training for loan officers, and to find out what you can do to help save these programs, visit FHA Loan Advice