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Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Sky High
Proving that in Obama's America, the liberal upper classes still have the upper hand:
The Federal Housing Administration agreed in March to insure mortgages for apartments at the 98-unit Gramercy Park development, known as Tempo. That enables buyers to make a down payment of as little as 3.5 percent in a building where apartments range from $820,000 to $3 million.
[..]
The FHA, created in 1934 to make homeownership attainable for low- to moderate-income Americans, is providing a lifeline to new Manhattan luxury condominiums after sales stalled. Buildings featuring pet spas, concierges and rooftop lounges are applying for agency backing to unlock bank financing for purchasers. The FHA guarantees that if a homebuyer defaults on his mortgage, the agency will pay it.
Give me your tired, poor and huddled masses of i-bankers, yearning to mooch free / I lift my lamp beside the legislative door.
Posted by Richard Anderson on August 18, 2010 | Permalink
Comments
Publius,
The government will never stop messing with the housing market. Bill Gross of PIMCO said it best; if the gov't removed the insurances and guarantees, interest rates on mortages would rise 300 basis points. As a consequence, housing prices would plummet and foreclosures would sore; more so. I'm not saying that they shouldn't remove these subsidies. I'm just saying that they won't.
Posted by: Charles | 2010-08-18 6:58:32 AM
Much the same has happened with U.S. farm subsidies for many years. It is now well-known that the bulk of the subsidies go to individuals who are much wealthier than the average American, yet the gravy train continues unabated.
I agree with Charles that the subsidies will continue. It's all part of a frantic effort on the part of the U.S. government and the Federal Reserve to re-inflate the housing bubble. Such efforts will not stop until the U.S. government hits the wall of imminent bankruptcy.
Posted by: Dennis | 2010-08-18 2:06:46 PM
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