If the bill Rep. Al Green proposed passes into law, borrowers looking to get an FHA mortgage may once again receive down payment assistance.

The bill, HR 600 — the FHA Seller-Financed Down Payment Reform Act of 2009 — would help borrowers who don’t have the money for a down payment become homeowners. Down payment assistance was outlawed last October, but Green’s proposed HR 600 would revise the requirements for the program. By creating this type of opportunity, the number of potential foreclosures would decrease and the failing housing market would be on the rise to recovery.

“Seller down payment assistance has helped more than one million Americans who are able to afford a monthly payment but do not have the down payment needed to become homeowners,” Green said in a Central Valley Business Times article. Down payment assistance would cost the federal government nothing over the next five years and actually save taxpayers money.

Nehemiah Corp of America, who pioneered the program, said that by reinstating down payment assistance, about 600,000 working-class people would receive aid for their home purchase next year alone, which would create $150 billion in home sales.

HR 600 has been referred to the House Committee on Financial Services, of which Green is a member, and is awaiting consideration. If committee members report the bill favorably, it will then move to be voted on by the House as a whole.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 29th, 2009 at 4:44 pm and is filed under Foreclosure, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.