Lakewood Ranch, FL Blog

Apparently, we have learned nothing.  There are a number of reasons for the housing meltdown but clearly one aspect of the mess was the government's requirement of lenders to make loans to people who had no business getting into loans they couldn't afford.  To no one's surprize, many of those loans have gone into default.

So, what should we have learned from this?  Make sure people really can afford the homes they purchase and the loans they take to get them, right?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Well, not so fast.  The USDA (the people who inspect meat?) backs a loan product for lenders that doesn't require any downpayment for the purchase of a single family home.  Funding for these loans is running out but Congress is working to generate new funding for these loans by increasing fees.  If this was limited to farming-related property or was limited to military members and first responders, I guess I wouldn't have a problem with it.  However, as I understand it, the product can be used to purchase property in such rural areas as....Lakewood Ranch.

I am a Realtor so obviously I am for anything that responsibly puts people in homes but I am also a citizen of the US who cares about my country's future.  I hope that Congress learns from the banking fiasco we've been through and smartly works to eliminate the loopholes found in programs like this one.  Otherwise, they are swapping one mess for another.