CONGRESS CONSIDERS STRIPPING HOMEOWNERS OF STATE PROTECTIONS

[No Exit]

Congress Considers Stripping Homeowners of State Protections

By James Weingarten

From: Warren Reports

The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) is reporting that a new bill in Congress would override and weaken state anti-predatory lending laws that protect homeowners. Congressmen Ney (R-Ohio) and Kanjorski (D-Pennsylvania) have introduced legislation that would roll back state protections for homeowners.

Promoting uniformity among the states is a good reason to introduce federal legislation. Such legislation can ensure that states don't "race to the bottom." But the Ney-Kanjorski bill pins states to the bottom. Forcing all states to the lowest common denominator smacks of blatant interest group pandering.


According to the CRL analysis, there are several key problems with the Ney-Kanjorski bill: First, the bill excludes certain fees from the calculations that trigger predatory lending protections. So lenders can escape those protections by shifting their fees into those exlcuded categories. Second, the bill allows abusive flipping of home loans, rather than prohibiting abusive flipping on all home loans. Third, the bill lets lenders finance their own high fees, so homeowners end up paying for fees as part of their mortgage. With no up front payment, the fees easily become hidden away so that borrowers never realize the significance of those hidden exhorbitant fees. The CRL website details other problems with the bill.

In short, the Ney-Kanjorski bill lets lenders take advantage of new homeowners, especially sub-prime borrowers. So much for the ownership society.

(snip)

http://www.tpmcafe.com/story/2005/12/3/201934/727

This Ney scum can't go to jail soon enough for me. I don't know anything about Kanjorski, but if this is his idea of legislation that represents his constituents, then he can go to jail with Ney, as far as I'm concerned. Republican legislation is beginning to look like just raw fascism.

Notice that the legislators who introduced the counter-legislation are democrats. Bravo to them!

Would laws like this one stand up in the courts? That's why republicans are eager to gobble up ALL the judgeships... with republicans havING a lock on two branches of the government, the only thing that occasionally stops them is a judge somewhere. DON'T LET THE REPUBLICANS GET ONE MORE JUDGESHIP!

[stepnw1f]

1. WTF? (nt)

[wtbymark]

2. "Republican legislation is beginning to look like just raw fascism"

Bingo! We have a winner - they are fascists

[indepat]

3. The 'Puke culture of corruption is corrupt to its rotten core

[AzDar]

4. sickening...typical. but sickening. n/t

[salin]

5. protect the predators and screw those screwed by them with the

infamous bankruptcy bill.

[BigYawn]

7. But its good for the economy that way

<end of sarcasm>

[BJW]

6. kicked & recc'd--this is the REAL war