Overview
By now, most of us have heard about the mortgage lending crisis—and the big spike in foreclosures—that’s dragging down our economy. While there is plenty of blame to go around for the mortgage meltdown, there are a couple of things we can all agree on. We need to take action now to prevent the next crisis, and we need to get rid of abusive lending practices.
If you work hard and save money, you should be able to buy a house- it’s part of the American dream. But Oregon law gives almost no protections when it comes to mortgage lending.
We need to protect homeownership by making sure brokers act in the interest of their clients, requiring lenders to honestly assess a borrower’s ability to repay, and getting rid of unreasonable fees and penalties. Unfortunately, the mortgage lending industry is fighting these reforms tooth and nail.
What’s more, we haven’t even seen the worst effects of the mortgage meltdown here in Oregon. With more than 15,000 home loans expected to reset at much higher monthly payments over the next several months, we need to act now make sure that homeowners have strong consumer protections when they look to refinance.
