Mortgage Brokers Face Tougher Lending Rules

Philadelphia Inquirer (06/11/08); Brubaker, Harold
More than a year after the subprime lending boom went bust, mortgage brokers continue to deal with industry changes that are infringing on their ability to make a buck. Some of the changes have compelled brokers to require larger down payments or higher credit ratings from borrowers. To date, efforts by Capitol Hill lawmakers and the White House to boost the mortgage market via a temporary increase in loan limits at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have accomplished very little. One bright spot in the mortgage industry is borrowing insured by the Federal Housing Administration, which in May expanded eligibility for its FHASecure loans--a program that initially targeted only creditworthy borrowers who were facing delinquency because their adjustable-rate mortgage had become too expensive.