Dep.+of+housing+and+urban+development


 * __[[image:http://www.reony.com/Hud.gif width="400" height="506" align="left"]]MISSION__**__:__ HUD's mission is to increase homeownership, support community development and increase access to affordable housing free from discrimination. To fulfill this mission, HUD will embrace high standards of ethics, management and accountability and forge new partnerships--particularly with faith-based and community organizations--that leverage resources and improve HUD's ability to be effective on the community level.

and gave HUD the responsibility of enforcing the legislation. Congress also created the Government National Mortgage Association, known as Ginnie Mae, in 1968 to expand the availability of mortgage funds for moderate-income families eligible for loans that are guaranteed by the government. In 1999 HUD stated that its mission was to ensure a decent, safe, and sanitary home and suitable living environment for every American. In an effort to meet this goal, the department, which has about 11,500 employees, administers several insurance, rent-subsidy, and grant programs.
 * __HISTORY:__** Established 1965 to coordinate and administer programs that provide assistance for housing and community development. By that time, more than 70 percent of the nation's population lived in urban and suburban areas. The department was initially charged with the responsibility of dealing with housing shortages and related problems. In 1968, following the assassination of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., which led to riots in many major cities, the Fair Housing Act outlawed housing discrimination

Secretary................................. Inspector General **Shaun Donovan Kenneth M. Donohue, Sr.
 * __LEADERSHIP:__

__//ARTICLES//__**:** 1.)**Con artists are peddling bogus lists of 'free' government land or property for sale**.

by Lew Sichelman []

 In this article we see the ongoing scam of people thinking they have inside information on free government land. It also explains how congress has ceased giving out free government land more than thirty years ago. "The Homesteading Act of 1862 was repealed in 1976 because all the good agricultural land -- 287.5 million acres of it -- had already been transferred out of federal ownership." The Department of Housing and Urban Development just wants to bring awarness to home buyers becasue they might be looking in the wrong place. They recommend using the actual department website for listings because they have all the availability and information on houses that have been closed by banks and are up for sale. Therefore, instead of wasting your time with "free governemnt land" from con artists, it has been suggested of the department to search in newspaper listings as well as the department website (www.hud.gov/homes) because it will aid you in making the more efficient decision.  2.)**HUD official wants mortgage incentives for energy-efficient homes.**

by Kenneth R. Harney []

 In this article it is evident that President Obama has a clear vision on wroking to better the conflicts that come with buying/selling a home during this crisis. It explains how people need more information on the energy efficiency of a home in order to fully understand the costs when in search for a home. As a seller, it seems natural by making your home as desirable as possible, but by not informing possible buyers about the all-aroung reality of costs for the house is an issue that is feedig this economic crisis. This article states Obamas suggestion of lowering mortgage rates when selling a home in order to encourage purchases. This suggestion in the longer run will aid in those buyers to not have a high percentage of having to deal with foreclosures/ refinancing because it will be dealt with in their decision even before the purchase. These suggestions can be explained by Obamas following statement, "'When you buy a car,' he said, 'you know very clearly what the energy efficiency of that is because there's a number on the window. It says: Here's the gas mileage. We don't know that for housing.'" The secretray of the housing department, Shaun Donovan, has beeen working on the idea of a scoring system for housing, so the potential buyers can factor in mortgage costs when deciding affordable for a home, along with other costs such as energy. Donovan also explains how this scoring system might even include transportation estimates because, "most people don't realize that the average American family spends over 50% of their income on a combination of housing and transportation." While this department deals with single-family issue on home buying, Shaun Donovan also feels that renting is a very important feature that is available for citizens because it is more efficient land use and involves more families .

3.)**Federal HOPE program has helped few homeowners.**

by LA times []



It is clear that the main issue right now is the forecosure crisis. This article describes the extreme restrictions on the Department of housing and urban development, such as the tight price limitations. These restrictions are not allowing the department to meet the needs of all families in need of aid. It seems that American families are suffering from mainly the high pricing of mortgage and the proceeding step of foreclosures, which remove families from the security they once had in this country. The deaprtment has created a program called HOPE homeowners that has created a bill to possibly loosen the pricing restrictions on the department, in order to be more efficient when aiding these families in need during this current economic crisis.

__//AGENCIES INVOLVED://__


 * * **Community Planning and Development **
 * **Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) **
 * **Multifamily Housing **
 * **Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity **
 * **Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight **
 * **Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control **
 * **Office of Housing **
 * **<span style="font-size: 110%; font-family: Georgia, serif;">Office of Public and Indian Housing **
 * **<span style="font-size: 110%; font-family: Georgia, serif;">Policy Development and Research ** ||

//Recommendation:// **<span style="font-size: 120%; color: #000080; font-family: Tahoma, Geneva, sans-serif;">To take further action in preventing/dealing with forclosures by aiding in banks refinancing and making mortgages more affordable. **


 * MAIN ISSUE**--> //Foreclosure crisis//

FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA...vision of the department.

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Department of Housing and Urban Development** (Dollar amounts in millions) Actual ||||~ Estimate ||
 * <span style="font-size: 120%; color: #008000; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">BUDGET:
 * ~  ||~ 2007
 * **Spending** ||  || ** 2008 ** ||
 * 2009** ||
 * Discretionary Budget Authority: ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Community Development Fund || 3,770 || 3,866 || 3,000 ||
 * CDBG cancellation || — || — || −206 ||
 * HOME Investment Partnerships Program || 1,756 || 1,704 || 1,967 ||
 * //American Dream Downpayment Initiative (non-add)// || //25// || //10// || //50// ||
 * Homeless Assistance Grants || 1,434 || 1,586 || 1,636 ||
 * Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS || 286 || 300 || 300 ||
 * Tenant-based Rental Assistance || 15,881 || 15,703 || 16,039 ||
 * Project-based Rental Assistance || 5,975 || 6,382 || 7,000 ||
 * Housing Certificate Fund || −616 || −1,250 || — ||
 * Public Housing || 6,284 || 6,639 || 6,324 ||
 * Native American Housing Block Grant || 624 || 630 || 627 ||
 * Revitalization of Severely Distressed Public Housing (HOPE VI) || 96 || 100 || — ||
 * Housing for the Elderly || 735 || 735 || 540 ||
 * Housing for Persons with Disabilities || 237 || 237 || 160 ||
 * Federal Housing Administration (FHA) || −1,105 || −921 || −763 ||
 * Lead Hazard Reduction || 150 || 145 || 116 ||
 * All other programs || 1,530 || 1,557 || 1,742 ||
 * Total, Discretionary budget authority || 37,037 || 37,413 || 38,482 ||
 * //Memorandum: Budget authority from enacted supplementals// || //7// || //3,000// || — ||
 * Total, Discretionary outlays || 48,990 || 50,715 || 47,834 ||
 * Total, Mandatory outlays || −3,429 || 1,556 || −2,202 ||
 * Total, Outlays || 45,561 || 52,271 || 45,632 ||
 * **Credit activity** ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Direct Loan Disbursements: ||  ||   ||   ||
 * FHA || 3 || 50 || 50 ||
 * Government National Mortgage Association || 3 || 30 || 25 ||
 * Total, Direct loan disbursements || 6 || 80 || 75 ||
 * Guaranteed Loan Disbursements: ||  ||   ||   ||
 * FHA || 89,579 || 97,768 || 157,718 ||
 * All other programs || 384 || 523 || 551 ||
 * Total, Guaranteed loan disbursements || 89,963 || 98,291 || 158,269 ||
 * || **Number of Programs** ||  || **2009 Savings** ||
 * **Major Savings, Discretionary** ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Terminations || 4 ||  || −132 ||
 * Reductions || 2 ||  || −1,487 ||
 * FHA || 89,579 || 97,768 || 157,718 ||
 * All other programs || 384 || 523 || 551 ||
 * Total, Guaranteed loan disbursements || 89,963 || 98,291 || 158,269 ||
 * || **Number of Programs** ||  || **2009 Savings** ||
 * **Major Savings, Discretionary** ||  ||   ||   ||
 * Terminations || 4 ||  || −132 ||
 * Reductions || 2 ||  || −1,487 ||
 * Reductions || 2 ||  || −1,487 ||