Wow, the comments to Part IV, posted yesterday, sure are interesting. Only a few of 'em so far - four sceptics and a naysayer - but they sure do tell a story.
The story has two parts. The Sceptics say Making Home Affordable (MHA) isn't working as promised. And the Naysayer says MHA was a bad idea to begin with, that it "will keep housing prices high, making it less affordable for new buyers/lower-income buyers to buy a home." How about that! Naysayer is silent on the problem of what happens to 10 or 12 million homeless American families. But his comment squares with a strong line of reasoning voiced at this Diary, namely that government bailouts of failed homeowners are just as harmful to economic recovery as government bailouts of failed banks.
This two-part story is confirmed by the experience of ADC14 (a Sceptic) and the (mostly sceptical) comments to his diary. Well worth a read.
OK, time to sum up. Bottom line, this diary's assessment of Making Home Affordable (MHA) remains HARSH. From what I've hearing, MHA seems to be working for perhaps 5% of applicants. The other 95% are frustrated, to put it mildly. Make sense to you?
At this diary, we strive for balance. If you've had a positive experience with MHA please please please comment below. Here are samples of two POSITIVE experiences, taken from comments to the diary of ADC14:
Obama is one for one with the one case I'm familiar with.
A work colleague fell right into the category of people that need relief, but she had been denied by her bank and wasn't helped by any of the recommended organizations that she visited.
When the Obama plan passed, she obtained a restructured loan directly from her bank that will let her stay in her house. PMI and all.
My mom just refinanced her house (closed this week - through Chas. Scwab Mortgage) at 4.875% for 30 years. Got some cash out, too. So maybe your friend paid too much for his/her house?
Positive comments are important. In the absence of them, we have to conclude that President Obama is stuck with a program - MHA - that finds the banks swallowing up $75 billion more in taxpayer dollars even as the President himself promises these monies will help homeowners.
Not pretty. Speak up, folks. Today's poll is the same as yesterday's.