The head of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) is calling on his brethren at other trade groups to work together with MBA to forge coordinated policies to “reestablish a vibrant” housing finance system in the U.S.Speaking to financial services executives and lobbyists at the Exchequer Club on Wednesday, MBA president Dave Stevens said Congress and the Obama Administration continue to take a haphazard approach to reviving the housing market.
Stevens served in the Obama Administration as Federal Housing Administration commissioner until last spring.
He believes that government policies encourage lenders to refinance underwater borrowers but then allow those same lenders to get slammed by loan buybacks in the secondary market.
He warned that Congress’ recent action to increase GSE guarantee fees for 10 years just to pay for a two-month extension of the payroll tax reduction could happen again.
Raising GSE fees is an easy way for Congress to pay for other government programs, he said, unless the industry takes a pro-active stance to stop it.
Stevens pledged to work with consumer and business groups to conduct a series of “summits” in developing a cohesive set of policies for reviving housing and restoring the overall economy.
If consumers and business interests coalesce, “We have an opportunity to start directing the dialogue,” Stevens told the Exchequer Club members.
“If we don’t, we will continue to be reacting and responding to the next series of regulations and directives coming out,” he said.
