Mortgages, Public Housing, FEMA Trailers, Free Money
Read more articles on Finance and Politics.April 11, 2008
Posted by neillevine
April 11, 2008
Posted by neillevine
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The federal government is now looking into helping people keep housing they apparently cannot now afford. No detailed explanation has been given for the cause of this problem. No financial statements have been issued. No one is keeping official track of the money involved in keeping risky debtors afloat in the long run although there are alleged official numbers.
At two hundred thousand dollars average per home, the amounts of money at risk are far higher than the three hundred dollar rebate that is coming due soon. So are the national policy implications.
The federal government already is involved in providing shelter from public housing to guaranteeing approved mortgages by Fanny Mae to supplying FEMA trailers to storm survivors and so on. They are not doing much of a job as it is but this new program is an expansion of federal involvement.
Take public housing. I have been in several public housing projects in the past few years because I go to the homes of students struggling with school. I can report that I have had to walk through hall ways and ride in elevators reeking of urine. This means people are using the building itself as a toilet and the building is not being cleaned in a reasonable period of time. This does not speak highly of the way things are run. Then there is security. A story in the local papers reports security workers being disciplined for not making their appointed rounds along with an investigation as to why no one on duty spotted a rape that was caught on camera. There are also other reports of a lack of money to pay for things. This may keep rents low but it is not reassuring, to say the least.
By way of contrast, a coffee spill in a hospital or nursing home or other government building usually gets mopped up in an hour or two.
Then there are those infamous FEMA trailers. They are supposed to be temporary. Somehow they have become long term. There are also stories about formaldehyde problems. A private contractor could sue for being provided with a faulty product. Why not the federal government. There were also widespread complaints about slow installation. Again, this is not reassuring.
This brings us to the current mortgage problem. To start with, the three hundred dollar tax rebate has increased the federal deficit by one hundred fifty-billion dollars. Revenues are slowing meaning the deficit is likely to be even greater. Where does all this free money end?
Along this line, New York State has managed to increase spending five percent in the face of likely poor revenue. Where are they going to get their share of funds to pay for their programs? From my point of view, we have too many politicians giving out goodies at what will result in tax payer expense.
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