US President George W Bush has signed a sweeping housing rescue plan designed to help 400,000 homeowners avert foreclosure and bolster ailing mortgage finance giants, the White House said today.
Bush signed the broadest housing legislation in decades ‘to improve confidence and stability in markets, and to provide better oversight for (US mortgage lenders) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,’ White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.
Legislators have described the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 as vital to stem fallout from a slumping housing sector.
The Act makes available $300 billion in federal guarantees to help refinance troubled mortgages, and provides for government credit and equity injections in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two mortgage lenders that underpin much of the housing market.
Opponents to the bill had argued that it would reward ‘irresponsible’ lenders and consumers and allow the government too big a role in the housing market.
Bush had opposed the bill because of the inclusion of the local government grants, but eventually dropped his opposition.
