Brian Chappelle
Founding PartnerBrian Chappelle is a founding partner of Potomac Partners in Washington, D.C.
Brian Chappelle is a founding partner of Potomac Partners in Washington, D.C.
The Federal Housing Administration's life-of-loan premium discourages borrowers from refinancing into another FHA mortgage, damaging the stability of the insurance fund.
Homeowners are still paying very high insurance premiums for the life of their Federal Housing Administration loans to subsidize the operations of the HECM program.
Borrowers of "forward" Federal Housing Administration mortgages are unfairly being expected to backstop the disparate mission and risks of the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program.
Contrary to the arguments of its critics, the mortgage insurance premium reduction issued in January has helped spur positive capital growth for the Federal Housing Administration.
The FHA forward loan program has helped millions of families finance homes and is poised to thrive if untangled from HECM in the MMI. FHAs ability to serve these families should not be affected by issues associated with the HECM program.
Now that the FY 2014 Actuarial Review has confirmed that FHA is back on solid financial footing, it is time to focus on the only disappointment in the review of forward mortgages FHA's volume decline and its implications for lower income and minority families who rely on FHA financing.