New MBA Chief Calls for 'Return to Basics'

The new chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association has called for a "return to basics" as the housing finance sector enters uncharted territory.With home prices flagging in several markets and innovative loan products being tested for the first time in a negative environment, Kieran Quinn said what's important is not new government regulations or who gets bailed out and who doesn't. Rather, "it's what we do from today forward that counts," he said at the MBA's 94th annual convention in Boston. Mr. Quinn said the most important task lying before the industry is to "restore investor confidence, because right now they don't want to touch our paper." He said that if businesses and individuals "simply do what we've done for most of our careers, we'll have gone a long way" toward fixing the problems that confront the industry. The MBA can be found on the Web at http://www.mortgagebankers.org.