Preston Vows to Tackle 'American Nightmare'

The new head of the Department of Housing and Urban Development says the short seven months he will have on the job is enough time to "make a profound, powerful difference" in what has become the "American nightmare." In his first public appearance since being sworn in, HUD Secretary Steve Preston told the Mortgage Bankers Association's Government Housing and Loan Production Conference in Washington that "where there's urgency and commitment, there is terrific opportunity." What lawmakers, the administration, and the mortgage business do now to address the rising tide of defaults and foreclosures "can set the market on a firm foundation for future growth," said the former head of the Small Business Administration, who had been on the job at HUD for only four days. Calling on Congress to modernize the Federal Housing Administration and improve oversight of the housing government-sponsored enterprises, he said the "situation demands action now." And noting that the default situation will get worse before it gets better, Secretary Preston asked the industry to "continue to be aggressive" in reaching out to troubled borrowers.