Home Affordable Refinance Program Gets a Makeover

In the spring of 2009, the Obama administration unveiled the Home Affordable Refinance Program, or HARP. HARP's objective was to help make mortgage payments more affordable for homeowners who have insufficient, or negative equity, by allowing them to refinance their loans, providing that certain requirements were met. The administration had hoped he program would aid over 5 million homeowners -- to date, it's helped approximately 894,000 borrowers. Critics have charged that the program was cobbled together, included barriers to participation, and was implemented haphazardly. Although the numbers may support those assertions, nearly 1 million homeowners were helped. Not a great record, but better than allowing them to lose their homes. So what does the administration hope to achieve by repackaging this program, and how does the new version of HARP stack up?

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Credit
• HARP
• Refinancing
• Federal Housing Finance Agency