Business Insider’s “The Best Finance People On Twitter”

Posted by Jonathan J. Miller -Sunday, April 22, 2012, 11:15 AM
2 Comments

Well I’ve locked myself in my office for the past few days placing the finishing touches on the upcoming week’s (Thursday) housing market reports for Long Island and Hamptons/North Fork but noticed about 500 new followers on my twitter account.

Business Insider, the giant blog aggregator with an online newsroom, placed me on their “The 101 Finance People You Have To Follow On Twitter“

The only name noticeably absent (has to be an oversight!) is my friend Barry Ritholtz who is a twitter content machine, known to wear Ted Baxter ties.

Very cool to be on the list with the very people I already love to follow. Thanks @BusinessInsider!

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Federal Housing Finance Agency Under Inspector's Fire

Given that the conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has been wielding incredible power of late in deciding how much the two mortgage giants can and cannot charge in guarantee fees and whom they can and cannot refinance, it was particularly disturbing to learn the that same FHFA has been deemed, dare I say it, incompetent, at least in one of its oversight capacities.

The FHFA's Office of Inspector General has released a scathing report that points to understaffing and inefficiency at the mortgage giants' regulator.

"FHFA-OIG has identified shortfalls in the Agency's examination coverage, particularly in the areas of Real Estate Owned (REO) and default-related legal services," the report begins. Translation: "Robo-signing" paperwork issues.

"FHFA has too few examiners overall to ensure the efficiency and effectiveness of its examination program," the report continues. Apparently just about a third of the FHFA's 120 non-executive examiners are accredited federal financial examiners, and there is nothing in the works there to "improve this condition."

But wait, there's more: "FHFA, to its credit, has sought to address these challenges. Although this is a positive response, FHFA has expressed concern that its current hiring initiative will neither enable it to overcome its examination capacity shortfalls nor ensure the effectiveness of its 2011 reorganization."

So the FHFA is having trouble getting new examiners, because, logically why would anyone want to go work for an agency that regulates two entities that are supposed to be eliminated over the next five years? Still, it's not exactly comforting to hear that there's no one, or at least too few people, minding the store...the store which finances more than half of the nation's home mortgages.

Fannie Mae had no comment. The FHFA responds in an appendix to the report. 

Questions?  Comments?  document.write("");document.write("RealtyCheck"+"@"+"cnbc.com");document.write('');And follow me on Twitter @Diana_Olick

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Travis County Housing Finance Corporation Homebuyer ...

Interested in buying your first home in Travis County, Texas? Travis county offers a program that will allow first time homebuyers and working families to get the help they need to buy a foreclosed home. Some of the requirements for qualifying for a home under the Travis County Neighborhood Stabilization Program have changed since the program's first run, so there is a good chance that a home that didn't originally qualify for the program may end up being perfect for it now. Read on for information on how to qualify for the Travis County homebuyer assistance program and get into a foreclosed home.

First Time Homebuyers

This Travis County program is supposed to be for first time home buyers only. This doesn't mean that you or your family must never have owned a home before. According to the standard for the program, anyone who hasn't owned a home within the last three years can technically qualify as a first time buyer.

Invest In The Home

While this program can assist many buyers in avoiding the large down payments and high interest rates associated with buying a home, you do need to be willing to invest at least $500 into the direct purchase price of the foreclosed home.

Good Credit

Your credit score does not need to be perfect, but you do need to be capable of qualifying for a home loan if your income would allow it. The assistance you get will be based on how much you can afford to pay, so your income will be used to help determine how much help you get in order to make the home you want affordable.

Income Limits

This program is designed to help low and middle income families buy foreclosed homes that need an occupant, so the income limit is set up to encourage people who wouldn't normally be able to afford a home buy one. The limit is currently set at 120% of the median income for Travis County to get half assistance, and 50% of the median income for Travis County to get full assistance.

Where To Buy

This is one area where there has been a major change since the program was originally implemented. In the past, there were specific areas within Travis County where homebuyers needed to find a foreclosed home in order to qualify for assistance. However, the county has changed the rules to allow potential homebuyers to find a foreclosed home anywhere within the Travis County border. Currently, the only limit on which foreclosed home to purchase is the price limit that varies by area.

If you think you may qualify for a home you are interested in under the Travis County homebuyer assistance program remember to act quickly. The original program was set to expire in February of 2010, though it is currently expanded and running through the end of May. Homebuyers who purchase a home through the program will need to attend a counseling session before and after the home's purchase, as well as a HUD home purchase education program.

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