Senators Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Richard Shelby (R-AL), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, announced that they have completed bipartisan legislation that includes major efforts to address the housing crisis.

The comprehensive housing legislation contains provisions from a Dodd-Shelby bill that was approved by the Committee on May 20th, as well as measures from the Foreclosure Prevention Act, which passed the Senate in April.

The legislation to be considered contains the following provisions:

• The HOPE for Homeowners Act: Creates an initiative within the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) to prevent foreclosures for hundreds of thousands of families at no estimated cost to American taxpayers.
  
• Affordable Housing Fund: A permanent, new fund that will help create more affordable housing for millions for Americans in communities across the country. 
  
• Assistance for Communities Devastated by Foreclosures:  To ensure that communities can mitigate the harmful effects of foreclosures, $3.92 billion in supplemental Community Development Block Grant Funds will be provided to communities hardest hit by foreclosures and delinquencies. 
  
• Foreclosure Counseling for Families in Need:  To help families avoid foreclosure, the bill provides $150 million in additional funding for housing counseling. 
  
• Preserving the American Dream for Our Nation’s Veterans:  This bill contains several provisions to help returning soldiers avoid foreclosure, including lengthening the time a lender must wait before starting foreclosure from three months to nine months after a soldier returns from service.
  
• GSE Reform: Creates a world class regulator for the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) so that these vital institutions can safely and soundly carry out their important mission of providing our nation’s families with affordable housing.
  
• FHA Modernization: A provision to modernize, streamline and expand the reach of the FHA, allowing families in all areas of the country to access secure and affordable mortgages through FHA. 
  
• Enhancing Mortgage Disclosure:  To ensure that consumers know the exact amounts of their mortgage payments, including the maximum possible payment under the terms of the loan and changes in payments associated with adjustable rate mortgages, lenders will be required to provide borrowers with timely and meaningful mortgage disclosures on all home purchase loans, loans that refinance a home, and loans that provide a home equity line of credit.

To view the Press Release in its entirety, please click here.

To view a detailed summary provided by the Senate Committe, please click here.

To view the current Bill language, please click here.

About Safeguard
Safeguard Properties is the largest privately held field services company in the country. Located in Cleveland, Ohio and founded in 1990 by Robert Klein, Safeguard has grown from a regional preservation company with a few employees and a handful of contractors performing services in the Midwest, to a national company with over 500 employees. Safeguard is supported by a nationwide network of subcontractors able to perform any requested superintendence, preservation, and maintenance functions, as well as numerous ancillary services in the U.S., the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.