Press Release

Media Contact:
Jake Rubin 202.225.5665

KAGEN  PROMOTES  ASSISTANCE  TO  HOMEOWNERS


April 9, 2009

Washington, DC -- The Obama Administration has introduced a comprehensive Financial Stability Plan to address the key problems at the heart of the current crisis and get our economy back on track.  A critical piece of that effort is Making Home Affordable, a plan to stabilize the housing markets and help up to nine million Americans reduce their monthly mortgage payments by reducing interest rates, and making them more affordable.

“We’re bringing about the help people need today to stay in their homes.  It’s time government treated folks on Main Street the same way the last administration treated their friends on Wall Street,” Kagen said.   “People in Northeast Wisconsin are among the hardest working in the world, and many, through no fault of their own, find themselves caught in an economic squeeze they can’t easily escape.  This program is exactly the kind of assistance they need.  And while we are at it, shouldn’t we offer the same deal to everyone?  My feeling is that if this deal is good enough for Fannie and Freddie-backed mortgages, it should be good enough for all of us,” Kagen declared.

Kagen recently toured the 8th District listening to the needs of small business owners, family farmers, workers, veterans and retirees, while delivering the message that affordable loans are now available for small businesses through the Small Business Association.

Today’s announcement urges all homeowners to take a look at the Making Home Affordable Refinance Program that offers up to four to five million homeowners an opportunity to refinance into more affordable monthly payments.  The Making Home Affordable Modification Program commits $75 billion to keep up to 3 to 4 million Americans in their homes by preventing avoidable foreclosures.

On its consumer website - www.MakingHomeAffordable.gov - the federal government provides homeowners with detailed information about these programs along with self-assessment tools and calculators to empower them with the resources they need to determine whether they might be eligible for a modification or a refinance under the program.  Through this website, borrowers can also connect with free counseling resources to help with outstanding questions; locate homeowner events in their communities; find a handy checklist of key documents and materials to have ready when making that important call to their servicer as well as FAQs from borrowers in similar circumstances; and much more.