What will the bailout mean for you, me and the housing market?

I’ve received many panicked calls over the past few days from realtors and other real estate professionals who have watching the news and are hearing that no one is able to lend money. I want to start by saying that we are still funding loans. There have been NO major guideline changes within the past month and the purchase and refi loans that fit the guidelines are still being funded whether it be first time home buyers or cash out refis. The major guideline changes that were presented in July regarding Downpayment Assistance and MI changes are now in effect and don’t seem to be hindering business. I’m inline to have a record month and at every closing there's no doubt in my mind that the wire will be there.
With or without the bailout I think my business will have to carry on. In my opinion the only answer to pull us out of this crisis is on the small business level and with people in my position. The only way to pull people out of these ARM’s and difficult situations is to either refinance or modify their loan. The Fed’s cannot directly address each individual situation and that’s where local real estate professionals will have to come in. In order to help we need the products to address each individual situation. FHA secure was a step in the right direction and a new program will become available on Oct. 1st 2008 FHA’s Hope for Homeowners which should progress the move to help struggling homeowners.(http://www.denver1stmortgage.com/hopeforhomeowners).
Another important piece that will need to be taken into consideration is that for every transaction I complete there are at least 10 parties involved to make it happen. These 10 people are from 10 different companies that fuel hundreds of other companies. If these transactions cease a large sector of the economy will suffer along with the housing market.
When the bailout plans are released there will be a period of excitement and stock market gains. Consumer confidence will rise and the plan will seemed to have worked. I think the variable that will determine the success of the plan will be the housing market bottom. Here in Denver I believe we are at or close to our bottom and if the national market follows and hits bottom within the near future I think the plan will help us pull through the end of the year and position the economy to ride its way out of the mess. The feds will look like heroes and our resilient economy will experience gains that will lead us on the path of stabilization.
If we do not hit bottom within the near future I see a dark alternative. Even though bad debt will have been cleared off the banks books more will start to accumulate. With individuals upside down (owe more that their home is worth) their options will remain limited and we will end up in the same predicament. If we are still far from the bottom the only answer is bank failure or a further infusion of billions of dollars.
We are now part of a world economy which is much larger than us here at home. If we plan wrong the implications could be worldwide. We can only hope that Henry Paulson, the Treasury Secretary and Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve Chairman have calculated the $700 billion to correlate to the timeframe it will take the housing market to pull through its current status.
In conclusion all I can say is that I hope that the momentum of the plan will help us realize the bottom of the real estate cycle nationally and put us on a path to recovery and stability.

Source: http://www.ArticlePros.com/author.php?Michael Shotnik

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