\u201cFHA\u2019s actuarial report shows that the fund has indisputably found its footing,\u201d said NAR President William E. Brown, a Realtor\u00ae<\/sup> from Alamo, California and founder of Investment Properties. \u201cThat\u2019s good news for taxpayers, and a reflection of FHA\u2019s sound stewardship. It\u2019s clear from this report that FHA can continue taking responsible steps to manage their risk even as they take action to make homeownership more affordable for lower- and middle-income buyers.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFHA\u2019s strong, sustained progress has helped fuel the housing market recovery over the past eight years,\u201d said HUD Secretary Julian Castro. \u201cToday\u2019s report once again confirms that our steps to maintain a financially sound Fund are paying off, giving more American families the opportunity to afford a home of their own.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cFHA has come a long way since our housing crisis,\u201d said Ed Golding, HUD\u2019s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Housing. \u201cWith evidence that FHA\u2019s fundamentals are strong and improving, there is no doubt that FHA is making steady progress accumulating capital and, at the same time, improving access to credit for working families.\u201d<\/p>\n FHA\u2019s MMIF is responsible for paying lenders if a mortgagor defaults, and a clear indication of health is the report’s findings that the MMIF fund’s “seriously delinquent” rate is at a ten-year low, and the overall economic value of the fund has increased by $3.8 billion.<\/p>\n In 2015,<\/a> the MMIF also achieved a 2.0 percent capital reserve ratio for the first time since the Great Recession, and a 2.3 percent capital reserve ratio as of today’s FHA report.<\/p>\n FHA also reported a 3.2 percent reserve ratio for the \u201cforward\u201d program, which encompasses FHA\u2019s non-Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) portfolio.<\/p>\n NAR points to weaknesses in the HECM that held back the overall FHA findings, but considering the MMIF’s “increasingly good health,” the trade group is “encouraging FHA to reduce mortgage insurance premiums to better reflect the risk in the marketplace and fulfill its mission of serving low- and moderate-income borrowers.”<\/p>\n NAR estimates that the 50-basis-point premium cut announced in January 2015 provided an annual savings of $900 for nearly 2 million FHA homeowners.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n![\"bar\"](\"http:\/\/theamericangenius.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/bar.jpg\")
\nBut wait, before your eyes glaze over, the National Association of Realtors\u00ae<\/sup> (NAR) says this “is an opportunity to make FHA\u2019s low-down-payment mortgage option available to an even broader swath of borrowers.”<\/p>\nImproving access to credit for working family<\/h2>\n
Delinquency rates are down<\/h2>\n
NAR supports changes<\/h2>\n