Obama Rescue Plan Said to Be Limited to Homeowners Most in Need

[Joanne98]

March 4 (Bloomberg) -- The Obama administration intends to limit the loan-modification portion of its $75 billion mortgage rescue plan to homeowners who have lost jobs, suffered a pay cut or face higher mortgage payments, according to two people briefed on the program.

Treasury and housing officials, who announced the plan Feb. 18, are scheduled to release terms today. The program will lean heavily on government-seized finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and require strict verification of financial hardship, said the people, who declined to be identified because details were still private.

President Barack Obama’s initial proposal, the biggest federal foray into real estate since the Great Depression, ignited criticism from Republican lawmakers that the government would be subsidizing homeowners financially capable of surviving the economic slump on their own. The plan is being refined to better assess homeowners in need, the people said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aN4NFR0MfE4w&refer=home