- NAR President Moe Veissi celebrates the VA Home Loan Program with Department of Veterans Affairs officials and Elizabeth Carpenter, shown at left, who is the recipient of the 20th million loan through the program. Elizabeth’s son, Joey, rides his tricycle in the driveway of their new home.
by Moe Veissi, 2012 NAR President
I was honored today to celebrate the 20th million loan given by the Department of Veterans Affairs home loan program.
Even more special was meeting the recipients of that loan — Elizabeth Carpenter and her son Joey. Elizabeth’s husband, Captain Matthew Carpenter, was a West Point Graduate and a veteran of the Iraq war who died of cancer in December of 2010. Last month, Elizabeth used her surviving spouse benefits to purchase a home in Virginia to be closer to family. I can’t describe what a thrill it was to welcome her and Joey to their new home.
NAR President Moe Veissi and Elizabeth Carpenter
The VA loan guaranty, which began in 1944 under the GI bill, provides veterans with a zero-downpayment loan. VA loans have one of the lowest default rates, and provide affordable financing to our nation’s military families.
NAR is working in partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs to promote the VA home loan guaranty, and assure REALTORS® are familiar with this program and the benefits it provides veterans and their families. We are proud to work closely with the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure that the VA guaranteed home loan program is not only a top priority for our nation’s policy makers, but is also widely promoted so that every veteran is aware of home ownership’s invaluable benefits. NAR never stops working with our elected officials to ensure that home ownership is accessible and affordable for our nation’s veterans.
We are especially proud of our work with Congress that raised VA loan limits and make permanent the VA adjustable rate mortgages.
Congratulations to the Department of Veterans Affairs for creating one of the most enduring programs – the VA home loan program – and for reaching 20 million loans.
Learn more about this terrific program in the video below.
NAR President Moe Veissi praises new help for struggling homeowners. The Federal Housing Finance Agency on Tuesday announced measures to make “short sales” of underwater homes easier for homeowners, including extending help to people who have financial difficulties but haven’t missed mortgage payments.
NAR President Moe Veissi shares great news about the Aug. 1 merger between the REALTORS® Federal Credit Union and Northwest Federal Credit Union – together now known as REALTORS® Federal Credit Union, A Division of Northwest Federal Credit Union.
Just a few days ago, I testified before Congress on a committee hearing on RESPA/TILA, to try to resolve that RESPA information sheet that we deal with during every transaction. We want transparency, we want the consumer to understand every step in the process, and we are concerned about duplicative paperwork. Combined paperwork is more useful, more effective, and easier to understand for everyone. After making an emotional and financial commitment to a property, consumers deserve nothing less than honesty and fluidity during the closing process. Watch more in the video below.
I recently met with folks from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau including Rich Cordray, who heads up the CFPB. They are forming brand new committee and looking to include REALTORS®. No one can better represent consumers today than REALTORS®! We had a great exchange, and I shared with him the financial processes home buyers face during a transaction, and how important it is to ensure that the right processes are in place the first time. We’re working hard for consumers and REALTORS®, sharing the vital role a healthy housing market plays in our economy. See more in the video below.
By Moe Veissi, 2012 President, National Association of REALTORS®
Moe shares a huge victory for REALTORS® in Louisiana and the REALTOR® Party Initiative, where the two groups came together to permanently ban real estate transfer taxes in that state.
What do we ask of you? Let me tell you. It will affect 47 million middle-class Americans who have a mortgage. It will affect the home prices of 75 million Americans who own their home. It will affect the neighborhoods and communities built on home ownership.
So what am I talking about?
We need you — our 1 million members of the National Association of REALTORS® — to let Congress know that trimming the mortgage intrestest deduction will hurt the middle class, who have been squeezed by this economic recession. It will hurt the housing market, which generates 2.5 million jobs and has a strong history of leading our country out of recessions.
I am passionate about protecting the dream of home ownership, the greatest way to a keep our families strong, and our nation stronger.
So, please, do it for you, do it for your clients, and do it for America! Tell Congress to preserve and protect the Mortgage Interest Deduction. Click here now to take action! – Moe Veissi, 2011 NAR President-Elect
