WASHINGTON (AP) -- Government watchdogs told a Senate panel on Wednesday that the Obama administration's effort to help homeowners avoid foreclosure isn't working and that the Treasury Department has failed to fix the program.
Special inspector general for the financial bailouts Neil Barofsky said the program has not "put an appreciable dent in foreclosure filings," during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on the $700 billion bank bailout. He also said the Treasury Department has ignored earlier demands that it set clearer goals for the program.
Elizabeth Warren, who chairs a separate Congressional Oversight Panel on the bailouts, said Treasury's failure to act more quickly could be hurting the recovery.
More foreclosures could force down the price of homes and further hurt the already-ailing housing industry.
The homeownership program aims to reduce mortgage payments for millions of homeowners who can't afford their monthly bills. Recent data suggest it has helped about 400,000 households avoid foreclosure. About 530,000 have fallen out of the program.
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http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Bailout-watchdog-calls-apf-1527849934.html?x=0
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