Congressional Research Service Reports - 349 Matching Results
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- Changes to the Residential Mortgage Market: Legislation, Demographics, and Other Drivers
- This report provides an overview of the changing residential mortgage market, focusing on trends in housing prices, homeownership, mortgage characteristics, and financing. It also examines legislation and regulations designed to promote the efficient functioning of the mortgage market.
- Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD): FY2009 Appropriations
- This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the Subcommittees on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies of the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations. It summarizes the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity. The report lists the key CRS staff relevant to the issues covered and related CRS products.
- Selected Legislative Proposals to Reform the Housing Finance System
- The 113th Congress has seen several developments in the effort to reform the housing finance system. In the House, the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act of 2013 (PATH Act; H.R. 2767) was ordered to be reported out of the House Financial Services Committee on July 24, 2013. This report will briefly explain the different approaches to housing finance reform offered by these legislative proposals, focusing on efforts to replace Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and reform FHA. The report does not describe every provision of the proposals but discusses major concepts and themes.
- The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC): Efforts to Support Financial and Housing Markets
- This report discusses recent actions taken by the FDIC in support of financial and housing markets, which include restoration of the Deposit Insurance Fund, the development of the Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program, efforts to reduce foreclosures, and establishment of the proposed Public-Private Investment Fund. Legislation such as H.R. 786 (introduced by Representative Barney Frank); H.R. 1106, Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009 (introduced by Representative John Conyers, Jr., with 24 co-sponsors); and S. 541, The Depositor Protection Act of 2009 (introduced by Senator Christopher Dodd with 12 co-sponsors) have also been introduced to increase the effectiveness of the FDIC’s efforts to respond to recent market weaknesses.
- Understanding Mortgage Foreclosure: Recent Events, the Process, and Costs
- This report provides a general analysis and overview of current foreclosure issues addressed in the bills cited above. It begins with a description of the behavior of aggregate foreclosure rates. The behaviors of foreclosure rates are placed in the context of activity in the housing and mortgage market to illustrate any relationships. The foreclosure process is then explained, first from the point of view of a traditional financial lending institution, and then from the viewpoint of securitization when loans are sold in secondary markets. Finally, this report collects information from other studies to obtain an estimate of the average foreclosure costs. A brief discussion of the effect uniform foreclosure legislation may have on costs follows.
- The Housing Trust Fund: Background and Issues
- This report describes the Housing Trust Fund and discusses potential funding sources.
- Low-Income Assistance Programs: Trends in Federal Spending
- This report examines the spending trends of 10 major need-tested benefit programs or groups of programs: (1) health care from Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP); (2) the refundable portion of the health insurance tax credit enacted in the 2010 health care reform law; (3) The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); (4) assisted housing; (5) financial assistance for post-secondary students (Pll Grants); (6) compensatory education grants to school districts; (7) Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC); (8) The Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC); (9) Supplemental Security Income (SSI); (10) Family Support Payment
- GSEs and the Government’s Role in Housing Finance: Issues for the 113th Congress
- This report examines options concerning the future of the GSEs and the future government role in residential mortgage markets.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development: FY2009 Appropriations
- No Description Available.
- The HUD Homeless Assistance Grants: Distribution of Funds
- This report describes how HUD distributes the four homeless assistance grants.
- Disaster Housing Assistance: A Legal Analysis of ACORN v. FEMA
- No Description Available.
- An Introduction to the Design of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit
- This report discusses the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which is a federal provision that reduces the income tax liability of taxpayers claiming the credit. These taxpayers are typically investors in real estate development projects that have traded cash for the tax credits to support the production of affordable housing. The credit is intended to lower the financing costs of housing developments so that the rental prices of units can be lower than market rates, and thus, presumably, affordable.
- Treatment of Seller-Funded Downpayment Assistance in FHA-Insured Home Loans
- This report discusses the seller-funded down-payment assistance that qualify for FHA-insured home loans.
- FHA Single-Family Mortgage Insurance: Recent Policy Changes and Proposed Legislation
- This report describes recent policy changes made by FHA and recent legislative proposals that would make additional changes to FHA's single-family program. For the most part, this report does not go into detail about the features of FHA-insured loans, FHA's market role, or its financial status, except as necessary to describe implemented or proposed policy changes.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act: Supreme Court Decisions
- This report discusses the American disabilities act (ADA) and also deals with The Americans with Disabilities Act: Supreme Court Decisions.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development: FY2008 Appropriations
- This report, tracks congressional appropriations for HUD and provides a detailed discussion of the funding and issues related to the majority of accounts in the Department’s budget.
- The Distribution of Household Income and the Middle Class
- This report presents a brief analysis of the distribution of income across households in 2011. It then attempts to put the term middle class into some perspective.
- The First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit
- No Description Available.
- Public Housing: Fact Sheet on the New Operating Fund Formula
- The local public housing authorities (PHAs) that administer the federal public housing program will begin receiving their annual federal operating subsidies under a new formula in January 2007. As a result, some will experience an increase in their eligibility for funding and others will experience a decrease, although both increases and decreases will be phased in (over two and five years, respectively). However, the amount that a PHA qualifies for under the new formula (whether it is an increase or a decrease) will be reduced if Congress appropriates less money than is necessary to fund all agencies at 100% of their eligibility. This report provides a brief overview of the changes to the public housing operating fund formula that will take place in FY2007.
- Predatory Lending: Background on the Issue and Overview of Legislation in the 106th Congress
- This report presents an overview of the predatory lending issue, a summary of present law, a summary of joint HUD and Treasury recommendations to address the issue, and a side-by-side summary of five bills introduced in the 106th Congress that addressed the issue. Though no action occurred on these bills, the issue is expected to continue in the 107th Congress.
- Subprime Mortgages: Primer on Current Lending and Foreclosure Issues
- This report discusses the issue of subprime mortgages, which are loans extended to borrowers with weak credit profiles. Subprime mortgages entail higher risk of delinquency and default. Recent increases in subprime borrower foreclosures and lender bankruptcies have prompted concerns that some lenders’ underwriting guidelines are too loose and that some borrowers may not have fully understood the risks of the mortgage products they chose. Regulatory agencies are revisiting the guidance they provide lenders and are reevaluating required disclosures to consumers. In addition, Congress is holding hearings on the subject and may consider consumer protection legislation.
- Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Allocation Rates: Legislative History and Current Law
- This report discusses the legislative history and current law regarding the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which provides funds to states so that they may help low-income households pay home energy expenses.
- Veterans and Homelessness
- The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have brought renewed attention to the needs of veterans, including the needs of homeless veterans. Homeless veterans initially came to the country’s attention in the 1970s and 1980s, when homelessness generally was becoming a more prevalent and noticeable phenomenon. This report defines the term “homeless veteran,” discusses attempts to estimate the number of veterans who are homeless, and presents the results of studies regarding the demographic characteristics of homeless veterans as well as those served in VA homeless programs. The second section of this report summarizes the available research regarding the overrepresentation of both male and female veterans, who have been found to be present in greater percentages in the homeless population than their percentages in the general population. The third section of this report discusses programs to fund services and transitional housing specifically for homeless veterans.
- USDA Rural Housing Programs: An Overview
- This report discusses the the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) ability to make loans to farmers to enable them to construct, improve, repair, or replace dwellings and other farm buildings to provide decent, safe, and sanitary living conditions for themselves or their tenants, lessees, sharecroppers, and laborers. USDA was also authorized to make grants or combinations of loans and grants to those farmers who could not qualify to repay the full amount of a loan, but who needed the funds to make the dwellings sanitary or to remove health hazards to the occupants or the community.
- The HUD Homeless Assistance Grants: Distribution of Funds
- This report describes how HUD distributes the four homeless assistance grants.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act: The Opinions of Justice O’Connor
- This report is on The Americans with Disabilities Act: The Opinions of Justice O’Connor.
- Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008
- This report provides background information and overview on the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008.
- FHA Single-Family Mortgage Insurance: Financial Status of the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMI Fund)
- No Description Available.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development: FY2007 Budget
- This report provides information about the The Department of Housing and Urban Development for FY2007 Budget.
- Community Development Block Grants: Funding Issues in the 113th Congress
- This report contains information on FY 2014 appropriations, FY 2013 appropriations, and more as related to the topic of community development block grants.
- Department of Housing and Urban Development: FY2016 Appropriations
- No Description Available.
- An Introduction to the Design of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit
- This report discusses the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which is a federal provision that reduces the income tax liability of taxpayers claiming the credit. These taxpayers are typically investors in real estate development projects that have traded cash for the tax credits to support the production of affordable housing. The credit is intended to lower the financing costs of housing developments so that the rental prices of units can be lower than market rates, and thus, presumably, affordable.
- An Introduction to the Design of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit
- This report discusses the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which is a federal provision that reduces the income tax liability of taxpayers claiming the credit. These taxpayers are typically investors in real estate development projects that have traded cash for the tax credits to support the production of affordable housing. The credit is intended to lower the financing costs of housing developments so that the rental prices of units can be lower than market rates, and thus, presumably, affordable.
- Housing Issues in the 105th Congress
- This report provides an overview of the housing issues in the 105th congress.
- Alternative Mortgages: Risks to Consumers and Lenders in the Current Housing Cycle
- This report consists of alternative mortgages: risks to consumers and lenders in the current housing cycle.
- Housing Issues in the 107th Congress
- This report summarizes current housing issues, cites legislative proposals, and in some cases, presents brief pro/con discussions.
- Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD): FY2008 Appropriations
- This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the Subcommittees on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies of the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations. It summarizes the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity.
- The Budget of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) FY1999
- This report provides an overview of FY1999 budget request for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
- Housing Assistance and Welfare: Background and Issues
- This paper will introduce the reader to federal housing assistance and welfare programs, the people they serve, how the programs interact and current issues.
- Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): FY2012 Appropriations
- No Description Available.
- Housing for Persons Living with HIV/AIDS
- This report describes recent research that shows how housing and health status are related and the effects of stable housing on patient health. It also describes the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program, the only federal program that provides housing and services specifically for persons who are HIV positive or who have AIDS, together with their families. In addition, the report describes how a small portion of funds appropriated through the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program may be used by states and local jurisdictions to provide short-term housing assistance for persons living with HIV/AIDS.
- VA-Home Loan Guaranty Program: An Overview
- This report discusses the features of the Veterans Affairs (VA) home loan guaranty program, which has been providing home loan guarantees since 1944. Under this program, an eligible veteran may purchase a home through a private lender and the VA guarantees to pay the lender a portion of the losses if the veteran defaults on the loan.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act: Supreme Court Decisions
- This report is on The Americans with Disabilities Act: Supreme Court Decisions.
- High School Completion and Postsecondary Enrollment Among First Generation and Low-Income Students
- This report reviews available data on these populations and attempts to measure the extent to which high school graduates from these groups go on to college. This report is intended as a supplement to CRS Report RL31622, TRIO and Gear Up Programs: Status and Issues.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act: Legislation Concerning Notification Prior to Initiating Legal Action
- This report is on The Americans with Disabilities Act: Legislation Concerning Notification Prior to Initiating Legal Action.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development: FY2007 Budget
- This report provides information about the The Department of Housing and Urban Development for FY2007 Budget.
- An Introduction to the Design of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit
- This report discusses the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which is a federal provision that reduces the income tax liability of taxpayers claiming the credit. These taxpayers are typically investors in real estate development projects that have traded cash for the tax credits to support the production of affordable housing. The credit is intended to lower the financing costs of housing developments so that the rental prices of units can be lower than market rates, and thus, presumably, affordable.
- Community Service Requirement for Residents of Public Housing
- This report discusses the Legislative History. It also points out the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 that was offered as an amendment to the FY1999 Departments of Veterans Affairs.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act: Supreme Court Decisions
- This report is on The Americans with Disabilities Act: Supreme Court Decisions.
- Assisted Housing: Section 8 Mark-to-Market Restructuring
- This Report is categorized into four categories: (I) Background, (II) Description of the Restructuring Program, (III) Implementation of the Restructuring Program and (IV) Conclusion.