The 2016 Leadership team from Eastern Bergen County Board of Realtors (EBCBOR) joined thousands of REALTORS® from across the country for the annual Legislative Meetings of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) in Washington D.C. to discuss pressing issues for the housing industry that affect businesses, communities and consumers.
Housing and Urban Development Secretary, Julian Castro and Senator Elizabeth Warren (MA) addressed Student Loan Debt and the impact it is having on young borrowers and the housing market. HUD Secretary, Julian Castro discussed the struggles young adults are facing, squashing any hopes of becoming home owners due to the debilitating burden of mounting debt from their student loans. A senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank in N.Y. shared that student debt balances have increased dramatically from $300billion in 2004 to over $1.2 trillion as of today.
EBCBOR members, led by NAR Federal Political Coordinators (FPC), Randy Ketive of Prominent Properties Sotheby’s, Fort Lee and Robert Oppenheimer of RE/MAX Fortune Properties, Englewood Cliffs., met with members of Congress Scott Garrett (NJ-05), Bill Pascrell, Jr. (NJ-09), Albio Sires (NJ-08) and their staff to discuss important issues for New Jersey.
“It is vital for our association to be in Washington D.C. and speak with our congressmen about the issues our REALTOR members face on a day to day basis. These meetings allow our elected officials to understand our interactions and the issues we face with our clients” said EBCBOR’s president, Jorge Ledesma, Re/Max Quality Homes.
The delegation asked them to reject tax reform plans that eliminate or marginalize Mortgage Interest Deduction (MID) for primary and secondary homes. The Mortgage Interest Deduction has made home ownership possible for millions of American families and strengthening local communities.
The EBCBOR leadership asked the members of congress not to raise the cost of homeownership by enacting a legislation that prohibits Guarantee fees (G-fees) from being extended, increased for unrelated government spending. G-fees are charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to lenders for bundling, selling, and guaranteeing the payment of principal and interest on their Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS). These fees are then passed on to borrowers resulting in typically higher mortgage rates.
In addition, our members thanked the Congressmen for supporting the “Flood Insurance Market Parity and Modernization Act” and the “Housing Opportunity through Modernization Act” and asked them to urge the Senate to Pass these bills into laws.
For more information, visit www.bergenboard.com.
