IN MASS., SUBSIDIZED LOW-INCOME MORTGAGE LENDING JUMPS 21%. WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

The second time, it’s farce. From the Boston Globe:

MassHousing, the state’s affordable housing bank, provided a record-breaking $965.3 million in financing in fiscal year 2012 as thousands of homeowners flocked to its new program for low-cost, low down payment loans that don’t require mortgage insurance.

Lending for the Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, an independently funded, quasi-public agency, increased by more than 21 percent in the 12 months following June 30, 2011, compared with the previous fiscal year, the agency said Monday.

Agency officials said the increase is largely due the innovative program that helped some 2,422 borrowers qualify for $588.8 million in loans since January. The program is meant to help eligible low-to-middle income borrowers refinance or purchase homes with a downpayment of as little as 3 percent and still avoid paying mortgage insurance, which can add more than $1,000 to a borrower’s annual costs. [Emph. added]

Wait. Didn’t we just try this? It didn’t end well, if memory serves. It’s nice to see they’re still using the same euphemisms though. For “innovative,” go ahead and substitute “doomed.” . . .