Florida offers help to some with home down payment

Isnt this the same stupidity that got us into this mess? Give money and credit to people who won't pay it back? People will walk away leaving the rest of the taxpayers holding the bag.

tomb wrote:

Isnt this the same stupidity that got us into this mess? Give money and credit to people who won't pay it back? People will walk away leaving the rest of the taxpayers holding the bag.

If you can't save enough for a down payment, it's likely that you won't be able to keep up with the mortgage payments.

We don't learn anything from history.

So what happens when these people don't repay the money?? The state claims the house?? Don't think so. Just another redistribution of money to people that don't deserve it because they did not earn it.
18 months until the next great Florida real estate crash.

Here we go AGAIN!!!! Why don't the legislature designate this 30 million dollars to EDUCATE the children of FLORIDA! This state has the dumbest legislators in the country.

Isn't it this same give give mentality that has gotten us into this financial mess to begin with?

After the homeowner gets this $8000.00, saddled with house payments, rising home taxes, insurance and other home upkeeping costs, the homeowner is not going to repay this money!

Everyone CANNOT own a home! Get it? Give it up already and let us work to improve the economy in this God forsaken state.

Geesh already!!!!!

This article is very misleading, if you are going with a FHA loan the money can NOT be used as the required 3.5% down. You need to put 3.5% of your own money down and this can be used as a additional down payment. I've been researching this and if you read the memo from HUD it states this fact very clearly. The Sentinel needs to get their facts straight before they print a article like this!!

http://www.hud.gov/news/release.cfm...

"Currently, borrowers applying for an FHA-insured mortgage are required to make a minimum 3.5 percent down payment on the purchase of their home. Current law does not permit approved lenders to monetize the tax credit to meet the required 3.5 percent minimum down payment, but, under the terms of today's announcement, lenders can now monetize the tax credit for use as additional down payment, or for other closing costs, which can help achieve a lower interest rate."

The state is having budget problems and what does Crist do?
Spend money. He needs to go back to Tampa and hang out in the gay bars, like he used to. Yes, google it.
Not go to Washington or stay in Tally.

want the inventory to move.....give the incentives to those that have the money to buy!

or

the gov't could have stayed out of the market in the 1st place and let those that can buy, buy when prices got low enough to make it a good investment.

today, no one knows what the gov't is going to do, so the real buyers are sitting on the fence, trying to see a direction thru all the gov't intervention.

So if you take it now you have to re pay the 8000 but if we file later we do not have too?

BAD IDEA ! Our current economic fiasco is due to the fact that too many people who were not financially mature enough to own a home, bought homes.

If you need $8,000 to get you into your first home, you should be renting.

Boss Hogg wrote:

The state is having budget problems and what does Crist do?
Spend money. He needs to go back to Tampa and hang out in the gay bars, like he used to. Yes, google it.
Not go to Washington or stay in Tally.

Another brilliant idea, minimum 3.5% downpayment...Let's see, if the market drops 4%, the buyer is under water immediately, the taxpayers bail em out again...another Barney Franks, Chris Dodd idea? Don't think the Bill of Rights states everyone has the right to home ownership.

When these people are underwater in the next year after buying, do they really think they are going to pay this back. No they will squat and get free rent for the next year to 18months waiting for someone to foreclose.

Let me see if I have this right. We're going to give money to people that can't afford to save up for a down payment so they can buy a house?

Did we learn nothing from the last bubble?

darwin wrote:

Let me see if I have this right. We're going to give money to people that can't afford to save up for a down payment so they can buy a house?
Did we learn nothing from the last bubble?

Apparently you didn't learn how to read and comprehend.

I agree with most of these comments how about someone who moves to florida and starts a buisness that employs people give them a little help.

At the same time these legislators cut (third time or so in last couple of years) budget of state universities
and colleges! Florida - a state of stupidity?

What this will do is increase the asking price by 8000 dollars. When the Feds cut interest rates to the bone, the price of housing rose up to take up slack in the payment. This will disrupt the free market and just put 8000 dollars into the sellers pocket. If the buyer had to save up and pay at least 10% down payment a lot less defaults would occur and people would research the real value of their investment and make sure not to overpay.

This isbullshit!!!! Give the 8k to the schools

This $8000.00 is a loan so when they get a mortage they will have the mortage to pay and then a $8,000.00 on top of that. I remembe the Crist and the legislature crying about the budget so where are they getting this money from. They keep this kind of garbbage up the country and state will never get out of the mess it is in.

I make too much money to qualify. I've paid more in taxes over the last few years than all those people getting an $8,000 gift. I made too much money to get a stimulus check last year. In short, since I make too much money, I can't spend any of it. Of course, the amount of student loans needed to put me into a place to earn that much money takes up most of that awesome salary that makes me ineligible for the $8,000. So I'm broke, unable to buy a house, and wondering why I bothered to excel in the first place. So, thank you, Barak, old buddy, old pal. Thanks for absolutely nothing.