Locals urge Congress to provide low-rate mortgages

A Massachusetts contingent from the Fix Housing First Coalition urged the US Congress to address "the housing crisis that is at the root of the nation’s recession" by enhancing the home buyer tax credit and providing below-market-rate mortgages, a spokesperson for the group said in an e-mail.

On its website, the Fix Housing First Coalition describes itself as "a diverse group of housing stakeholders – including homeowner and community groups, home builders, and manufacturers – dedicated to addressing the root cause of our economic troubles. The coalition is advocating for a short-term incentive for qualified home buyers that would stop the fall in home values, restore consumer confidence, create jobs, and lift our entire economy."

Among proposals that the coalition is advocating for is a measure that would provide below-market, 30-year fixed-rate mortgages for home purchases. Some ads that the coalition has run feature the headline, "It's time to help Main Street."

Locals who urged Congress earlier this week to adopt Fix Housing First's agenda included Finley Perry, former president of the Home Builders Association of Massachusetts and former president of F. H. Perry Builder Inc. of Hopkinton; Gary Ruping, president of Ruping Co.; and Jeff Rhuda, business development manager of Symes Associates of Beverly, a spokesperson for Fix Housing First said in an e-mail.

The spokesperson's e-mail included a statement from Perry.

“Housing is central to our economy and is an engine of production that can lead us out of the recession,” Perry said. ”But it is crucial for Congress to enact a major stimulus package to stop the decline in home values, stem the tide of foreclosures, stabilize financial markets, and re-ignite consumer demand.”
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)