Dear Colleague,
I am pleased to announce that Nehemiah was
victorious in its litigation against HUD!
Judge Lawrence K. Karlton of the United States District Court for
the Eastern District of California upheld Nehemiah’s motion for summary
judgment. The Court Clerk's Office is directed to enter judgment and
close the case.
To be clear, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s
(HUD) rule to ban private downpayment assistance as proposed in the
“Standards for Mortgagor’s Investment in Mortgaged Property” regulation
published October 1, 2007, is permanently set aside.
We are thrilled with the Court’s decision to support low-to-moderate
income families across the country by ruling against HUD’s attempt to
ban private downpayment assistance. This is a major and conclusive
judgment, leaving no uncertainty that downpayment assistance is a life
line to the families that Nehemiah serves. It is heartening to see
that the Court’s arguments echo our sentiments and concerns. This
decision preserves access and supports the use of sensible and reasonable
approaches to homeownership for millions of working class families.
It is a privilege to continue providing a helping hand to America’s
underserved families by building both safer communities and financial
strength through homeownership. As we have said before, we look
forward to working with HUD to support deserving families across the
country.
Since May 2007, Nehemiah has led the fight against this controversial
rule. Since it was announced, there has been confusion throughout the
industry regarding the potential impact of this rule. As the DPA industry
leader, Nehemiah took seriously our responsibility to provide you with
timely, accurate and responsible information about the events and
activities surrounding this issue.
We took action by educating influential people and organizations
regarding the truth about downpayment assistance. We asked for our
homebuyers and industry partners to help us by voicing their support
and the response has been overwhelming. I want to thank each of you for your letters, phone calls and spoken support of
Nehemiah throughout this unfortunate situation. Your support has helped
raise awareness in Washington D.C. which has increased the dialogue
regarding DPA regulation though legislation. We hope to see some positive
congressional developments aimed preserving the option of private
downpayment assistance for homebuyers.
Currently, the Senate is
contemplating FHA Reform legislation that will determine the fate of
private downpayment assistance programs. Please help us one more time
by contacting your Senators to
convey your support for downpayment assistance; a very important vote is expected in the next few weeks.
As a reminder, we provide a section on our website called
Regulatory Updates
where we detail significant issues relating to DPA regulatory and
legislative events. Check back for new postings or sign-up to have
accurate and timely information delivered to you.
On behalf of the entire Nehemiah team, we look forward to providing
you with the same unmatched quality you have come to expect from us
for years to come.
Sincerely,
Scott Syphax
President & CEO
Nehemiah
Corporation of America
Nehemiah Corporation of America | 424 N 7th Street, Suite 250 |
Sacramento, CA 95811
Toll Free: 1-877-634-3642 | (877) NEHEMIAH
|
