Obama Urges Americans To Refinance Homes



In an effort to tout his administration's response to the housing crisis, President Barack Obama hosted a roundtable meeting this morning with a handful of Americans who had recently taken advantage of low interest rates to refinance their homes.

The president cited an increase in refinancing nationwide as evidence that new programs designed to stem the rate of foreclosures are working.

"At the beginning of this administration we said we are -- we were going to tackle directly the problems that homeowners were experiencing and figure out ways in which we could provide them assistance in reducing their interest rates, modifying their loans so that they would be in a position to stay in their homes and reduce their monthly payments," Mr. Obama said. "And around the table here you see some wonderful families who have taken advantage of what are now historically low mortgage rates, brought about in part by some extraordinary actions by the Federal Reserve."

Mr. Obama also urged homeowners to capitalize on favorable rates on fixed mortgages. Millions of Americans are eligible for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage of 4.78 percent, the lowest rate on record, the president noted. Homeowners can refinance and save up to $2,000 a year, according to a White House press release.

“People can really take advantage of this,” Mr. Obama said.

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