two firms. No date has been set for when the pay changes will go into effect. Fannie and Freddie buy home loans from banks and other lenders, package them into bonds with a guarantee against default,http://www.sdhwggw.com/bbs//viewthread.php?tid=687209&extra=, and then sell them to investors around the world. When property values drop, more homeowners default, either because they are unable to afford the payments or because they owe more than the property is worth,http://doufun.cn/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=1837964. Because of the guarantees, Fannie and Freddie must pay for the losses. Fewer foreclosures and delays in foreclosure processing because of a 16-month government investigation into mortgage lending practices had also reduced the companies' projected losses. But that government probe ended last month with a $25 billion settlement, which might cause foreclosure rates to rise. Pressure continues on the government to eliminate Fannie and Freddie and reduce taxpayers' exposure to risk. The Treasury Department put forward a plan a year ago to slowly dissolve Fannie and Freddie, although that process could take years. Abolishing Fannie and Freddie would transform how homes are bought and redefine who can afford them. Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Your comment will be posted immediately, unless it is spam or contains profanity. For more information, please see our Comments FAQ. An insider's guide to politics and policy, available on the iPad or as a PDF download,toms shoes coupon.
By CHRIS KAHN, Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) Gasoline prices paused this week in their march toward $4 per gallon. After 39 straight days of increases,http://www.freedamn.com/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=2163558, prices fell nearly a penny from Tuesday to Thursday and held steady on Friday at $3.758 per gallon. The lull won't last long. Prices dipped as suppliers conducted the equivalent of a spring clearance. They are discounting winter gasoline blends to make room for different blends that are required for summer driving, said Tom Kloza, chief analyst at the Oil Price Information Service. Prices will start to rise again once the winter gasoline has been sold off. They have to, Kloza said, since summer gasoline costs more to produce because it contains smog-fighting additives. The switch to summer gas also creates a temporary dip in supplies as wholesalers sell off winter stocks, and that can force prices higher as well. OPIS forecasts that average gasoline prices will rise as high as $4.25 per gallon across the country by late April. That would top the record high of $4.11 set in July 2008 and keep gasoline center stage during this year's presidential election,toms shoes sale. Republicans have blamed President Barack Obama for the high prices, while Obama has dismissed the criticism as election-year politics. Obama has asked his attorney general to look into the possibility that commodity speculators are driving prices higher. The average price for gasoline is already more than $4 per gallon in California, Alaska and Hawaii. It's nearly there in Connecticut,cheapest toms shoes, Illinois, New York, Oregon and Washington. The price of gasolin