"We applaud any effort to help homeowners keep their homes; however, the President’s plan would only help a fairly small share of the borrowers who are in danger of losing their homes through foreclosure.  None of the borrowers who have already fallen behind on their payments would be eligible for help under this plan.

"President Bush’s plan consists of allowing borrowers who are now paying “starter rates” that average 8.5% to continue to pay these already high rates for five more years, rather than to face increases to 11.5% or more when their interest rates are scheduled to "reset."

"The loans that the plan would affect are loans that never should have been allowed in the first place.  The brokers who pushed these irresponsible loans on borrowers, the lenders who originated them, and the Wall Street firms that packaged them into investment securities all earned much higher fees from making these toxic loans than they would have earned by lending more responsibly.  Congress and the Bush Administration bear responsibility for failing to enact appropriate legislation and demand effective regulatory oversight.  AFFIL will continue to fight to regulate the industry to protect vulnerable homebuyers and homeowners from predatory mortgage lenders."