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Jacking up guaranty fees on mortgages to pay for only 2 months of payroll tax cut extensions is totally stupid and short-sighted.

In exchange for kicking the can down the road for only 2 months, Congress is threatening the fragile recovery in a weak sector, housing.

Consumers buying or refinancing houses will have higher monthly mortgage payments for years, and in 2 months Congress will be back having solved nothing. -  BC

Here are 3 stories that elaborate:

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul: US Economy Edition - posted by Adam Levitin - The Administration seems to have cut a deal to extend the payroll tax cut, ... But it's being paid for by an increase in the "G-fee" (guarantee fee) charged by FHA and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on the loans they purchase. In other words, anyone refinancing or taking out a mortgage now will be subsidizing reduced payroll taxes.  The result is robbing Peter to pay Paul, which means the economic benefits from extending the payroll tax cut are going to be muted by the chill this puts on the struggling housing market. ... more - Credit Slips

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(on GSE fee hike) Throw the bums out! - Submitted by Bruce Krasting - The bumbling fools in D.C. have done it again. They’ve screwed us all one more time. The low rent morons who are running the show have kicked the can down the road for (get this) two months. ... The bright guys who came up with the plan have a mechanism to pay for it. They’re going to charge homeowners a new fee for the next ten years. ... It’s just another nail in the coffin for housing. By far and away the weakest link in the economy is housing. ... - Zero Hedge
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(this only buys 2 months of time) Payroll tax-cut extension adds $17 a month to typical mortgage - By ALAN FRAM (AP) -  Who is paying for the two-month extension of the payroll tax cut working its way through Congress? The cost is being dropped in the laps of most people who buy homes or refinance beginning next year. - Chicago Sun Times