Biden Continues Presidential Primary Lead

As of press time, former Vice President Joe Biden has won the majority of delegates in the Tuesday primaries, taking Florida and Illinois. Tuesday's elections were heavily impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, as Ohio, which was originally scheduled to vote, moved their primary to July 2.

Biden and fellow candidate Bernie Sanders met in an audience free-debate on Sunday, when both candidates focused on how the Coronavirus was impacting the national debate, with Sanders calling for national reform to healthcare.

Biden's and Sanders' remarks are not surprising during a weekend already marked by response from the government and industry toward how mortgages will be impacted by Coronavirus.

Bloomberg reports that the Trump administration is considering a plan to allow homeowners whose income was impacted by COVID-19 to delay mortgage payments.

The report adds a mechanism for borrowers to catch up has yet to be decided. Also, the government will have to determine how to advance money to servicers so investors in mortgage-backed securities get their guaranteed payments.

Biden's plan for housing includes a $640 billion investment over 10 years, to allow Americans to have access to affordable housing.

According to a release, Biden plans to end redlining and other discriminatory and unfair practices in the housing market, provide financial assistance and down-payment assistance, increasing the supply and lowering the cost of housing, and pursuing a “comprehensive approach” to end homelessness.

The plan says Americans should have access to housing that takes up no more than 30% of their household income.

He added that he would work to protect homeowners and renters from “abusive” lenders and landlords through a new Homeowners and Renter Bill of Rights, modeled after the California Homeowner Bill of Rights.

“Biden will enact legislation to end many shortcomings in the mortgage and rental markets,” the release states. “This new Bill of Rights will prevent mortgage brokers from leading borrowers into loans that cost more than appropriate, prevent mortgage servicers from advancing a foreclosure when the homeowner is in the process of receiving a loan modification, give homeowners a private right of action to seek financial redress from mortgage lenders and servicers that violate these protections, and give borrowers the right to a timely notification on the status of their loan modifications and to be able to appeal modification denials.

Biden’s plan also calls for a $100 billion affordable housing fund to construct and upgrade affordable housing. Also, $65 billion in new incentives for state housing authorities and the Indian Housing Block Grant program to construct or rehabilitate low-cost, efficient, resilient, and accessible housing in areas where affordable housing is in short supply is included in the plan.