Senators Wish to Make HARP Available to High-Equity Borrowers

While the newly revised Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) includes several provisions aimed at widening the program's reach, Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-California) and Johnny Isakson (R-Georgia) are asking the Obama administration to broaden the program even more â€" allowing it to reach homeowners with higher equity in their homes.

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Currently, the revised program is aimed at helping those with less than 20 percent equity in their homes. About 3 million to 4 million homeowners fall into this category.

""However, there are nearly 12 million additional loans guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with greater equity paying interest above 5.0 percent that could benefit from a refinance,"" Boxer and Isakson wrote in a ""letter"":http://boxer.senate.gov/en/press/releases/110211c.cfm to the administration Wednesday.

""Not only is this an issue of fairness, but applying these measures to higher equity borrowers makes good business sense,"" they wrote.

Prior to the ""FHFA's"":http://www.fhfa.gov/ October 24 announcement of the HARP changes, Boxer and Isakson, along with 14 other senators, sent a letter urging the administration ""to take immediate steps to lower the barriers that have kept borrowers trapped in higher interest loans.""

Specifically, they supported removing hurdles such as ""representations and warranties, mortgage insurance, and high lender origination fees,"" topics that have been addressed in the FHFA's recent revisions.

The Senators applauded the measures taken so far but insist that the program be further expanded.

Boxer and Isakson were joined in their request by Sens. Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey), Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island), Mark Begich (D-Arkansas), John F. Kerry (D-Massachusetts), Scott P. Brown (R-Massachusetts), Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) and Frank R. Lautenberg (D-New Jersey).

The senators conclude their letter saying, ""As you prepare the final rules for the announced changes, we urge you to apply the streamlined process and reduced costs as broadly as possible, and to include all responsible homeowners no matter what their level of equity.""

So far HARP has helped nearly 1 million homeowners refinance their mortgages. The FHFA predicts its HARP revisions will allow about 1 million more homeowners to refinance.