NAHB Scores on Multifamily Mortgage Insurance Premiums

WASHINGTON, DC-The National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) is celebrating the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s decision to scale back mortgage insurance premiums for new apartment buildings from 80 basis points to 57 basis points. The change is part of the Bush administration’s FY2003 budget, and comes after HUD raised the premium for FHA multifamily mortgage insurance programs by 30 basis points last year.

For NAHB members, news of the change is cause for special celebration, as the association campaigned vigorously for months to get the number lowered. In November, NAHB’s Dave Curtis offered testimony on the matter before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. “NAHB has repeatedly expressed concern about HUD’s decision to raise the mortgage insurance premiums on these [multi-family housing] programs from 50 to 80 basis points for the simple reason that those increases translate into increased rents and decreased affordability,” Curtis said. “We believe that the model utilized by HUD and [the Office of Management and Budget] is outdated and unnecessarily pessimistic.” NAHB followed up its congressional testimony with written suggestions for improving the model assumptions. The new terms go into effect on October 1 of this year.