WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - President Barack Obama Wednesday laid out his agenda for fixing the housing market, a sector of the economy that was key to the economic decline. Obama said that straying from American values had caused the bubble and subsequent burst in the housing market. 'Millions of families who did the right and the responsible thing, folks who shopped for a home that they could afford, secured a mortgage, made their payments each month -- they were hurt badly by the irresponsible actions of other people who weren't playing by the same rules, weren't taking the same care, weren't acting as responsibly,' Obama said. He added, 'Lenders who sold loans to people who they knew couldn't afford the mortgages; and buyers who bought homes they knew they couldn't afford; and banks that packaged those mortgages up and traded them to reap phantom profits, knowing that they were building a house of cards.' Those practices, Obama said, were simply wrong. 'Crushing debt has kept millions of consumers from spending,' he said. 'A lack of building demand has kept hundreds of thousands of construction workers idle.' He added, 'Everybody involved in the home-building business -- folks who make windows, folks who make carpets -- they've all been impacted.' Obama said that the housing crisis struck right at the heart of middle class America, for many of whom their homes represent the greatest source of their wealth. 'It's personal. It affects so much of how people feel about their lives, about their communities, about the country, about the economy,' he said. 'We need to do everything in our power to repair the damage and make responsible families whole again.' Obama warned that it would take time for the housing market to recover to the point where the many Americans who owe more than their houses are valued to recover - and acknowledged that his administration's efforts so far have not proved decisive. 'I am sending Congress a plan that will give every responsible homeowner in America the chance to save about $3,000 a year on their mortgage by refinancing at historically low rates,' Obama said. 'No more red tape. No more runaround from the banks. And a small fee on the largest financial institutions will make sure it doesn't add to our deficit.' He added, 'What this plan will do is help millions of responsible homeowners who make their payments on time but find themselves trapped under falling home values or wrapped up in red tape.' Obama also said he was proposing new regulations to make mortgage contracts more understandable and offering incentives to transform foreclosed properties into rentals. 'As we know and a lot of families know, that empty house or 'for sale' sign down the block can bring down the price of homes across the neighborhood,' he said. 'We're working to make sure people don't lose their homes just because they lose their jobs.' He added, 'These are steps that can make a concrete difference in people's lives right now.'
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