Housing Bills Will Help Homeowners and Economy

WASHINGTON--(Business Wire)--
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) today applauded
House and Senate legislation to address the housing crisis and
economic slowdown.

"The bills passed this morning by the full Senate and yesterday by
the House Ways and Means Committee are an important step in the
process of enacting comprehensive housing legislation that will shore
up housing and the economy," said Jerry Howard, executive vice
president and CEO of NAHB. "We will continue to work on a bipartisan
basis with lawmakers in both chambers and with the Bush Administration
to produce the most effective legislation to help ailing homeowners
and restore consumer confidence."

The House and Senate versions contain several provisions that will
help home buyers, homeowners, strapped borrowers facing foreclosure,
state and local governments experiencing budget woes, veterans and
businesses suffering losses in the current economic climate.

But one provision stands out as the most effective means to boost
housing demand and stabilize the market, according to Howard.

"Enacting a broad, temporary tax credit for the purchase of a home
would provide the best stimulus for housing and the economy," he said.
"We urge House and Senate lawmakers to keep this in mind as they move
to bridge their differences and enact into law the best possible bill
to help distressed homeowners and to jump-start housing and the
economy."

The Federal Reserve has already taken aggressive measures to
stabilize financial markets and increase liquidity in the credit
markets. The central bank has also taken unprecedented actions to make
funds available for investment banks squeezed for credit.

"The Fed has done its part to prop up Wall Street. We are looking
to Congress to swiftly pass comprehensive housing legislation to help
home buyers and homeowners on Main Street and businesses. Taken
together, these measures will help to avoid an economic downturn and
stabilize financial markets globally," said Howard.

ABOUT NAHB: The National Association of Home Builders is a
Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing more than
235,000 members involved in residential building, remodeling,
multifamily construction, property management, subcontracting, design,
housing finance, building product manufacturing and other aspects of
residential and light commercial construction. Known as "the voice of
the housing industry," NAHB is affiliated with more than 800 state and
local home builders associations around the country. NAHB's builder
members will construct 80 percent of the more than 1.08 million new
housing units projected for 2008.

National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)
Paul Lopez, 202-266-8409
plopez@nahb.com
www.nahb.org

Copyright Business Wire 2008