Mortgage Brokers ? R.i.p ??

Secretary Henry Paulson announced serious plans to reduce mortgage interest rates even further to 4.5%, which he hoped would be pursued by the incoming Obama administration. Further reductions in mortgage rates would give a powerful boost to the housing market, Paulson said.

The 4.5% rates would be available only to new loans for the purchase of new or existing homes. It would exclude refinancing of existing mortgages. If these plans materialize, several hundred billion dollars in new mortgages could be financed, according to people in the industry. This could set conditions right for a revival in the housing market.

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