A Primer On The Mortgage Bailout Bill

"Over the weekend the Senate overwhelmingly passed a the mortgage bailout bill that includes a government rescue plan for mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, grants to states to subsidize local real estate markets and extends government protections for refinancing troubled mortgages. The legislation amounts to one of the most far-reaching government expansions in the real estate and financial markets in decades. Surprisingly, there has been very little public discussion of the details."