Shortly after taking office, President Barack Obama pledged to help as many as 9 million homeowners avoid losing their homes to foreclosure, but three years on, that has not happened. To date, some $2.4 billion of the $50 billion that he promised has been spent and 1.7 million people have been helped.
At it stands, housing prices remain near a crisis low, millions of people are deep in debt, owning more than their properties are worth and many have lost their homes to foreclosure or are likely to do so.
Most economists observe that, if more is not done to address the housing crisis, it is not far-fetched to think that the economy could slip back into another recession.
