Ready to Buy a House? President Trump Just Made It Harder For You

If buying a house in the near future for you, then you were likely thrilled when one of Barack Obama's last acts as president was to make FHA mortgages more affordable by cutting the insurance premium down from .85 percent to .60 percent for most borrowers. The move was designed to help offset some recent mortgage rate increases and was targeted at first-time buyers who are most likely to use loans backed by the FHA as they have lower down payment and credit score requirements. The cut would've gone into effect January 27, but President Trump suspended it as one of his first acts as commander-in-chief.

Trump and House Republicans were opposed to the cut because they feared it would take away from the FHA's funds to cover mortgage defaults, but the Obama Administration Housing Secretary Julian Castro insisted that the FHA's reserves could withstand the decrease in revenue. The National Association of Realtors has made it clear they will keep pushing for the cut to be reinstated, but until then, many would-be homebuyers are having to put their plans on hold and even more homebuyers will be facing higher costs.