If the legislature in Sacramento really wants to help homeowners, they must stop helping.
Any free market economist, including the members of the famed Austrian School championed by Presidential candidate Ron Paul, predicted the collapse of the housing market following the housing bubble, which was inflated by easy credit, liberal government intervention, and a grand yet foolish vision of offering homeownership to every American.
Whether banks have engaged in predatory lending practices or defrauded potential homeowners with low mortgage rates, every home buyer should have read the fine print when entering into a contract for a loan. Owning a home is not a flippant choice, but an investment which requires maturity, adequate capital, and a stable record in which loan cosigners have paid off their debts and have maintained good credit.
Notwithstanding the essential discretion which banks must exercise when granting loans, for years the federal government pressured banks to offer loans to minorities who did not quality. Banks want to earn a profit, which makes it possible for them to grant loans, without going bankrupt. To purchase a home is an immense risk, both for the lender and the borrower. The government cannot regulate these transactions nor protect consumers as long as the government forces banks and loan agencies to ignore market signals.
The state legislature should not enact a bill California's moribund economy and turn her attention toward breaking up the government monopoly of our public schools, decriminalizing drug use by non-violent offenders, and restoring more authority to our city and county governments, who are better equipped to supervise and support the struggling businesses and homeowners in our state.