The House has overwhelmingly passed what has become omnibus housing legislation that includes numerous provisions to boost home ownership. The bill literally has something for everybody.

The measure, which was cleared on a surprisingly strong 417 to 8 vote, features a number of special provisions that will help an estimated 125,000 public employees, teachers, police officers, fire fighters, municipal workers and corrections officers and persons with disabilities purchase houses over the next five years.

It also authorizes the Federal Housing Administration to insure combination adjustable-fixed rate mortgages and simplifies the astonishingly difficult FHA downpayment calculation. It does not, however, allow the FHA to back more adjustable loans, as had been hoped for by lenders. For now, at least, only 30 percent of all FHA loans can be ARMs.

But the bill does raise the bar for persons with little equity in their homes by increasing the loan limit for FHA's Title One property improvement loan from $25,000 to $32,500. Title I loans are an important source of home improvement financing for the increasing number of people buying houses with 5 percent down or less.

Furthermore, the bill advances reforms to FHA's 203(k) home renovation loan program to protect consumers against fraud and incompetence. For example, business affiliations between lenders, consultants, contractor, realty agents, non-profits, appraisers or anyone else with a financial stake in the 203(k) project are forbidden.

203(k) loans enable consumers to obtain a single mortgage to cover the cost of buying and renovating a home rather than taking out two loans one to purchase the place and the other, usually more expensive one to fix it up.

In addition, the bill makes some technical corrections to make certain the recently enacted private mortgage insurance cancellation and disclosure law works properly. And it encourages local governments to reduce barriers to affordable housing that arise from unnecessary and excessive regulations.

Of course, the housing bill is only halfway home. It still must be acted upon by the Senate. And then the President must sign it. But there was indeed joy in Mudville when the House moved swiftly and solidly.

"We are not surprised by the size of the victory," gushed Paul Reid of the Mortgage Bankers Association. "We have heard a loud voice from our own grassroots supporting the key provisions of this bill, and obviously Congress heard them, too."

Here's a laundry list of some of the legislation's other major provisions:

Published: April 10, 2000

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When Lew Sichelman first started writing about housing in 1969, he was the youngest real estate writer in the country. Now, 37 years later, he's one of the oldest -- and most decorated. He has been rated the top housing columnist in the country by the National Association of Realtors as well as by his peers in the National Association of Real Estate Editors. Indeed, NAREE has recognized his work on numerous occasions. One year - due to his advancing age, he can't recall which one - he earned top honors in the annual NAREE Journalism Contest in three out of the four major writing categories. It was the first time one writer has won so many NAREE awards in a single year. Known for his ability to make even the most difficult topics understandable, Sichelman also has been honored by the National Association of Home Builders and the Mortgage Bankers Association. He began providing in-depth coverage of and consumer-oriented information about housing and housing finance at the Washington Daily News, where he was real estate editor. He held that same position for nine more years at the Washington Star, which purchased the News in 1972. The Star, a so-called "writer's newspaper" which also had the misfortune of being an evening paper, was put out of its misery in 1981, and Sichelman, who had begun self-syndicating his column in 1978, decided to become a full-time columnist. Today, his column, "The Housing Scene," is distributed by United Media to newspapers throughout the country. He also is on the staff of National Mortgage News, an independent newspaper which is considered the bible of the mortgage business. And he writes for numerous other publications, including MarketWatch.com, where he answers readers questions once a week, Sports Illustrated (don't ask), RealtyTimes.com, BigBuilder and others. Sichelman is married, the father of five and grandfather of eleven.