US Boosts Latin Mortgage Financing 

BY CHRONICLE STAFF

The Bush Administration is allocating $385 million in additional funds to help Latin Americans get mortgage loans as a way to boost their prosperity and spur economic growth, President George W. Bush announced yesterday.

"Helping people reach their potential requires a commitment to improving housing," Bush said during a speech to the US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. "A strong housing industry can be an engine of economic growth and social stability and poverty reduction."

The high price and high interest rates of capital in Latin America make good housing hard to afford, he added. "So the United States is launching a new effort to help build a market for affordable housing," he said.

The latest funds come on top of $100 million that the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) is allocating to boost mortgages in Latin America as well as a major initiative by the IDB to increase mortgage...