For millennials, a longer road to homeownership - The Washington Post washingtonpost.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from washingtonpost.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The status quo. It’s a powerful force in Washington, D.C. No matter how destructive or inefficient an existing program, institution or system may be, it’s always safer for politicians to maintain the status quo rather than meaningfully change direction. Exhibit A: federal housing finance policy. Prior to the 2008 financial crisis, the federal government spent decades instituting rules and regulations that ultimately dictated everything banks could do. Regulators even specified capital requirements that supposedly certified financial firms were safe.