Mortgage crisis: Fannie, Freddie, and the rest

If you're familiar with "when banks compete, you win," then you probably listen to a news source that discusses the mortgage crisis.  Paul Krugman's been keeping me informed, and he does a nice job of explaining what's going on:

• Fannie and Freddie are more closely regulated than private companies, so they're shenanigans were limited.  They couldn't do subprime loans - loans given with no income verification - by rule.
• However, they weren't completely innocent, as they tried to stretch their ability to participate within the rules as much as possible.
• The housing market is so bad, that even these more regulated companies are sinking as people with conventional mortgages end up with negative equity.
  

Moneylenders receive comeuppance

A number of news sites are reporting on the rising incidence of late mortgage payments, as increasing interest rates push monthly mortgage payments higher. You can tell the language was crafted by the Mortgage Bankers Association:

Lenders to subprime borrowers — people with blemished credit histories — have been battered. Rising interest rates and weak home prices have made it increasingly difficult for these borrowers — especially those with adjustable-rate mortgages — to keep up with their mortgage payments. Delinquencies and foreclosures in the subprime mortgage market are spiking.

Battered is a term to use for women who are victims of domestic violence, not lenders who get their comeuppance when their poorest clients can't make payments. Especially not when these lenders crafted the adjustable rate mortgage to make more interest in the first place.