President Barack Obama, in his fifth state of the union speech, touted the “rebounding housing market” as one of the measures of the strengthening economy and asked Congress to reform the mortgage finance system in such a way that would keep home ownership within reach of households without risking another taxpayer-funded mortgage finance crisis. Note: REALTORS have noticed negative impacts of reform measures already implemented, including clients’ difficulties in obtaining loan approval, longer loan approval timelines and delays in closing.