Walz thinks the latter provision could be helpful for some families in the 1st District.

“In this economy, I think we’ve got a lot of good hard-working Minnesotans who are making their loan payments, but by the skin of their teeth,” he said.

Coleman also was able to keep a provision he sponsored in the bill. It provides an extended grace period from foreclosure for soldiers returning from overseas deployments.

Coleman said he understands some conservatives don’t like the idea of the government stepping into the marketplace, but he supports provisions in the bill to more tightly regulate the mortgage companies. And he said larger economic considerations required the legislation be passed to shore up companies that hold trillions of dollars of American mortgages.

“If they were to go down, it would have a devastating effect on housing across the board and on our economy beyond what has already been suffered,” he said.