Shocked because it seems obvious to me that this would have undesirable effects down the road. It also funnels even more money into banks because the net effect

Shocked because it seems obvious to me that this would have undesirable effects down the road. It also funnels even more money into banks because the net effect is that homeowners are essentially renting from banks for most of their lives until they get a significant windfall. In the US, we saw what happens when you make getting a mortgage "easy". People bought more house than they could afford and got screwed.