The White House is temporarily suspending a rule that imposes a 90-day waiting period for a foreclosed home be sold with a government-backed loan. Before, a buyer is not eligible for a Federal Housing Authority loan if he is purchasing the house from someone who has owned the house less than 90 days. HUD won’t insure the mortgage for these purchases. With the suspension, it is expected to push some the sale of foreclosed properties.

The suspension is for one year and the FHA will no longer impose a 90-day waiting period before foreclosed properties can be sold to receive government-insured loans.

The policy was put in place in 5 years ago to deter property "flipping" schemes, in which buyers are overcharged for foreclosures or other distressed properties. But the surge in vacant properties resulting from borrowers who were unable to afford their mortgages has become a far more pressing concern.

"A glut of foreclosed and abandoned homes harms neighborhoods, frustrates homebuyers and delays a community's recovery," FHA commissioner Brian Montgomery said in a prepared statement.

The new policy is intended to "allow homebuyers to purchase these homes in much greater numbers and ease the excess supply of unsold homes," Montgomery added.

Last month, foreclosure listing company RealtyTrac Inc reported that 261,255 homes nationwide received at least one foreclosure-related filing up 48% from the same month last year, and up 7% from April.