federal government, which matched the rates in the short-term money market. Longer terms, up to thirty months, have since been added to saving certificates, which is important to savings and loans because they need a relatively stable savings base. Lending long term on mortgages with relatively low rates, savings and loans ran into trouble in the 1970s when they were stuck with many 30-year, 3-5 percent loans while they had to pay the same or higher for new funds. The all-important spread between the average rate on loans earned and that paid for funds approached zero or even negative, which spelled trouble for many a savings and loan. Thus, on the cost side of the ledger, savings and loans since the mid-1980s have had to pay ever-higher interest rates and offer new fin
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