What FHFA scandals mean for agency’s future, GSE reform
The biggest impact may be to focus the administration’s efforts on selecting a nominee to succeed Director Mel Watt, whose term ends in January.
Housing finance reform
Fannie reclassifies certain assets, sees big earnings boost
Fannie Mae’s treatment of a reperforming loan package helped drive up earnings by almost 41% to $4.5 billion, delivering a stronger dividend to Treasury ahead of a leadership change.
Seven contenders to become next FHFA chief
Whoever succeeds current Director Mel Watt will have a front-and-center role in efforts to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Opinion FHFA needs to curb Fannie and Freddie’s insatiable appetites
Instead of shrinking the GSEs, the housing regulator is letting them expand into a host of new products and programs.
Edward J. Pinto
American Enterprise Institute
Small lenders urge FHFA to let Fannie and Freddie rebuild capital
The groups applauded a proposal to establish minimum GSE capital requirements, but called for more immediate steps to release the companies from conservatorship.
Overhauling ‘Dark Ages’ FHA a must for housing reform, HUD says
Risk management and technology systems at the Federal Housing Administration lag decades behind Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and desperately need to be revamped, according to a top official at HUD.
FHFA seeks to bring more transparency to GSE balance sheets
The agency proposed new minimum capital requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would only go into effect if the government ends its conservatorships.
FHFA’s Watt plows ahead on housing finance fixes
In the continued absence of legislation, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s regulator announced work on a new capital framework.
Analysts expect to give high credit rating to GSE successors
The future secondary mortgage market entities will receive high investment grade ratings, even as there is no clarity on their scope or form, Fitch Ratings said.
Risks of lax underwriting far outweigh the rewards, MBA chief warns
Lenders should not get so desperate chasing volume by originating lower credit non-qualified mortgage products that they are inviting the next regulatory crackdown, said David Stevens, the Mortgage Bankers Association's CEO.
Charter creep concerns resurface in Freddie’s new risk-sharing pilot
Freddie Mac and Arch Capital are testing a new form of risk-sharing deal to boost investor appetite for low down payment mortgages. But the pilot is raising concerns about "charter creep" because it dictates private mortgage insurance decisions typically made by lenders.
GSE credit risk transfer programs are a housing reform model
The success of the government-sponsored enterprises' credit risk transfer programs shows that they can be the basis for housing finance reform.
Supreme Court rejects hedge funds on Fannie, Freddie suits
The Supreme Court dealt hedge funds and other big investors a blow Tuesday by refusing to revive core parts of lawsuits that challenged the federal government’s capture of billions of dollars in profits generated by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Has GSE reform hit the skids?
Despite a legislative push by some senators and other stakeholders to jump-start housing finance reform, efforts to form consensus over a bill once again are stuck in neutral.
Opinion Banks need more skin in the housing finance game
Lenders should be encouraged to hold more credit risk in the mortgage market, rather than having it foisted on Fannie and Freddie.
Clock running out to get housing finance reform moving
Housing finance reformers are pushing full steam ahead to get a bill introduced before the political calendar makes passage nearly impossible.
Cheat sheet: Senate goes own way on housing finance reform
Senate negotiators are working on a bill that would place Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into receivership and replace them with multiple mortgage guarantors, according to sources.
Treasury, FHFA strike deal to let GSEs retain ‘limited’ capital
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be allowed to build capital buffers to protect against losses under an agreement between the Treasury Department and the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced on Thursday.
Fannie and Freddie: Should they stay or should they go?
Until recently, there was a consensus among policymakers that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac needed to be eliminated. That just changed. Here's why.
Breaking down Hensarling’s GSE reform overture
House Financial Services Committee Jeb Hensarling shifted tactics on housing finance reform Wednesday, acknowledging that a bill he’s pushed for years to virtually eliminate the government’s role in the mortgage market lacks the support to become law.
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