It would take Congressional action to create an explicit guarantee, a scenario almost no one expects to happen.

Critics argue that, if Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are released from conservatorship without an explicit government guarantee, MBS investors will demand wider spreads to cover the added credit risk.

Affordable housing advocates say ending the GSE conservatorships administratively won’t relieve the enterprises from the mission-related responsibilities included in their charters and HERA.

If Congress takes up GSE reform, Mark Calabria, who served as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency during the first Trump administration, has some suggestions.

Analysts say many of the economic forces that have acted as headwinds for the agency MBS market since 2022 are now poised to become tailwinds.

Interest rate cuts by the Fed prior to the 2023 banking crisis resulted in more than $2 trillion in mark-to-market losses on banks' Treasury and MBS holdings.

Lenders doubt the changes agreed to by FHFA and Treasury will hasten the end of the conservatorships; they may even delay it.

Lenders are concerned that the incoming Trump administration might reinstate limits on GSE acquisitions, repeating an action from the first Trump administration.

Proposals regarding core mission activities and FHLBank membership won't be finished prior to the start of the Trump administration.

Despite the similarities in results from the scoring models, there are some major differences in how the scores are constructed.