Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were not the catalyst behind the collapse of the mortgage finance machine, but they did provide plenty of slippery slope for it to slide down, according to the majority report of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. “We conclude...
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You know House Republicans must be serious about overhauling the GSEs and the rest of the housing finance system when their consideration of the issues brings them all the way past Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the Federal Home Loan Banks. Later this week, the House Financial Services Committee will be voting...
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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac played huge roles in the surge of refinance business that lifted up the mortgage market at the end of 2010, according to a new Inside the GSEs analysis. The two GSEs knocked out $351.6 billion in mortgage-backed securities during the fourth quarter, a 39 percent increase from the previous quarter. That lifted...[Includes one data chart]
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The Federal Housing Finance Agency has announced it is revamping its staffing structure in order to “promote greater uniformity and consistency in the examinations of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks,” as well consolidating its three offices into a single centralized facility. The FHFA characterized...
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The longer it takes for policymakers in the nation’s capital to determine a resolution to the form and function of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the greater the odds that the GSEs’ debt costs could rise or their access to capital markets becomes constricted, according to a new analysis released by Moody’s Investors Service. “We believe...
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The new chairman of a key House subcommittee this week staked out a hard-line position on mortgage finance reform that calls for a secondary market with limited or no government presence. With Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and government mortgage programs accounting for up to 95 percent of the U.S. housing market – and taxpayer support...
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The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission’s forensic review of the collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac vividly demonstrated the institutional confusion and chaos at the two companies, the scatter-shot emergency intervention provided by an ad-hoc alliance of regulatory agencies, and the overall sense that nearly everybody associated with the meltdown was...
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Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac continued to report favorable trends across all delinquency buckets in November from prior-month and year-ago levels, while refinance volume kept strengthening during the period, according to the latest GSE foreclosure prevention and refinance report released...
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A Congressional oversight plan up for a vote this week by the House Financial Services Committee sheds some light on the exact nature of some lawmakers’ concerns about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. One new issue that has emerged has been GSE-related legal fees. “The committee will examine...
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The White House is expected to release by week’s end its long-awaited and twice-delayed ideas on how to reform the nation’s housing finance system and what that might mean for the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, an increasing number of press reports indicated as Inside The GSEs went to press. President Obama met...
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The continued festering of the nation’s foreclosure crisis hasn’t escaped the attention of lawmakers in the House who plan on putting the Obama administration’s efforts under the microscope for further scrutiny and possible revision or elimination, Inside The GSEs has learned. “The administration’s foreclosure mitigation initiatives – including...
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