Even as the number of proposals to overhaul the nation’s housing finance system proliferates, finding an acceptable plan is become increasingly difficult. Last week, the Government Accountability Office released a report assessing 14 of the leading proposals for reforming housing finance and taking Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac out of conservatorship.
Speaking at a public forum recently, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the Fed will continue to offload the massive $4 trillion portfolio it acquired through quantitative easing in the wake of the housing crisis.
In an about-face, the Federal Housing Finance Agency told the Fifth Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals that it will no longer defend the constitutionality of its single-director leadership structureunderthe Housing and Economic Recovery Act, which created the FHFA.
The supply of Freddie Mac single-family mortgage servicing rights grew at more than twice the rate of increase in Fannie Mae product during 2018, according to a new Inside the GSEs analysis and ranking. [Includes two data charts.]
An estimated $9.6 billion of Ginnie Mae securities backed by FHA-insured reverse mortgages were issued in 2018, down from $10.5 billion a year ago, according to New View Advisors.
The Community Home Lenders Association has expressed concerns that Ginnie Mae is on a mission to reduce the number of MBS issuers and tighten credit standards — moves that would affect its core members and hurt its housing mission.
Commercial real estate collateralized loan obligations are a valuable financing tool, albeit with some risks, industry officials said at a conference sponsored by the CRE Finance Council in Miami last week.
The average daily trading volume in agency MBS fell to $212.9 billion in December, one of the lowest readings of the year, according to figures compiled by the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are coming off strong years for their multifamily business and most observers say that success is likely to continue well into 2019.
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