Investors will be able to exchange existing Freddie Mac participation certificates for new single securities when the GSE creates new “mirror” securities to help facilitate the transition.The exchange program will be available when the new single security goes live and Freddie plans to keep it open for the foreseeable future. Held in a Federal Reserve account, the mirror securities will not increase the outstanding principal balance of Freddie MBS, the GSE explained in an update on the exchange program. The mirror securities will track existing Freddie MBS but substitute a 55-day payment cycle for Freddie’s current 45-day cycle. Freddie will pay compensation equal to the fair market value of the 10 days of lost float when...
Fannie Mae’s most recognizable headquarters in Washington, DC, along with two others, recently hit the market as the GSE plans to sell the properties in preparation for its move downtown in 2017. Commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield began marketing the GSE’s three properties in late October. They include the storied main building at 3900 Wisconsin Ave., which replicates Williamsburg, VA, architecture, a smaller building at 3939 Wisconsin Ave. and Fannie’s 1990’s-era building at 4240 Connecticut Ave. The primary building and land are currently valued at approximately $92.1 million, according to 2015 records from the DC Office of Tax and Revenue. The Connecticut Avenue building is valued at $84 million and the 3939 Wisconsin Ave. building is...
Nobody likes getting a mortgage, but interactive technology – if implemented correctly – can make the process significantly more transparent and less stressful, industry experts say. There is an opportunity in technology to make the system more transparent and help educate the next generation of homeowners, as well as minority groups, said Robert Greenbaum, director of communications and marketing at Fannie Mae, during a panel session at the annual convention of the Mortgage Bankers Association. “They aspire...
Since the federal takeover, the Treasury Department has provided $116.1 billion in assistance to Fannie with the GSE returning (once the 3Q dividend is paid) $144.8 billion...
Freddie Mac’s $475 million net loss in the third quarter of 2015 – its first in four years – underscores the need to rebuild capital reserves at the two government-sponsored enterprises and to plan for their emergence from conservatorship, according to some mortgage groups and housing advocates. In a joint letter, the Community Home Lenders Association and the Community Mortgage Lenders of America, both of which represent small independent mortgage lenders, urged President Obama to support recommended revisions to a sweep agreement that prohibits the GSEs from rebuilding capital and to free them from conservatorship. Freddie’s third-quarter loss was...
American International Group this week cleared the air regarding a potential spinoff of its profitable mortgage insurance division, saying it likes the MI business very much and considers it a “core” asset. In other words, it’s not for sale. Then again, during AIG’s third-quarter earnings call, President and CEO Peter Hancock left open the door to a possible sale of United Guaranty, saying that “over time” the company likes to maintain its flexibility and that if the “right offer to monetize assets” came along, it would ponder a bid. “It gives...
The baseline $417,000 conforming loan limit is almost certain to remain unchanged in 2016, according to an Inside Mortgage Finance analysis of key house-price trends. The Federal Housing Finance Agency recently confirmed that it will use the seasonally-adjusted “expanded data” house-price index as the yardstick for determining whether increases should be made to the $417,000 baseline, which has been in place for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac business since 2006. As of the second quarter of 2015, the most recent data available, the HPI reading was...
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reported a combined $1.485 billion in net income for the third quarter of 2015, a hefty 83.1 percent decline from the previous period. While Fannie reported its 15th consecutive profitable quarter ($1.96 billion in net income), Freddie posted its first loss ($475 million) in four years. Don Layton, Freddie’s CEO, said that earnings volatility “stems from our usage of derivatives to hedge interest rate risks and accounting mismatches associated with the activity. This quarter showed a continuation of that volatility as the accounting mismatch produced a negative $1.5 billion [generally accepted accounting principles] earnings, which was enough to tip us into the comprehensive income loss of about $500 million for the quarter. “Utilizing a derivatives hedging strategy can result...
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