In a 12-page fact sheet on the announcement, the regulator notes the final rule is “similar in key respects to the proposed rule, with certain enhancements and other changes made in response to comments.”
The estimated $822 billion of conventional-conforming lending set a quarterly record and represented 72.1% of the huge third-quarter wave of mortgage originations.
Year-to-date production, $1.852 trillion as of Halloween, was up 131.5% from last year. It’s a foregone conclusion that Fannie and Freddie this month will top the current $1.912 trillion annual record for GSE MBS issuance set back in 2003.
Despite this "relief" measure, the GSE regulator has been sharply criticized by lenders because the fee is so steep: 500 basis points for first-time buyers and 700 bps for everyone else.