Bill Pulte, Trump’s choice to run the FHFA, is a scion of a homebuilding industry giant, but his background is mostly in private equity and philanthropy.

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.

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

A report by the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office concludes that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are more likely to hold successful public stock offerings now than when Trump first took office in 2020.

Old industry hands like Mike Calhoun of CRL and former FHFA acting Director Ed Demarco say getting the GSEs out of conservatorship might be more complicated than the Trump administration believes.

FHFA and CFPB insiders expect the new administration to make quick changes in agency leadership, a process made easier by Republicans gaining control of the Senate.

Although nonbank advocates have long argued for FHLBank membership, new proposals from the Urban Institute address key challenges.

Would a second Trump administration be more likely to take the GSEs out from under the government’s thumb? It didn’t work the first time around, but Biden hasn’t been interested at all.

The FHLBanks, like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, have a public/private structure that can incentivize private profits at public cost. Don Layton, former Freddie CEO, said the banks are ripe for reform.

The approaching expiration of Treasury’s warrants on Fannie and Freddie stock and the possibility of a second Trump administration have revived debate on the potential end of the conservatorship of the GSEs.