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.

If past is prologue, the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s plan to hire as many as 141 employees may only be aspirational.

The former Freddie executive said eliminating mortgage servicing rights, or transferring them to the GSEs, would eliminate the need for nonbank mortgage servicers to make servicing advances on delinquent loans.

Deliveries of refinances to the government-sponsored enterprises jumped from $9.37 billion in September to $15.59 billion in October.

While the Fed hasn’t formally announced any intention to sell its MBS holdings in the short term, many market participants expect it to happen at some point in the future.

If Calabria is tapped for the FHFA job again, more of the same can be expected: higher capital requirements, increased fees and a smaller GSE footprint.

October deliveries to the GSEs were up 15.2% from September, largely due to a 66.4% sequential increase in refinances. (Includes two data tables.)

Mortgage industry stakeholders speculate about who Trump will nominate to oversee Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and determine whether they remain in conservatorship or are re-privatized.

The reduction in fees for mortgages on homes that qualify for the GSEs’ housing goals are estimated to increase Fannie and Freddie acquisitions by 37,000 loans in 2025.

Industry trade groups noted that the increase comes on top of a 400% price hike over the past two years. They also argued that the credit re-porting bureaus will inevitably add additional price hikes.