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Inside The GSEs

June 17, 2009

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Fluctuating Refi Dynamics Affect FNM, FRE

The booming 2009 mortgage refinance market will have some significant effects on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the full extent of which may not be evident for months and perhaps years, according to some industry observers. On the one hand, the surge seen in the refi space in recent months has given the pair the opportunity to book quality business for their mortgage-backed securities... Read More

Do FHLBanks Need an Insurance Fund?

While some policymakers are preparing to weigh the future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, others are looking more closely at how the Federal Home Loan Banks and the FHLBank System as a whole can be strengthened, or at least make better use of their revenues and capital levels. One idea being bandied about by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and some industry representatives... Read More

GOP Eyes Cutting Fed Ties with Fannie, Freddie

The Obama administration’s plan to overhaul the financial regulatory system was about to be issued as Inside The GSEs went to press, but the “loyal opposition” in the House of Representatives already issued its own take on the pending make-over, including a decisive rejection of Uncle Sam’s relationship with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s government-subsidized... Read More

Fannie, Freddie Production Up Strongly in 1Q09

The top five states for GSE business production saw their combined dollar volume of business in the first quarter of 2009 rise a total 85.4 percent over the fourth quarter of 2008, according to the Inside Mortgage Finance MBS Database. As good as that sounds, overall GSE business by state was actually up even higher, 92.1 percent, during the period, another... [Includes one chart] Read More

GSE Take Growing Share of Mortgage, MBS Markets

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac continued to see their share of the residential mortgage market grow in early 2009 as the non-conforming home loan sector remained largely dormant. Together, Fannie and Freddie saw their retained mortgage portfolios climb to $1.651 trillion as of the end of March, a 3.7 percent increase from the previous quarter... [Includes one chart] Read More

FHFA Eyes Prior Approval Over GSE Exec. Comp.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking on executive compensation for the GSEs and the Office of Finance that includes prior approval for the termination benefits of any executive officer of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Fannie and Freddie “may not enter into any agreement or contract to provide any payment of money or other things of current or... Read More

GSE Refi Programs at Risk From Spike in Rates

The mortgage refinance programs that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac established to aid the Obama administration’s housing rescue initiatives may well find themselves dashed upon the shoals of sharply rising mortgages rates, despite all the dramatic moves made by the Federal Reserve and the Treasury to steer the housing market through treacherous waters. Fannie’s Refi Plus... Read More

U.S. Absorbs Virtually All MBS Issued in 2009

U.S. government agencies have amassed huge holdings of mortgage-backed securities issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae that nearly equal total production in the so-called agency MBS market so far in 2009. The Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve held some $671.2 billion of agency MBS as of the midway point in June, according to... [Includes one chart] Read More

S&P Puts FHLBank of Seattle on Credit Watch Neg.

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Seattle continues to struggle with a deteriorating portfolio of non-agency mortgage-backed securities, prompting Standard & Poor’s Rating Service to place the Bank on its “credit watch” with negative implications. The placement “reflects our concerns regarding FHLBank Seattle’s exposure to a $5.7 billion private-label MBS portfolio... Read More

News In Brief

Final FHLB First Quarter OTTI Charge Reaches $5.2 Billion: The Federal Home Loan Banks took a combined hit of $5.2 billion on their “other-than-temporary... Continuing Troubles Prompt Executive Changes at Two FHLBs: The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco recently appointed David Martens, its senior... Read More

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