Thu, Jan 18 2018, 12:27 PM
There is a rather unusual request up on the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA's) website. Two FHFA analysts, saying that the issue of updating th...
Wed, Jan 17 2018, 9:14 AM
“It doesn’t matter if you are rich or poor, as long as you have money.” Banks are where the money is, and plenty of them are paying attention to Congr...
Thu, Dec 21 2017, 10:21 AM
The Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA's) House Price Index (HPI) for September slowed to its lowest level since January , 6.3 percent and the mon...
Thu, Dec 21 2017, 9:40 AM
Agreement has been reached between the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the Department of the Treasury to reinstate a $3 billion capital rese...
Wed, Dec 20 2017, 9:36 AM
“Look, if a man says he will fix it, he will. There’s no need to remind him every six months.” Humor aside, it seems that Facebook is fixing things so...
Mon, Dec 18 2017, 5:16 PM
Despite the disruptions from several hurricanes and an expected drag from trade in the fourth quarter, Fannie Mae says it expects 2017 to finish with ...
Fri, Dec 15 2017, 11:22 AM
There has been a flurry of news about the two GSEs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in the last few weeks. The House Financial Services Committee recently...
Wed, Dec 13 2017, 9:49 AM
Both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae announced this week that evictions from foreclosed single-family and two-to-four-unit properties owned by the GSEs wil...
Tue, Dec 5 2017, 9:19 AM
It’s good to keep things in perspective, and here’s some Tuesday trivia. Today, 2 billion adults around the world remain without a bank account, inclu...
Fri, Dec 1 2017, 9:51 AM
Fannie Mae's Book of Business increased at a compounded annual rate of 1.6 percent in October, to a value of $3.200 trillion compared to $3.195 trilli...
Wed, Nov 15 2017, 12:24 PM
With new home building still lagging other measures of the housing recovery, and lean inventories of new homes causing shortages of existing homes as ...
Fri, Nov 10 2017, 9:17 AM
In lending we should all continue to champion and applaud the individuals and companies that are making a difference in our quest for equality, especi...
Wed, Nov 8 2017, 3:52 PM
Fannie Mae blamed diminished confidence in both buying and selling a home for a 3.1 percentage point drop in its Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) ...
Fri, Nov 3 2017, 10:14 AM
The second in a scheduled three-part hearing on Sustainable Housing Finance was held on Thursday by the Housing and Insurance subcommittee of the Hous...
Wed, Nov 1 2017, 12:01 PM
Fannie Mae's Book of Business increased at a compounded annual rate of 2.7 percent in September to a value of $3.196 trillion compared to $3.188 trill...
Wed, Oct 4 2017, 11:48 AM
While assuring members of Congress that it is their role to make decisions about housing finance reform, Melvin L. Watt, Director of the Federal Housi...
Mon, Oct 2 2017, 9:26 AM
Freddie Mac is re-imagining the Mortgage Experience to create a smarter, simpler, and less costly origination process. We're using big data and advanc...
Thu, Sep 7 2017, 1:18 PM
As hurricane Irma roars toward Florida, and the Houston area tries to dry out from hurricane Harvey, Fannie Mae is reminding those homeowners might be...
Mon, Aug 21 2017, 9:21 AM
What does $980k buy in the SF suburb of Vallejo, CA? A property designed by Julia Morgan (think Hearst Castle) with floating stairways, over-sized eve...
Fri, Aug 11 2017, 9:47 AM
Fannie and Freddie are doing their best to remain integral to housing finance. Let me save you a lot of money that you’d spend going to conferences ju...
Tue, Aug 8 2017, 9:08 AM
Consumer attitudes toward buying and selling a home turned negative in July. Fannie Mae's National Housing Survey conducted during the month found few...
Tue, Jul 25 2017, 2:08 PM
Unless one follows the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac conservatorship drama on a regular basis, it is easy to get lost in the legal weeds. MND has dipped in a...
Mon, Jul 24 2017, 11:35 AM
Most of the major proposals for reforming the housing finance system rely on two steps to minimize the risk that any one or two institutions, and in t...
Mon, Jul 17 2017, 1:01 PM
Fannie Mae said it is sticking with its forecast for 2.0 percent economic growth in 2017, a projection it first made in February. The estimate of 2.1 ...
Mon, Jul 3 2017, 9:12 AM
Fannie Mae's Book of Business increased at a compounded annual rate of 1.5 percent in April to a value of $3.168 trillion compared to $3.164 trillion ...
Fri, Jun 30 2017, 9:20 AM
Huh? The year is half over? Didn’t 2017 just start? Time has a way of flying by. Via rocket ship. July starts tomorrow… and we hear of a new marketing...
Thu, Jun 29 2017, 10:51 AM
The Urban Institute (UI) releases a regular report, Housing Finance at a Glance , a "chartbook" loaded with charts and commentary on mortgage activity...
Thu, Jun 8 2017, 9:34 AM
The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI) decreased fractionally in May, however the change in each of its internal components was decidedl...
Wed, Jun 7 2017, 9:59 AM
Summer is here, school is out for many, and it’s time for vacation, right? Here’s a little trivia for your co-workers. What is number of available vac...
Thu, Jun 1 2017, 11:41 AM
Fannie Mae said on Wednesday that its Book of Business increased at a compounded annual rate of 1.3 percent in April to a value of $3.164 trillion. Th...
Thu, May 18 2017, 9:57 AM
Imagine being able to keep the money you earn!? Per Mr. Mel Watt, Fannie & Freddie might have to keep their profits to avoid rescue . Mr. Watt, who ha...
Thu, May 11 2017, 2:48 PM
Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mel Watt had three messages for the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on Thu...
Wed, May 10 2017, 9:35 AM
For appraisers, sometimes a simple 3 bedroom, 2 bath tract home can have complications that make things difficult. What about houses that actually "hi...
Thu, May 4 2017, 11:22 AM
May the 4th be with you! People wonder if anyone from Freddie Mac has ever actually visited Fannie’s location for an office visit. Yes! Here’s actual ...
Wed, Apr 26 2017, 8:44 AM
How about this quote from the tech world? “If you're not paying for the product, you are the product.” If you don't want companies to collect and sell...
Wed, Apr 26 2017, 5:15 PM
Last week, with considerable fanfare , the Mortgage Bankers Association released its plan for reforming the housing finance system, including a resolu...
Tue, Apr 25 2017, 2:16 PM
At $1.4 trillion, student loan debt represents the U.S.'s second largest debt market behind mortgages and, in several recent surveys, younger responde...
Fri, Apr 21 2017, 9:28 AM
The origins of job interviews? Here you go . And speaking of employment, yesterday the commentary mentioned companies coming and going. Here in Florid...
Wed, Apr 19 2017, 11:27 AM
Fannie Mae has moved its projected timeline for further Federal Reserve price hikes forward by several months. The company's Economic & Strategic Rese...
Fri, Mar 31 2017, 11:39 AM
After gathering little attention for nearly a decade, the two GSEs, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are making news on several fronts. Two developments in ...
Fri, Mar 31 2017, 9:47 AM
Let’s end the week with a non-mortgage question, but one that you mathaletes will enjoy. What would happen if you were hit by a penny falling from a s...
Wed, Mar 22 2017, 5:36 PM
“Dance like no one is watching. E-mail like one day it may be read aloud in a deposition.” Here's some pithier legal news. The Department of Justice i...
Mon, Mar 20 2017, 3:28 PM
Fannie Mae's March economic forecast was written before the FOMC announced an increase in the fed funds rate last Wednesday. The company's economists ...
Wed, Mar 8 2017, 9:19 AM
Yes, we change our clocks this weekend, losing an hour, although some states have escaped this ordeal by not using Daylight Savings Time. Different st...
Thu, Feb 23 2017, 4:15 PM
It seemed just an aside in the National Association of Realtors press release regarding January existing home sales. NAR President William E. Brown, t...
Wed, Feb 22 2017, 1:37 PM
Are you lending in areas where LOs are receiving more calls from recruiters than they are from real estate agents? Let’s hope not. But here’s somethin...
Wed, Feb 15 2017, 9:56 AM
“The flat earth society has members all around the globe.” Speaking of orbs, while global wealth totals $255 trillion , the median wealth of all 4.8 b...
Fri, Feb 3 2017, 4:45 PM
Blackstone Group has disclosed that it has secured Fannie Mae's backing for a mortgage backed by some of the single-family homes it purchased, princip...
Wed, Feb 1 2017, 10:28 AM
Calling it the final piece of unfinished business from the financial crisis, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has published a paper with its rec...
Wed, Jan 11 2017, 9:24 AM
While rumors swirl about the topic for the phone call with Stearns Lending’s correspondent-wide staff today (let’s hope its good news), Richard Cordra...
