GSEs

Freddie Mac is on track to double the number of low down payment mortgages it will buy in 2017, while continuing to see its serious delinquency rate fall to record lows.

Freddie Mac said it earned enough in the second quarter to send a $2 billion dividend to the U.S. Treasury, but the press release announcing the company’s financial results includes new language suggesting uncertainty as to whether the payment will be made as scheduled.

Regardless of whether Congress could act, proponents don’t seem to fully appreciate the potential unintended consequences of a future without Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Freddie Mac has set a November implementation date for its plan to tighten restrictions on seller-funded down payments.

Shareholders of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac say a trove of documents they have obtained bolsters their case that the government lied when it decided to take all of the mortgage companies’ profits.

The government-sponsored enterprises transferred $5.5 billion of credit risk on $174 billion of mortgages in their portfolios during the first quarter.

While Freddie Mac is moving cautiously into buying manufactured housing loans not secured by land, Fannie Mae is moving more aggressively. Industry representatives are divided on which approach is superior.

Rather than working with large-scale investors, Freddie Mac said it will focus on assisting community organizations and local institutions to fund single-family properties for renters with special needs.

Fannie Mae is increasing the maximum debt-to-income ratio it will allow on purchased loans to 50% from 45% on single-family loans when it rolls out its latest version of Desktop Underwriter on July 29.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has added three categories to the list of protected classes under equal opportunity employment and inclusion rules for regulated entities.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's efforts to provide representation and warranty relief to lenders that perform automated data validations before loans close will improve mortgage credit risk assessment and lower costs for lenders and borrowers.

Test your knowledge of these key terms from the servicing sector of the mortgage industry.

From the largest banks to the smallest independents, policymakers want to hear the mortgage industry speak with one voice in the critical efforts to reform the government-sponsored enterprises.

From vendor choice to valuations, here's a look at the key differences between Fannie and Freddie's upfront rep and warrant relief strategies.

With refinancing coming in a little stronger than expected and underwriting loosening, Fannie Mae has slightly increased its forecast for total volume in 2017.

From the Trump administration's initial efforts at reg relief and GSE reform to dramatic shifts in the servicing landscape, here's a look back at the top stories shaping the mortgage industry during the first half of 2017.

Freddie Mac has priced its first credit-risk transfer securities backed in part by tax-exempt loans used to finance affordable multifamily rental properties.

From pockets of growth in a shrinking refi market to the possibility of REITs buying agency risk-sharing securities, here's a look at recent market shifts that major industry players are focused on right now.

Paulson & Co. and Blackstone Group are among investors backing a proposal that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac be recapitalized and released from U.S. control without legislation.