FHFA

The withdrawn loan level pricing adjustment matrix changes were mostly about election-year politics and the Federal Housing Finance Agency's plan for credit scoring changes is even more impractical, the Chairman of Whalen Global Advisors writes.

Changes to loan-level price adjustments are perfectly consistent with the FHA's mission and with the safety and soundness of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The legislative proposals backed by Republican members of congress seek to undo the latest cross-subsidized adjustments to loan fees that two large government-related mortgage investors charge.

Her statement calls out "a fundamental misunderstanding about the fees" following concerns expressed by two congressmen and others about their impacts.

The agency added increased emphasis on loss mitigation and special purpose credit programs following heightened calls for more participation in the latter from a minority trade group.

The inspector general linked the problems to staff turnover and recommended improvements to policies around documentation that the housing agency agreed to make.

The agency, which oversees government-related investors that set underwriting parameters in the U.S. mortgage market, estimates the process will begin in 2024.

However, while the "market share" analysis is a useful check on the reasonableness of benchmark levels, it is impacted by any errors in the HMDA data, notes a former principal economist at the Federal Housing Finance Agency,

Reducing access to funding would harm both homebuyers and communities across the country.

The biennial inquiry comes at a time when many are questioning the use of Federal Home Loan bank advances and the system's overall impact on housing.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's two new proposed rules make sense for most non-banks but applying them to independent mortgage banks is redundant, writes the head of the Community Home Lenders of America.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Sandra Thompson said that Federal Home Loan Banks benefit from the implied guarantee of the U.S. government.

If he really wants to win reelection in 2024, President Biden and his administration should leave the mortgage industry in peace and find somebody else to torment, the Chairman of Whalen Global Advisors writes.

Foreclosure prevention actions overall fell for the sixth time in seven months in October, according to the FHFA.

The reductions in the multifamily goals for 2023 to 2024 compared to those from the period before suggest that these goals will have little, if any, impact on the GSEs' multifamily operations in future years, writes a former principal economist with the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Working appraisers say government efforts to curb discrimination are pressuring them to inflate values, putting banks and borrowers at risk.

Higher conforming loan limits for Fannie and Freddie, a review of the FHLB system and revised multifamily lending goals are among the recent FHFA developments.

The embattled crypto-service bank got a lifeline of liquidity in the fourth quarter of 2022 from the Federal Home Loan Bank System, raising new questions about both the Home Loan banks' purpose and crypto contagion.

The FHFA should focus on the facts as it ponders the future of the Federal Home Loan Bank System.

The agency failed to fulfill some watchdog recommendations and get reports related to "human capital" and diversity finalized, the annual analysis found.