FHFA

Top U.S. housing regulator Mel Watt is privately reassuring people close to him that he will keep his post as authorities investigate an employee's claims of sexual harassment. Now, his accuser is heightening the pressure — speaking out publicly for the first time.

The regulator of the government-sponsored enterprises has substantial authority to intervene as a legislative stalemate continues.

The House Financial Services Committee has scheduled an FHFA oversight hearing for September in the wake of waste, fraud and abuse allegations.

The mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would have to draw as much as $78 billion in the event of a serious economic crisis, according to stress test results released Tuesday by the housing regulator.

The biggest impact may be to focus the administration’s efforts on selecting a nominee to succeed Director Mel Watt, whose term ends in January.

The agency said multiple stakeholders had requested more time to evaluate the proposal.

Mel Watt's term as director of Federal Housing Finance Agency ends in January, but his exit may be accelerated if the accusations in a new report prove true.

Politico reported Friday that the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency is being accused by an employee of making inappropriate sexual advances.

Whoever succeeds current Director Mel Watt will have a front-and-center role in efforts to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The House Financial Services Committee chair also acknowledged that his capital-formation bill still faces a potentially tough Senate vote.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is suspending its ongoing review of new credit scoring models and will instead move forward with creating a regulatory framework for providers of alternative credit scores to apply and be evaluated for use by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The fees that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac charge for low down payment mortgages disproportionately reflect their risk exposure and make homeownership more difficult for underserved borrowers.

With ruling in GSE case, the two agencies are emerging as the test subjects for a legal showdown over their authority.

A federal appeals court in Texas agreed with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shareholders that the FHFA, led by a single director, violates the separation of powers.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may need to tap into U.S. Treasury funds when they adopt CECL, a new accounting rule that makes companies set aside money upfront for expected loan losses.

A Fannie Mae test to handle the private mortgage insurance process for lenders may raise concerns that it's going outside the scope of its secondary market mission. But the effort reflects its mandate to explore new credit-risk transfer alternatives, a company executive said.

The bill aimed at helping struggling homeowners also requires documentation of servicer behavior and FHFA evaluation of the services provided to borrowers.

No plan will be implemented as long as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac remain in conservatorship, but a capital framework for the companies could still have a substantive impact.

The agency proposed new minimum capital requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that would only go into effect if the government ends its conservatorships.

The cash-out mortgage refinance share was at its highest in nearly 10 years in the first quarter, due to rising interest rates and homes not being used as piggybanks.