Freddie Mac

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria said a virus-induced financial crisis might give rise to more delinquencies and foreclosures than the 2007 subprime mortgage meltdown.

The actions taken by the Federal Reserve to calm the financial markets was key to the drop in mortgage rates this week, according to Freddie Mac.

With ambiguity surrounding the length of the COVID-19 outbreak and damage it will cause, consumers are becoming diffident in taking out a mortgage for a major purchase, according to Zillow.

With economists fearing high unemployment stemming from the pandemic, the housing finance system is grappling with how it will recoup lost revenue from delinquencies, forbearance plans and other tremors.

Forbearance and loan-modifications programs implemented after the financial crisis left borrowers bewildered and angry. Now the mortgage industry wants to create a common standard for providing relief to homeowners whose livelihoods have been upended by the coronavirus pandemic.

Mark Calabria said Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are currently equipped to handle elevated delinquencies, but they might need congressional or Federal Reserve help if fallout from the coronavirus persists.

As financial hardships mount with the COVID-19 outbreak, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac released their plans for mortgage borrowers impacted by the pandemic.

Mortgage rates rose sharply this week as originators looked to manage the overwhelming demand from consumers, according to Freddie Mac.

FHFA Director Mark Calabria said the health crisis will complicate the release of a proposal establishing new capital requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

A national moratorium would be costly to lenders and servicers, but proponents say it's needed to help cushion the economic blow of the pandemic.

Houston-area home sales experienced another double-digit gain in February as buyers came out in droves to take advantage of low mortgage rates.

Paradoxically, mortgage rates actually increased this past week, even as the 10-year Treasury yield plumbed new depths, likely because lenders are too busy to handle the influx of applications.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac coming out of conservatorship and transitioning into public utilities would be the ideal for small mortgage lenders, according to trade-organization representative Robert Zimmer.

Capacity constraints among mortgage lenders are leading to wider spreads between mortgages and the 10-year Treasury yield even after it remained below 1% for an extended period this week.

Mortgage rates hit their lowest point since Freddie Mac began tracking this data in 1971, as the 10-year Treasury yield fell below 1% after the Federal Open Market Committee's surprise short-term rate cut.

Any impact from the coronavirus outbreak on commercial and multifamily loan delinquencies won't be known for some time, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Reduced construction and domestic migration in search of better job markets caused housing supply deficits in over half of the U.S., according to Freddie Mac.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency authorized the government-sponsored enterprises to contribute $502.2 million to two funds that help preserve and build affordable housing.

Mortgage rates slipped this week, as the stock market sell-off resulted in investors moving into bonds which drove the 10-year Treasury yield down, according to Freddie Mac.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are expected to retain “limited and tailored government support” after they are released from U.S. control, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a letter to lawmakers.