Economy

The Federal Housing Finance Agency says it wants to more closely tether Federal Home Loan bank advances to housing and community development. Doing so will first involve clearly defining the banks' mission through regulation.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency said in a long-awaited report that it will set up new guardrails for the Federal Home Loan Banks to ensure that the institutions are serving a housing-centric mission.

Often a harbinger of recessions, the fact that short-term yields are higher than long-term is not inherently bad, Federal Reserve Gov. Chris Waller said Tuesday, noting that in this case it could prove that market expectations are anchored.

But the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index still rose in October versus both September and the prior year.

Freddie Mac's survey finds the 30-year fixed loan dropped 3 basis points, but Zillow's tracker showed since the FOMC announcement, they dropped 30 basis points.

Like its competitor Fannie Mae, the enterprise's earnings were higher year-over-year but recorded a quarterly decline in part due to a legacy shareholder lawsuit.

The government-sponsored enterprise's net income was balanced by climbing interest rates, which drove a large increase in fair value gains.

High interest rates and constrained inventory will take its toll on originations and securitization activity in 2024, the rating agency commented.

In conjunction with an announcement last week, federal agencies will conduct training workshops to help developers, lenders and other stakeholders benefit from the Biden administration's housing supply plan.

Consumer spending has driven core inflation metrics to their highest levels in months, according to data released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Higher inflation will likely serve as a signal to the Federal Reserve to maintain high interest rates.