Economy

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is preparing to retire certain loan underwriting flexibilities after extending them one additional month to April 30.

The government-sponsored enterprise announced Wednesday it will change eligibility criteria for vacation homes and investor properties starting April 1 to fulfill a directive by former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

In its final days, the Trump administration imposed limits on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s holdings of mortgages with loan-to-value ratios above 90% and certain other characteristics. Critics say the changes were unnecessary and disproportionately penalize borrowers of color.

Consumers may want to strike while the iron’s hot and apply for loans now, before rates get much higher.

Mortgage rates surged 40 basis points since the start of the year as the economy improved.

The bond issuance out of Fortress' CF Hippolyta master trust will finance 19 newly constructed or planned Amazon distribution and logistics facilities in 15 states.

As one of the few mortgage firms that finances singlewides, AFR’s decision to offer the product will lend momentum to major government-sponsored loan buyers’ efforts to expand their manufactured housing programs.

The gap between those that considered it a good or bad time to buy narrowed 10 percentage points in February, the tightest spread since last April, Fannie Mae found.

A cross-training strategy that hasn’t been widely used since the Great Recession is coming back into vogue among outsourcers.

The agency issued a proposal moving the compliance date for the Qualified Mortgage rule revamp to October 2022.