Economy

The government conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac wasn't meant to last forever, but releasing the companies is complicated and should involve a diffident Congress, housing policy experts said during a Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta housing panel.

The Treasury Department told the OMB that all 11 programs in the CDFI Fund are statutorily mandated. The White House said "no final decisions have been made" about the programs.

The typical homebuyer's monthly mortgage payment reached a record high, up 5.3% year-over-year, but consumers are putting more money down, adding to equity.

Rising pessimism about how the Trump Administration is handling the economy in its early days is spreading into the housing market, a Clever RE survey found.

FHFA director Pulte called these programs inappropriate for regulated entities, which are in government conservatorship, but said others are still able to offer them.

Sales of so-called social bonds, which direct proceeds to areas like health, housing and education, jumped about 130% to $657 billion globally last year, and continued at a similar pace in the first quarter.

The bipartisan co-chairs of the Community Financial Development Institution caucus sent a letter urging the Trump administration to continue supporting the CDFI Fund after it was slated for cuts in a recent executive order.

The Fed's wait-and-see approach on what will happen to the U.S. economy, while not directly impacting mortgages, will likely keep those rates elevated.

After the Federal Reserve moved to slow the pace of quantitative tightening, the Fed chair floated the idea of continuing to allow mortgage-backed securities to roll off its books even after the central bank has met its monetary policy objectives in reducing its balance sheet.

President Donald Trump's executive order severely limiting the Treasury's Community Development Financial Institution Fund has thrown the industry into confusion as financial companies try to quantify the damage.

The good news in the Consumer Price Index report has not carried over to the 10-year Treasury yield and thus mortgage rates, Freddie Mac found.

A trio of trends — rates, prices and economic uncertainty — will dominate the 2025 Spring buying season and likely affect activity, Realtor.com warned.

The KBW Nasdaq Bank Index is down more than 7% year to date. Analysts blame confusion caused by President Trump's evolving tariff policies and heightened worries about an economic downturn that could hurt banks' credit quality.

The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment's February drop is looking like a precursor for what might be a difficult 2025 Spring homebuying season.

Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said the Founding Fathers supported independent money management and undoing it now would be a mistake.

For the four weeks ended March 2, pending sales were down 6.4% annually as prices continued to rise, pushing borrower monthly payments near their all-time high.

Other trackers like Zillow and Lender Price on Thursday morning have the 30-year fixed moving higher, following a jump in the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield.

A March 2025 survey by the National Association for Business Economics shows growing inflation concerns — and a diminishing chance of rate cuts — in 2025, but also optimism about avoiding a recession.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expects the U.S. housing market to quickly pick up steam after recent indicators came in below forecasts.

Tariff and layoff worries are leading some to reconsider pending deals, but a surplus of existing homes now has other buyers backing out as well, Redfin said.