GSEs

With no way of knowing just how many borrowers will need the mods after the coronavirus forbearance period ends, lenders are deploying artificial intelligence and servicing protocols to tame the ferocious piles of paperwork awaiting them.

Some observers wonder if proposed regulatory targets for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will stoke concerns about low shareholder returns. But others suggest those fears are unfounded.

The FHFA says the two government-sponsored enterprises need at least $240 billion of capital before they can go private; Transunion says more than 3% of consumer loans it tracks are in financial hardship.

The much-anticipated proposal, which would not go into effect until after Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are privatized, reflects Director Mark Calabria’s aggressive efforts to get the companies on a strong financial footing.

Director Mark Calabria, who abandoned the Fannie and Freddie capital proposal written by his predecessor, said he expects a revised framework to be ready “very soon.”

The two mortgage giants said they would begin the process of hiring outside firms to help raise capital that will be needed to exit conservatorship.

Some benefits are materializing from Fannie Mae's pledge to limit servicers' exposure to principal-and-interest advances the way Freddie Mac does, but counterparties of both GSEs remain exposed to other concerns.

Lenders implemented stricter underwriting across all loan types in the first quarter as the pandemic upended the economy, the Federal Reserve said in its survey of loan officers.

The Home Loan bank will make zero-interest loans, match charitable donations that members make to nonprofits and small businesses, and provide additional funding for economic development grants.

Rodney Hood, chairman of the National Credit Union Administration, says the agency's Central Liquidity Facility can be a vital backstop if a crisis occurs, but it will be stronger if more credit unions chip in to make it a success.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now able to buy loans in forbearance to alleviate pressure on the sector, but the fees charged by the mortgage giants to assume more risk could turn away some originators.

The FHFA's director said the announcement is meant to “combat ongoing misinformation” about efforts to let homeowners skip mortgage payments due to the coronavirus pandemic.

A credit union-specific liquidity backstop is far less popular than other options such as the Federal Reserve's discount window. The National Credit Union Administration wants to change that.

The policy move will allow small institutions participating in the Paycheck Protection Program to pledge business loans as collateral to obtain advances.

The FHFA will allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, for a limited time, to purchase loans for which the borrower has sought to postpone payments because of the economic effects of the coronavirus.

Efforts to calm lenders’ fears about coronavirus-related forbearance may not offset tightening standards, and the FHA is less likely to boost volume than it was during the financial crisis.

The agency said it is aligning policies for Fannie Mae- and Freddie Mac-backed loans in forbearance so that servicers are only responsible for advancing four months of missed payments.

The Borrower Protection Program enables the two agencies to exchange information about loss mitigation efforts and consumer complaints regarding specific servicers.

At issue is whether the U.S. should step in now to save nonbank mortgage servicers to head off damage to the housing market.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers wrote in a letter to the Treasury secretary that the Financial Stability Oversight Council should create a liquidity facility to deal with a flood of forbearance requests brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.