A public stock offering for the government-sponsored enterprises remains on the table this year, but it is not the only path under serious consideration, according to Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte and industry survey results that align with NMN's earlier reporting.
"There are very strong odds" of a GSE stock move this year, Pulte told Fox News' Maria Bartiromo on Tuesday, while emphasizing that the Trump administration is weighing a broader set of options. Asked directly about a share offering, Pulte said, "we don't have to do that."
The comments follow the administration's announcement of up to
While Pulte did not outline alternative strategies beyond the bond-buying program, he suggested the purchases could actually support a future stock offering rather than delay it.
"The president decided to do this big mortgage bond buy, that actually helps the IPO concept," Pulte said. Technically, any offering would likely be a secondary public offering rather than a true initial public offering, since
Will bond buying affect plans for GSE shares?
Opinions on how conducive the expanded bond buying is to a public offering in line with a goal to remove the GSEs from conservatorship have generally been mixed.
MBS buying could lower mortgage rates 25 to 50 basis points but could complicate the long-term goal, Quincy Tang, managing director at DBRS Morningstar said at an outlook conference last week.
Tang said the bond buying probably means that any plans for immediate privatization have been "put on hold temporarily." She said she was only speaking in regard to a question about a departure from conservatorship during the conference, not the impact on a stock offering.
Pulte has said the Trump administration's immediate focus has been on pursuing a new stock offering where the GSEs stay in conservatorship, rather than immediately privatizing them.
Keeping rates low while pursuing a public offering could be a challenge but MBS purchases are one of the limited ways to potentially lower rates while still moving toward a public offering,
Opinions on the odds of GSE stock offering
More than half or 54% of respondents to the survey distributed late last year did bet that there would probably (43%) or definitely (11%) be a Fannie/Freddie stock offering in 2026.
But industry professionals answering the survey indicated the likelihood of other steps was higher. Many respondents also said that a GSE stock offering and several of the policy moves they were asked to opine on could create more risk for the mortgage industry as a whole.
Respondents were more optimistic about the impact on their individual companies, suggesting they view policy changes as risks that could have rewards.
Over half or 56% said a new public offering for GSE shares would pose a lot (16%) or a moderate (40%) amount of risk to the business.
The majority or 54% indicated a stock offering could have a neutral impact on their company with 31% saying it would either be positive (24%) or very positive (7%), and the balance (15%) saying it may be negative (13%) or very negative (2%).
Deregulation and reduced LLPAs
More than three quarters or 78% of survey respondents broadly indicated that they anticipate there will probably (57%) or definitely (21%) be further broad loosening of regulation in 2026.
Over two-thirds or 64% said this could bring a moderate (35%) or a lot (29%) of risk to the industry, while 61% indicated it may be positive (43%) or very positive (18%) for their individual businesses.
A potential reduction in loan level price adjustments is the move respondents appeared most optimistic about, with 64% saying it would either be positive (39%) or very positive 25% for their businesses.
The majority of respondents indicated they anticipate this could happen in 2026, with 59% considering it either probable (48%) or definite (11%).
Respondents generally regarded the risk to the industry in pursuing this goal as low, with 71% registering as either little (42%) or no (29%) concern.
Some experts in the industry have wondered why the enterprises have not moved to change enterprise pricing grid shifts that drew a lot of Republican protests during the Biden administration and whether LLPA reductions could be part of that.
"If you would drop half of the loan level price adjustments, you would probably drop interest rates by a half percent or three quarters," Kimber White, president of the National Association of Mortgage Brokers, said in an interview with NMN last month.
Credit and title alternatives
Other efficiency related initiatives the majority of survey respondents indicated could occur this year involve change to the GSEs' credit-score pull requirements and expansion of approved title insurance alternatives.
Pulte has advocated for more competition among credit providers and fulfilling a legislative mandate around adding advanced scoring options. Last year, he also called for Fannie Mae to
Nearly three-quarters or 71% of respondents said a change to credit-score pull requirements will probably (55%) or definitely (16%) happen. The majority or 54% indicated this is a move that will either involve a lot (19%) or a moderate amount of risk (35%).
The industry is somewhat split over whether this change would be helpful at the company level but the largest share of respondents (37%) called it a positive move, followed by the 34% who considered its impact to be neutral, negative (13%), very positive (12%) and very negative (4%).
Views on how helpful to mortgage businesses more title insurance alternatives would be also are mixed, with 41% taking a neutral view, followed by 37% who consider it positive, very positive (11%), negative (8%) and very negative (3%).
The majority or 60% of respondents consider this something that is probably (49%) or definitely (11%) going to happen.
Nearly half or (45%) called increased title insurance alternatives a move that would be neutral for the industry, followed by 29% who labeled it a moderate risk. Another 14% said it would pose no risk, while at the other end of the spectrum, 12% consider it a move with a lot of risk.
