FHFA

The agency, which oversees government-related investors that set underwriting parameters in the U.S. mortgage market, estimates the process will begin in 2024.

The biennial inquiry comes at a time when many are questioning the use of Federal Home Loan bank advances and the system's overall impact on housing.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Sandra Thompson said that Federal Home Loan Banks benefit from the implied guarantee of the U.S. government.

Working appraisers say government efforts to curb discrimination are pressuring them to inflate values, putting banks and borrowers at risk.

Revelations that Silvergate has $4.3 billion in Home Loan bank advances highlight another conduit by which the crypto winter could spread to the broader financial system.

The embattled crypto-service bank got a lifeline of liquidity in the fourth quarter of 2022 from the Federal Home Loan Bank System, raising new questions about both the Home Loan banks' purpose and crypto contagion.

The FHFA should focus on the facts as it ponders the future of the Federal Home Loan Bank System.

If a $6.3 billion subsidy only generates a $304 million return in terms of housing and community development support, is that money well spent?

A heated panel discussion sponsored by the Federal Housing Finance Agency raised questions about the funding, structure and mission of the Home Loan banks.

The agency expects one in five borrowers to be eligible for the new pricing benefits.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency's tangible capital rule could prevent some banks from accessing advances from the Federal Home Loan Bank system in a rising interest rate environment.

Rising interest rates could force some community banks to fall below a critical capital threshold that the Federal Housing Finance Agency uses to determine eligibility for Home Loan bank advances.

Dozens of community bankers and housing experts offered their opinions on the Federal Home Loan Bank System, the first review in nearly 100 years. But the insurers, nonbanks and megabanks that use the system the most were largely absent from the debate.

The Federal Home Loan banks and their clients were well represented in the Federal Housing Finance Agency's recent "listening tour." The public, not so much.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency got an earful from housing experts at a listening session intended to aid a comprehensive review of the financing system.

Investor activity in the housing market has had a nominal impact on the cost of housing, the head of the National Rental Home Council writes, citing research by one of the government-sponsored enterprises. Supply-demand imbalance is the primary driver of price appreciation, he argues.

The middle of a housing market downturn is no time to experiment with untested underwriting tools.

The former head of the agency said a decision last year to suspend caps on investor loans has further induced demand in an already hot market. Other experts say a supply-demand imbalance is the true driving force.

Join three officials from the Federal Housing Finance Agency's recently establish Office of Technology to hear about their goals and initiatives for the department and how their work may impact every day lending activities.

The system may be good for the banks that own it, but it is not meeting its public mission.