Affordable housing

The proposed reforms of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have gotten all the attention, but the administration also wants to scale back the Federal Housing Administration, expand its capital cushion and adopt risk-based pricing. Some of the ideas have former agency officials concerned.

With the ongoing issue of the affordable housing crisis, the Mortgage Bankers Association – which many credit unions are members of – got behind the Build More Housing Near Transit Act, a bipartisan bill introduced in the House of Representatives.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is revising the multifamily loan purchase caps for the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to increase affordable housing.

The legislation takes aim at third-party bank service vendors, the backlog of FHA appraisals, rural housing assistance and other issues where there is broad agreement.

The Trump administration raised the goal posts for ending the conservatorships of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but how officials get there is still highly uncertain.

With its proposal to restrict disparate-impact claims, the Trump administration seems determined to solve a problem that does not exist.

The industry has taken some steps to lower barriers to affordable housing, but some observers say that more can be done.

The Trump administration is not backing down even after a federal court blocked guidance that would have limited the operations of national housing funds.

With officials putting finishing touches on presidentially directed reports on the future of the housing finance system, the Senate Banking Committee announced a hearing to examine the issue.

Banks currently can help their CRA performance with mortgages to anyone in a distressed neighborhood, but Joseph Otting said officials crafting a reform plan are considering limiting that to lower-income borrowers.