Housing finance reform

For decades, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac helped working-class Americans get mortgages. That essential and powerful role in the national economy is fading.

The House Financial Services Committee passed 13 bills (and scrapped a vote on one) Wednesday, including one that would stop Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from being released by the government and another hailed as helping the underbanked in rural areas.

For the second week in a row, the CFPB's leadership shakeout dominated readers' attention, while a regional banker discussed efforts to fight hacking and the impact of the tax cuts, and bitcoin's price soared.

Until recently, there was a consensus among policymakers that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac needed to be eliminated. That just changed. Here's why.

House Financial Services Committee Jeb Hensarling shifted tactics on housing finance reform Wednesday, acknowledging that a bill he’s pushed for years to virtually eliminate the government’s role in the mortgage market lacks the support to become law.

Testing of the common securitization platform is taking longer than expected, but the Federal Housing Finance Agency said it won't delay the 2019 launch of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's new single "uniform mortgage-backed security."

The financial services industry has cheered a proposed reduction in the corporate tax rate, but a lower rate could force Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to write down assets, increasing the odds that the companies will need Treasury support.

President Trump has tapped Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney as interim head of the CFPB. He has taken tough stances on the CFPB, its payday lending rule, housing finance reform and other issues pending before the agency.

The White House and congressional GOP leaders are eyeing a tight window between tax reform passage and the 2018 midterms to pass housing finance reform. And with key policymakers readying their exit, the effort could be the most concerted push yet.

Democrats' victories in Virginia and New Jersey fueled speculation that they may be able retake the House during midterm elections next year. That could have a big impact on regulatory relief, housing finance reform and other priorities for banks and credit unions.

Democrats' recent electoral victories signal that they may be able retake the House during midterm elections next year. That could have a big impact on regulatory relief, housing finance reform and other bank priorities.

During his time as Fed governor, chair-designate Jerome Powell has outlined his views on a host of bank regulatory matters, including the need for regulatory relief, the push for housing finance reform, blockchain and much more.

Growth in loans with higher debt-to-income ratios is reviving focus on a regulatory exemption for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other federal agencies that back mortgages.

Mark Calabria, the chief economic adviser to Vice President Mike Pence, said the administration is focused for now on more pressing issues than GSE reform, including addressing housing damage from recent hurricanes.

In a somewhat surprising decision, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling announced his retirement from Congress on Tuesday, but speculation immediately grew that he could fill a regulatory post.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt said the agency is poised to examine alternatives to how a Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac assess creditworthiness of home buyers, including seeking public comment on the issue later this fall.

In a moment of rare unity, the Independent Community Bankers of America and National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions sent a joint letter to FHFA arguing to stop the GSEs' profit sweep.

Though FHFA Director Mel Watt stopped short of saying he would break with a Treasury agreement that forces all profits of the GSEs to go to the government, he emphasized that it couldn’t continue indefinitely.

The week of Oct. 2 is shaping up to be a significant one for the financial services industry on Capitol Hill, as lawmakers grill the top executives of Equifax and Wells Fargo, as well as the top regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Sen. Bob Corker has been a key voice in the housing finance reform debate. His departure at the end of next year puts a deadline of sorts on his efforts to unwind and replace Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.