Tag Archives: Freddie Mac

David B. Lowman, a long-time senior leader in the mortgage finance industry, is joining Freddie Mac as EVP of the Single-Family Business effective May 20, the company announced.

Fixed mortgage rates plummeted this week following the release of disappointing employment data for March. According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.43 percent (0.8 point) for the week ending April 11, down from 3.54 percent last week. A year ago, the 30-year FRM was averaging 3.88 percent. The 15-year FRM this week averaged 2.65 percent (0.7 point), down from 2.74 percent in the last survey.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) granted the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) a two-year extension, the agency announced Thursday. Under the direction of FHFA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's regulator, the program will live on until December 31, 2015. ""More than 2 million homeowners have refinanced through HARP, proving it a useful tool for reducing risk,"" said FHFA Acting Director Edward J. DeMarco. ""We are extending the program so more underwater borrowers can benefit from lower interest rate.""

In January, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac refinanced about 97,600 loans through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP), of which nearly half represented underwater borrowers, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported Tuesday. The agency's report revealed 47 percent of loans refinanced through HARP in January had loan-to-value (LTV) ratios greater than 105 percent. In addition, a quarter of the borrowers were deeply underwater, with 25 percent of loans refinanced through HARP having LTVs greater than 125 percent.

The Bipartisan Policy Center's Housing Commission painted an interesting picture of the future role of the federal government in housing finance in a recent report. The report helped to define the gap between a healthy private housing finance system and what we have now. The good news is that many of the elements of a healthy system seem to be just around the corner. However, there is one part of the secondary market that is far from recovered--monoline insurance companies.

Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 3.54 percent (0.8 point) for the week ending April 4, down from 3.57 percent last week. Last year at this time, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.98 percent. Bankrate.com also observed declines in its weekly national survey. The 30-year FRM averaged 3.73 percent (down from 3.75 percent), while the 15-year fixed averaged 2.95 percent (from 2.97 percent before).

According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 3.57 percent (0.8 point) for the week ending March 28, up from 3.54 percent the previous week. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 3.99 percent. Bankrate.com reported slight decline in the 30-year fixed average, meanwhile. According to the site's weekly survey, the average 30-year rate fell from 3.78 percent to 3.75 percent in the last week.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) introduced a new tool to help seriously delinquent borrowers avoid foreclosure. Starting July 1, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac servicers will lift loan modification barriers by offering eligible borrowers reduced payments without asking for financial or hardship documentation. Through the FHFA's Streamlined Modification Initiative, eligible borrowers who are 90 days to 24 months past due will receive a solicitation offer with a trial period plan that lasts for three months. The offer will include a dollar amount for a new mortgage.

A new report from the watchdog for the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) charges that the department isn't doing enough to make sure companies doing business with the GSEs are adhering to consumer protection laws. The Office of the Inspector General for FHFA (FHFA-OIG) released an audit report Tuesday examining the agency's oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's monitoring of businesses that sell and service loans.

Representation and warranty costs remained elevated in the fourth quarter among top originators, though new and outstanding repurchase claims were mixed for large mortgage companies, according to a recent analysis from KBW. The GSEs continued to drive much of the new and outstanding repurchase claims, with Fannie Mae repurchases totaling $1.9 billion in Q4, down from $2.02 billion in Q3, while Freddie Mac repurchases totaled $638 million, down from $819 million, the report revealed.