Fannie Mae-No Politics (FNMA)

[navycmdr]

Trump’s FHFA Appointee Expected to Curb GSE Footprint but Not Enough to Roil Housing

By John Bancroft [e-mail]

Close observers of the politics of housing finance generally expect the next director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency to steer Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac toward a smaller market presence without creating a huge disruption in the industry.

But they acknowledge that they’re basically throwing darts blindfolded as there has been precious little guidance coming from the Trump administration. The administration can do a lot while the two government-sponsored enterprises remain in conservatorship: curb or eliminate certain programs, alter GSE pricing, lower loan limits and more.

But before any of that happens, the White House has to decide the “reform” path it wants to follow, said Jeb Mason, a partner at the Cypress Group, on a panel at the Residential Mortgage Finance Symposium sponsored by the Structured Finance Industry Group in New York this week.

Mason thinks the administration “will feel the need to put a firm stake in the ground” that reflects long-held Republican sentiment in favor of reducing the government’s role in the mortgage market. “This will cause some discomfort, but it’s necessary to advance reform,” Mason said.