Trump Administration to Work With Congress on Fannie, Freddie Overhaul
BY DOW JONES & COMPANY, INC. — 15 MINUTES AGO
Breaking News...
WASHINGTON--The Trump administration plans to work with Congress to overhaul mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Freddie Mac (FMCC), a White House spokeswoman said Tuesday -- playing down the idea the administration will seek to unilaterally release the firms from government control.
The White House also expects to announce a framework for comprehensive housing-finance changes "shortly," White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said in a prepared statement.
(More to Come)
By Andrew Ackerman
Breaking News...
WASHINGTON--The Trump administration plans to work with Congress to overhaul mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Freddie Mac (FMCC), a White House spokeswoman said Tuesday -- playing down the idea the administration will seek to unilaterally release the firms from government control.
The White House also expects to announce a framework for comprehensive housing-finance changes "shortly," White House spokeswoman Lindsay Walters said in a statement.
The statement said no final decisions have been made on what will be contained in the proposal.
For more than a decade, lawmakers have tried without success to overhaul Fannie and Freddie, which were placed in conservatorship during the 2008 financial crisis. Recent statements by administration officials indicated the government was reviewing plans to soon take the firms out of government control, sending shares surging.
Some hedge-fund investors have bet for years that the government would eventually recapitalize and release the firms from government control, in lieu of a technically complicated and politically contentious battle to overhaul the mortgage-finance system. Tuesday's statement suggests that the administration wants to work with Congress, at least for now.
(More to Come)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-29-19 1305ET
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