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Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)


Self Description

September 2009: "The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) was created on July 30, 2008, when the President signed into law the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. The Act created a world-class, empowered regulator with all of the authorities necessary to oversee vital components of our country’s secondary mortgage markets – Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks. In addition, this law combined the staffs of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), the Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB), and the GSE mission office at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). With a very turbulent market facing our nation, the strengthening of the regulatory and supervisory oversight of the 14 housing-related GSEs is imperative. The establishment of FHFA will promote a stronger, safer U.S. housing finance system. As of June 2008, the combined debt and obligations of these GSEs totaled $6.6 trillion, exceeding the total publicly held debt of the USA by $1.3 trillion. The GSEs also purchased or guaranteed 84% of new mortgages. Considering the impact of these GSEs on the U.S. economy and mortgage market, it is critical that we intensify our focus on oversight of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks."

http://www.fhfa.gov/Default.aspx?Page=4

Third-Party Descriptions

March 2012: "Edward DeMarco, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, said he won't allow the agencies to reduce borrower's loan balances because it is unfair to taxpayers and works no better than other foreclosure prevention methods, such as lowering interest rates, extending loan terms or delaying payments."

http://money.cnn.com/2012/03/13/real_estate/mortgage-settlement/index.htm

January 2012: 'The Federal Housing Finance Agency, Freddie Mac’s regulator, also had problems with the deals. Late Monday, the agency said it had reviewed the inverse floaters last year and had identified “concerns regarding the controls, including risk management.”'

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/31/business/freddie-mac-investments-under-scrutiny-by-treasury-dept.html

September 2011: "The filing did not cite a figure for the total losses the government wanted to recover, but in a similar case brought in July against UBS, the F.H.F.A. is trying to recover $900 million in losses on $4.5 billion in securities. A similar 20 percent claim against Bank of America could equal a $10 billion hit."

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/03/business/bank-suits-over-mortgages-are-filed.html

June 2011: "The federal agency overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the taxpayer-owned mortgage finance giants, failed to refer to criminal investigators and other authorities almost 100 complaints about possible foreclosure abuse and mortgage fraud at the companies over a recent two-year period, according to a report issued late Tuesday by the inspector general of the Federal Housing Finance Agency."

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/22/business/22housing.html

September 2009: "The Federal Housing Finance Agency is an independent federal agency created as the successor regulatory agency resulting from the statutory merger of the Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB) and the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), absorbing the powers and regulatory authority of both entities, with expanded legal and regulatory authority, including the ability to place government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) into receivership or conservatorship."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Housing_Finance_Agency

Relationships

RoleNameTypeLast Updated
Status/Name Change from Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB) Organization Jan 31, 2012
Cooperation (past or present) Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation) Organization Jan 31, 2012
Founder/Co-Founder of Independent Valuation Protection Institute Organization Sep 17, 2009
Status/Name Change from Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) Organization Jan 31, 2012
Organization Head/Leader (past or present) Edward J. DeMarco Person Jan 31, 2012
Organization Executive (past or present) Research/Analysis Subject Steve A. Linick Esq. Person Jun 22, 2011

Articles and Resources

Date Fairness.com Resource Read it at:
Mar 13, 2012 Rage grows over mortgage deal

QUOTE: As more details emerge about the massive $26 billion foreclosure settlement between the five biggest mortgage lenders and the states' attorneys general, a growing number of borrowers are realizing that the deal will do little, if anything, to help them out.

 CNN (Cable News Network)
Jan 30, 2012 Treasury Investigates Freddie Mac Investment

QUOTE: The Treasury Department is investigating a report that Freddie Mac, the mortgage giant, bet against homeowners’ ability to refinance their loans even as it was making it more difficult for them to do so...

 New York Times
Sep 02, 2011 Federal Regulators Sue Big Banks Over Mortgages

QUOTE: A bruising legal fight pitting the country’s most powerful banks against the full force of the United States government began Friday, as federal regulators filed suits against 17 financial institutions that sold the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac nearly $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities that later soured.

 New York Times
Jun 21, 2011 Oversight Group Did Not Refer Housing Complaints

QUOTE: The federal agency overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the taxpayer-owned mortgage finance giants, failed to refer to criminal investigators and other authorities almost 100 complaints about possible foreclosure abuse and mortgage fraud at the companies over a recent two-year period, according to a report issued late Tuesday by the inspector general of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

 New York Times
Mar 31, 2011 Report Criticizes High Pay at Fannie and Freddie

QUOTE: When the government stepped in to support some of the nation’s biggest financial institutions in 2008, compensation became an issue of concern to taxpayers... The executives at Fannie and Freddie received far more than their counterparts at other federal housing agencies.

 New York Times