Fannie Mae

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Treasury Boss: Worst Is Over
 Treasury Boss: Worst Is Over 

Treasury Boss: Worst Is Over

Paulson says US emerging from storm

(Newser) - The US is emerging from the credit woes triggered by the turmoil over subprime mortgages—despite the continuing wave of foreclosures across the nation, according to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. Paulson, in the most positive comments yet from the White House on the nation's economic troubles, in part credited the...

Stocks Rally After Fannie Mae Woes
 Stocks Rally After
 Fannie Mae Woes 
MARKETS

Stocks Rally After Fannie Mae Woes

Markets make modest gains, led by energy sector

(Newser) - Stocks rallied and recorded modest gains today after initially falling on on bad news from Fannie Mae. But analysts cautioned against excessive optimism. "The fact that we're not imploding doesn't me that we're OK," a strategist told the Wall Street Journal. The Dow ended up 51.29 at...

Big Fannie Mae Losses Prompt Fears of Failure

Crash would be big blow to US economy, housing market

(Newser) - Fannie Mae lost a worse-than-expected $2.2 billion this quarter, forcing it to cut its dividend and seek $6 billion in capital. The news is especially troubling as Fannie and Freddie Mac, the companies Washington relies on to keep the housing market functioning, are under unprecedented pressure, the New York ...

Dow Jumps 261, Ends Week Up
 Dow Jumps 261, Ends Week Up 
MARKETS

Dow Jumps 261, Ends Week Up

Eased worries on liquidity nearly erase yesterday's dive

(Newser) - Stocks enjoyed a steady rally today off of surprisingly good manufacturing data and renewed investor confidence in Fannie and Freddie Mae, achieving the first weekly gain in a month, since the market is closed tomorrow, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow rose 261.66 points, ending at 12,361....

Freddie, Fannie Rules Eased to Boost Housing Market

Regulators reduce capital surplus required of firms

(Newser) - Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be able to buy more mortgages after the amount of capital they're required to hold as a cushion was cut from 30% to 20% today, the Wall Street Journal reports. The move by the Bush administration should pump up to $200 billion of liquidity...

Feds Outline New, Tougher Credit Rules

Paulson pushes stricter standards for mortgage lenders

(Newser) - A panel led by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is seeking a major overhaul of rules affecting mortgage lenders and a credit market decimated by risky subprime loans and loose oversight, the Wall Street Journal reports. Among panel recommendations to be released today:
  • Strengthen mortgage lender and broker oversight
  • Establish licensing
...

Feds Boost Mortgage Limits
Feds Boost Mortgage Limits

Feds Boost Mortgage Limits

Ceiling on loans backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac goes to $729K in 70 counties

(Newser) - Government-backed mortgage guarantors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can now back loans up to $729,750, the Wall Street Journal reports, after the Federal Housing Administration put into effect that provision of the federal economic stimulus package today. More than 70 counties in the US are subject to the new...

Depression-Era FHA Tries to Save Mortgages

Long-sidelined agency now a central player in the credit crisis

(Newser) - It’s been a while since the Federal Housing Administration was relevant. But now policymakers are counting on the Depression-era agency, which mostly insures mortgages, to once again solve a housing crisis. FHA-insured loans are swiftly becoming substantially cheaper than their Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac backed counterparts. “The...

Fannie, Freddie OK Appraisal Deal
Fannie,
Freddie OK Appraisal Deal

Fannie, Freddie OK Appraisal Deal

New code will discourage inflated appraisals for home mortgages

(Newser) - The nation’s two largest backers of home loans have reached a deal with New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo that could help eliminate inflated mortgage appraisals, the Wall Street Journal reports. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have agreed to buy mortgages only from banks that follow a new code...

Freddie Mac Reports Record $2.45B Loss

Rising defaults break mark mortgage investor set ... last quarter

(Newser) - Freddie Mac, the nation’s second-largest mortgage finance company, lost $2.45 billion in 2007's fourth quarter, topping the record $2.02 billion it lost the previous quarter, Bloomberg reports. Freddie’s CEO predicted still-greater losses ahead as loan defaults take their toll, but said the company had raised enough...

Fannie Mae Loses Billions in Q4
Fannie Mae Loses Billions in Q4

Fannie Mae Loses Billions in Q4

Government-backed lender off $3.56B, but feds lifts restraints on portfolio

(Newser) - Fannie Mae reported huge fourth-quarter losses today, painting an ugly picture both of the economy and the mortgage giant's own future. The company lost $3.56 billion—triple what analysts expected, Bloomberg reports. Derivatives were the big culprit, accounting for $3.33 billion in losses, but the company also reported...

SEC Probes WaMu Home Loans
SEC Probes WaMu Home Loans

SEC Probes WaMu Home Loans

Investigators focus on charges that appraisals were inflated

(Newser) - Washington Mutual, one of America's largest mortgage lenders and the biggest savings and loan in the nation, is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, reports the Wall Street Journal. Regulators suspect some WaMu mortgages were based on inflated appraisals. WaMu, bloodied by the subprime mortgage crisis, lost $348...

Rate-Freeze Plan Lifts Stocks
Rate-Freeze Plan Lifts Stocks
MARKETS

Rate-Freeze Plan Lifts Stocks

Financial companies and builders lift the markets

(Newser) - Stocks leaped again today after the Treasury Department's plan to freeze some mortgage rates eased fears of a recession. Investors also continue to expect that the Fed will cut interest rates on Dec. 11, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow was up 174.93 to 13,619.89, the...

NY Subpoenas Wall Street Heavies in Subprime Probe

Cuomo looking into firms' risk assessment

(Newser) - Several high-profile Wall Street firms that packaged and sold subprime mortgages have been subpoenaed by New York prosecutors, the Wall Street Journal reports today. Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns, and Deutsche Bank—among others—will be asked to explain how the offerings were reviewed before they were sold to investors, and...

Stocks Take a Ride, End Up
Stocks Take a Ride, End Up
MARKETS

Stocks Take a Ride, End Up

Rally, dive, rally, wheeeee!

(Newser) - Stocks nosed up today after rallying, plunging, then rallying again. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae reported big losses and pushed the markets downward, but stocks made up some lost ground with a good sales report from Hewlett Packard and a UBS upgrade for Exxon. The Dow was up 51.70...

Freddie Mac Loses $2B, Seeks Cash
Freddie Mac Loses $2B, Seeks Cash

Freddie Mac Loses $2B, Seeks Cash

No. 2 mortgage lender's capital is close to regulatory minimum

(Newser) - Freddie Mac, the second-largest US mortgage lender, lost $2.02 billion this quarter, its worst quarter ever, the company said this morning. With core capital almost below its regulatory minimum, the company is looking for fast cash, hiring Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers to help bail it out, and “...

Stocks Fall Second Straight Day
Stocks Fall Second Straight Day

Stocks Fall Second Straight Day

Wells Fargo, JC Penney are chief bearers of bad news

(Newser) - Stocks were down for a second consecutive session today on bad tidings from Wells Fargo, JC Penney, and Exxon Mobil. Mortgage giant Wells called the housing market the worst since the Depression; Exxon fell after a surprise decrease in oil prices. The Dow was down 120.96 to 13,110....

August Home Price Plunge Is Biggest Since 1970

New-home sales also off more than forecast

(Newser) - New-home sales fell 8.3% in August, Bloomberg reports, a greater decline than predicted. Housing prices fell over last year, with the 7.5% decrease the biggest drop since 1970. Sales fell to an annual pace of 795,000, lowest in seven years. And that may not signal the housing...

Bernanke Sees More Housing Pain, ‘Relatively Strong’ System

Foreclosures continue, but market OK overall

(Newser) - Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke went before Congress today, two days after trimming the benchmark lending rate, and said new foreclosures will come as more subprime mortgages run out clocks on initial interest rates. Markets “do tend to self-correct” in crises, the economic guru said, and the global system...

Stocks Keep Up Rate-Cut Rally
Stocks Keep Up Rate-Cut Rally

Stocks Keep Up Rate-Cut Rally

iPhone sales spur market on

(Newser) - The stock market kept rising one day after the Fed slashed key interest rates, as speculation that the housing slump might ebb compounded the biggest rally in four years. The Dow climbed 76.17 to 13815.56, while the Nasdaq rose 14.82 to close at 2666.48 and the...

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