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FHFA releases 2021 housing goals
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Monday released updated housing goals, confined to the 2021 calendar year, in light of the coronavirus pandemic and the uncertainty surrounding its economic impact. The goals remain unchanged for the government sponsored enterprise’s (GSEs) single-family and multi-family purchases and pushes back the conversation surrounding the GSE's affordable housing duties through 2021.
“It is likely that the full picture of the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on housing markets will not be known until well after the virus is contained,” wrote FHFA Director Mark Calabria in the proposal. “While the enterprises showed strong goals performance in 2020 before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is unclear whether this will continue in the light of evolving market conditions and continued tightening of underwriting by lenders.”
Read the 2021 housing goals here.
The FHFA in June issued its 2019 Report to Congress which included an outline of efforts to ensure safety and soundness within the housing market and the GSEs financial condition, as well as its response to the coronavirus pandemic.
In addition, the GSEs have made recent announcements related to ending their conservatorships: Fannie Mae hired Morgan Stanley and Freddie Mac hired JPMorgan Chase & Co. to help the them develop and implement recapitalization plans. The FHFA announced earlier this year that the agency hired a financial advisor – Houlihan Lokey Capital, Inc. – "to assist in the development and implementation of a roadmap to responsibly end the conservatorships of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac."
NAFCU will continue working closely with the FHFA to ensure credit unions' priorities, such as maintaining unfettered access to the secondary mortgage market, are addressed in housing finance reform efforts.