Federal regulators have taken a chainsaw to executive compensation at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
A watchdog agency said Wednesday that the legal tab for former leaders of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is at least $110 million.
Rates on 30-year fixed mortgages remained at an all-time record low for the second week in a row.
It's not tough to find critics of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae on either the right or the left. But there has been little progress made in rehabilitating the mortgage giants.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich both accused each other of having financial interests in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac during the Republican debate Thursday night.
Freddie Mac is in the spotlight of the Republican presidential contest, as Mitt Romney attacks Newt Gingrich for his 2006 work for the mortgage finance firm.
Newt Gingrich's consulting firm worked for Freddie Mac in 2006 and was paid $25,000 a month, according to a document released Monday. The release came in response to accusations from the presidential candidate's critics charging that he lobbied on behalf of the government-backed mortgage finance firm, which many say is partly to blame for the housing crisis. The document, made public by the Gingrich Group, the firm Gingrich founded in 2000, covers only 2006. The firm provided consulting services to Freddie Mac for roughly six years in total.
The one thing Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich seem to agree on about Freddie Mac is that it played a significant role in the housing bubble -- and the subsequent financial meltdown that followed when it burst.
It has been more than three years since then Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson fired his famous metaphorical bazooka and the federal government seized control of mortgage agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The Securities and Exchange Commission charged six former executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with securities fraud on Friday for misrepresenting their holdings of high-risk mortgage loans.
Federal officials hope to launch a pilot program in early 2012 to convert government-owned foreclosures into rental properties.
Richard M. Kovacevich is the retired Chairman & CEO of Wells Fargo. William M. Isaac is Global Head of Financial Institutions at FTI Consulting and former Chairman of the FDIC. The views expressed are their own.
During Thursday night's Republican candidates' debate in Sioux City, Iowa, a moderator asked U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann to produce hard evidence that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich had peddled his influence with congressional Republicans on behalf of mortgage giant Freddie Mac.
All of the post-mortems on the CNBC Republican debate have focused on the sad, but hilarious, senior moment Gov. Rick Perry suffered when he couldn't remember the third federal agency he wants to eliminate.
Executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac need big pay packages to protect taxpayers from losing more of the billions spent to rescue the mortgage finance companies, according to the head of the agency that sets pay at the beleaguered firms.
Mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac received the biggest federal bailout of the financial crisis. And nearly $100 million of those tax dollars went to lucrative pay packages for top executives, filings show.
Lawmakers are trying to block million-dollar bonuses to top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage-backing firms that required a giant taxpayer bailout.
The cost to taxpayers for bailing out mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac won't be quite as bad as previous estimates, according to the federal agency overseeing the two companies.
The chief executive of mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac will step down during the coming year, the latest blow to the troubled government-backed firm.
In the latest attempt to address the ailing housing market, the government on Monday announced changes to a federal program that will make it easier for struggling homeowners to refinance to today's near-record low rates.
Mortgage rates have never been cheaper, with the 30-year rate falling below 4% for the first time in history.
Starting Saturday, the beleaguered housing market will confront the latest hurdle to its recovery: The size of mortgages that the federal government can back will be drastically reduced in high-priced regions.
The federal government's mortgage finance regulatory agency did a poor job of making sure taxpayers got top dollar in selling $2.87 billion in bad mortgages back to Bank of America last year, an inspector general's report said Tuesday.
Mortgage rates hit yet another record low this week amid ongoing economic concerns both at home and in Europe.
The federal agency overseeing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac filed lawsuits Friday against 17 financial institutions, in an attempt to recover billions of dollars in losses from risky mortgage investments.
More than a dozen banks are expected to face lawsuits from a federal housing agency accusing them of misrepresenting the value of mortgage-backed securities.
An ominous cloud is hanging over the housing market: Millions of distressed properties could be put up for sale at any moment, potentially adding to the glut of unsold homes that are already on the market and depressing home prices even further.
At least one fear was not realized amid Monday's meltdown: the concern that mortgage rates would immediately shoot higher in response to Standard & Poor's downgrade of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored entities that are the 800-pound gorillas of the mortgage market.
In a move that could shake the housing market, credit rating agency Standard and Poor's on Monday downgraded the debt of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Troubled mortgage giant Freddie Mac says that it doesn't need additional funding from the U.S. Treasury, after posting its second profit since its government bailout.
Getting a mortgage just keeps getting tougher, and many homebuyers are getting rejected for loans they could easily afford.
For most Americans, their home is the largest and most important investment they will ever make. Ensuring that they have the right kind of mortgage is critical to their financial well-being and -- as we've seen recently -- critical to our entire economy.
Top executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were paid handsomely over the past two years, while the government agency in charge of regulating the bailed-out mortgage backers was ill-equipped to do anything about it, according to a federal review.
When the dust settles, the federal bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be the most expensive government rescue of the financial crisis -- it already stands at $153 billion and counting.
The Obama administration on Friday officially unveiled its plan to remake the mortgage market and reduce the government's role in housing finance by winding down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Imagine depositing your paycheck at the local bank each week only to have the bank lose your money, but never face any consequences.
The Obama administration will issue a proposal later this week recommending the gradual elimination of government-sponsored mortgage backers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a White House official said Wednesday.
The Dow closed at a fresh two-year high Monday, getting the new year off to a strong start, after manufacturing and construction data stoked optimism about the economy.
U.S. stocks were poised to kick off the new year with gains Monday, as investors returned from the holidays and awaited a key report on manufacturing. Dow Jones industrial average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures were higher ahead of the opening bell. Futures measure current index values against perceived future performance. Stocks ended a roller coaster year with a lackluster showing Friday, but all three major indexes logged double-digit percentage gains for the year. The Dow Jones industrial average finished 2010 up 11%, the S&P 500 climbed 13%, and the Nasdaq rose 17%.
Several of the big mortgage players are playing Santa Claus again this year, saying they will not evict borrowers in default during the two weeks surrounding Christmas.
Just when it looked as if mortgage rates couldn't fall any further, they did.
Mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could need as much as $363 billion in government payments by 2013, regulators said Thursday.
It appears even the bright spots of this tired economy are still working against heavily indebted homeowners. Mortgage rates have hit new lows nearly every week, but many borrowers are still unable to take advantage of them.
Mortgage rates continued to decline this week, plunging to the lowest level in decades, according to surveys from Freddie Mac and Bankrate.
Troubled mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac said goodbye to the New York Stock Exchange at the end of trade Wednesday.
In a housing market still struggling to regain strength, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have quickly become two of the nation's biggest landlords. By the end of March, the troubled mortgage finance companies had taken over 163,828 foreclosed houses. That's more homes than there are in Seattle.
Mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were ordered by their federal regulator to no longer trade their shares on the New York Stock Exchange, the agency announced Wednesday. Both stocks plummeted on the news.
Pressure is mounting on loan servicers and investors to reduce troubled homeowners' loan balances...but the two largest owners of mortgages aren't getting the message.
A message to all of you angry taxpayers this election season with your cross-hairs trained on the likes of Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase: Did you notice that Fannie Mae just trundled up to the government bailout window for another $8.4 billion, days after Freddie Mac pulled down another $10.6 billion in taxpayer funds?
Freddie Mac on Wednesday requested another $10.6 billion handout from the federal government.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt famously proclaimed that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. Looking at how the stock market has been behaving recently though, I think it's now fair to say that the only thing we have to fear is no fear itself.
Investors had a funny way of commemorating the first anniversary of the market's bottom on Tuesday. They rewarded some of the stocks responsible for most of the problems in the first place.
Putting Fannie Mae's and Freddie Mac's houses in order will have to wait.
America's total debt load is on pace to top $13 trillion this year, and $22 trillion by 2020 -- and that's just the debt we're counting.
Government-owned mortgage financing firm Freddie Mac reported a larger loss in the fourth quarter, but the company did not need to draw down any additional tax dollars in the period.
Shares of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soared Monday after the Treasury Department announced what essentially amounts to a blank check for their bailouts.
Top executives at mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, both of which have been under government control since last year, received millions of dollars in pay in 2009, according to documents filed by the companies Thursday.
For top executives, 'tis the season to get paid in company stock - unless you happen to work at Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.
With apologies to the Beatles, the list of the best-performing Fortune 500 stocks in the year after the collapse of Lehman Brothers reads like a stroll down Penny Lane.
They say you can't trust the government. Don't tell that to Wall Street traders.
Shares of bailed-out mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soared Monday, as investors try to piggyback on a rally in shares of government-backed financial companies.
Lawmakers are quickly learning that "too big to fail" may be too complex to legislate away.
The first big government bailout of the financial crisis -- the takeover of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- is poised to be the most expensive and complicated to complete.
The Mortgage Bankers Association has slashed its estimate of the number of mortgages its members will issue in 2009. One reason: Few refinancings are being done under President Obama's ballyhooed Home Affordable Refinance Program.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, charged with helping lead the nation out of its housing crisis, are facing "critical" financial problems, federal regulators said Monday.
Freddie Mac asked for another $6.1 billion in government aid Tuesday, after reporting a $9.9 billion quarterly loss.
Former Freddie Mac Chief Executive David Moffett, who resigned six weeks ago, is temporarily returning to the mortgage finance giant as an adviser following the death of acting finance chief David Kellermann, the company said Friday.
The acting chief financial officer of mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac, David Kellermann, was found dead Wednesday morning, police said.
While the jury's out on President Obama's decision to sub Fritz Henderson for Rick Wagoner as CEO of GM, the shift doesn't matter because the bailout is suspect. The reason? Of all the models the federal government could have picked for restructuring the automaker, it picked Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Freddie Mac, the government-backed mortgage finance company, said Wednesday it has asked the government for $30.8 billion in additional funding to close a gaping hole on its books.
Freddie Mac's chief executive, installed last year after the government took over the troubled mortgage finance company, is resigning, the company and its regulator said Monday.
Hammered by the ailing housing market, mortgage finance giant Fannie Mae said Thursday it would tap its lifeline from the Treasury Department after reporting $58.7 billion in losses for 2008.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac won't be leaving the federal government's nest anytime soon.
The White House is using only $50 billion from the $700 billion financial industry bailout package to fund the foreclosure prevention program, a senior administration official clarified Friday.
As required by the federal bailout law, the Federal Reserve will look to prevent foreclosures by modifying the terms on certain delinquent loans, lawmakers said Tuesday.
The federal regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will set new rules early next week governing the mortgage finance companies' portfolios, which play a crucial role in the nation's housing market.
Interest rates on 30-year fixed rate mortgages rose after an 11 week streak of declines.
Washington policy makers have taken aim at one of the main contributing causes to the housing crisis: inflated appraisals.
Mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have extended a moratorium on foreclosure suspensions for another three weeks, directing the mortgage servicers they work with to postpone any foreclosure or eviction proceedings through January 31.
Mortgage rates fell to another all-time low, declining for the tenth consecutive week.
Rates on mortgage loans are the lowest in the 37-year history of the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey, according to a weekly report released Wednesday.
Near record low mortgage rates sent mortgage applications shooting higher last week, especially for refinances, according to an industry report.
Mortgage rates fell this week, with the 30-year fixed mortgage sinking to its lowest rate in 37 years as the Federal Reserve cut interest rates to historic lows.
Mortgage rates fell again this week, following the government's efforts to assist the troubled housing market.
A House committee trying to uncover the roots of the credit crisis on Tuesday grilled several former CEOs of mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Stocks tumbled Tuesday morning as a profit warning from FedEx and some buyer's remorse after a two-session rally sent stocks tumbling in the early going.
Loan modifications for homeowners in trouble: there are a lot of proposals out there. But what's the best way to go about reworking your mortgage terms? Here's what you need to know.
Mortgage rates fell this week, reaching levels not seen since January, as the government steps up its efforts to aid the ailing housing market.
The feds are trying once more to resuscitate the mortgage market. But history shows reviving this patient won't be easy.
Freddie Mac reported a $25 billion quarterly loss Friday that forced the mortgage finance giant to tap $100 billion in bailout money set aside by the government.
Mortgage giants Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac may back 30 million mortgages. But that doesn't mean that the new foreclosure prevention program announced this week by the Bush administration will rescue every troubled borrower on their books.
Mortgage rates fell for the second week in a row, finance firm Freddie Mac said Thursday, as the weakening economy resulted in the slowest pace of home purchase applications in nearly eight years.
The federal government's plan to streamline modifications of troubled loans held by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac won't help the majority of people threatened with foreclosure, experts said.
The Bush administration on Tuesday unveiled a new program to modify mortgages and stabilize the battered real estate market, but the plan stops short of providing direct government financial help to at-risk homeowners.
Mortgage rates fell this week amid a pullback in consumer spending and a weaker job market.
In a time when closures or panicked liquidations of name-brand hedge funds have become commonplace, the opening of a $1 billion fund trading mortgage-backed securities and other types of credit should attract more than a few raised eyebrows.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Friday that the federal government will need to continue to play a role in the future of the mortgage financing market.
Falling house prices are still a problem. Could Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac be part of the solution?
The 30-year mortgage rate surged this week, following the Fed's half-point rate cut and the rise in long-term Treasury bonds yields.
The 30-year mortgage rate fell this week after last week's spike, which was its biggest weekly jump since April 1987.
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