Freddie Mac News

Mortgage rates hovered slightly above record lows, but as the debate on the extension of the first-time homebuyer tax credit raged, borrowers stayed away from the application process last week.

Will the Federal Reserve System join the ranks of other government public supported agencies like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ? One could argue that they are on the verge of such ignominy.

Freddie Mac today released the results of its Primary Mortgage Market Survey in which the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.98 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending November 5, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 5.03 percent.

I really thought we had all paid our dues on this subprime mortgage fiasco by the big hit we all took in our investments in banks, securities firms, CMOs and mortgaged back bonds.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York bought $16bn of mortgage-backed securities from housing finance agencies Freddie Mac , Fannie Mae and Ginnie Mae in the week ending November 4. The Fed bought $3.27bn from Freddie, $12.55bn from Fannie and $175m from Ginnie.

Freddie Mac , the second largest provider of U.S. residential mortgage funding, on Friday posted a loss of $5 billion in the third quarter and predicted it would need more government support amid a "prolonged deterioration" in housing.

Financial fallout at mortgage giant Fannie Mae continues to develop following the $19.8bn quarterly net loss , with the agency's conservator confirming Fannie may sell as much as $2.6bn of low-income housing tax credits to investors and is requesting another $15bn in support from the US Treasury Department .

Rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 4.98% for the week ending Nov. 5, down from a 5.03% average last week and 6.20% a year ago, according to Freddie Mac's [S:FRE] weekly survey of conforming mortgage rates, released on Thursday.

Granted, Wednesday's Federal Open Market Committee statement was nearly identical to that issued in September , when the Fed indicated that it plans to extend its purchase of agency mortgage-backed securities through the first quarter of 2010.

Half of all borrowers that refinanced their conventional loans in Q309 saw their annual mortgage interest rate drop by at least 17%, according to a quarterly report by mortgage giant Freddie Mac .

U.S. House and Senate lawmakers are proposing to extend temporary higher limits on the size of home mortgages Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can buy or guarantee as part of a stopgap funding legislation that could pass Congress as soon as this week.

Mortgage rates inched up last week, the third consecutive week of increases, according to two rate surveys.

What else is stewing in our cauldron of evil? Prepare yourself before proceeding to the rest of our world's scariest stocks .

Beyond bear-market fund managers and securities lawyers, few people have emerged from the recent financial crisis ahead of the game.

Long-term mortgage rates remain around 5 percent,with only a modest uptick this week, according to Freddie Mac 's weekly report.

Appropriations committees in the House and Senate are proposing to extend the temporary limits for conforming jumbo loans either insured by the Federal Housing Administration or purchased by the government-sponsored enterprises Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae .

MCLEAN, Va., Oct. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The following statement was released today by Hollis McLoughlin, Senior Vice President of External Relations, Freddie Mac in support of the Los Angeles launch of the "Loan Modification Scam Alert" campaign by a coalition including federal agencies, non-profit organizations, Freddie Mac and others: ...

The Obama Administration announced a new initiative to encourage low mortgage rates and expand resources for low- and middle-income borrowers to purchase or rent affordable housing by promoting lending by state and local housing finance agencies .

Seeking to stabilize the housing sector, the Obama administration on Monday launched a new short-term program that seeks to prop up the mortgage and home-rental markets by providing new funding sources to state and local housing agencies.

There is not much liquidity for commercial mortgages in the retail, office or hospitality sectors of the commercial real estate industry, but there's plenty of capital available for multi-family buildings.