ABA Statement on FHFA’s Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Strategic Plan

Feb 24 - ABA Statement on FHFA’s Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Strategic Plan

A statement by Frank Keating, president and CEO of the American Bankers Association, is below regarding the Federal Housing Finance Agency's strategic plan for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

“The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s strategic plan for the GSEs, released earlier this week, is a milestone that deserves further recognition.

“The plan outlines a constructive path to meaningful reform of our mortgage finance system. It addresses the need to build new infrastructure, encourages the return of private investors to shift away from direct government funding and continues efforts to maintain credit availability and prudent underwriting. In many ways, the plan is consistent with and a step forward from ABA’s proposal of more than a year ago. (www.aba.com/Issues/Issues_FannieFreddie.htm)

“The plan also focuses on the changes needed to ensure availability of mortgage credit for future generations. Unlike several proposals of recent months, the plan differentiates between the urge to stimulate markets and the need to build functional markets. If we fail to heed this difference, we are likely to fail in both objectives.

“Comprehensive GSE reform is essential to the long-term housing and economic recovery.”