President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he is giving “very serious consideration” to taking mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac public, more than 15 years after they were taken under government control to stabilize the U.S. economy in the wake of the 2008 housing market collapse.
“I am giving very serious consideration to bringing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac public,” the president wrote on his social-media platform Truth Social. “I will be speaking with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, William Pulte, among others, and will be making a decision in the near future.”
Why It Matters
Trump has long been trying to take the two mortgage finance firms, which guarantee most of the mortgages made in the country, public, but an attempt to privatize the companies during his first term in office did not succeed.
He vowed to try again if elected during his 2024 presidential campaign and now appears determined to keep that promise. But some economists worry that privatizing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at a time of growing uncertainty around the U.S. economy and historically elevated mortgage rates could disrupt the mortgage market, rendering monthly payments even higher for everyday Americans.
What To Know
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac used to be private companies, but were placed in a conservatorship under the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) after the housing bubble burst of 2007-2008, when the U.S. housing market crashed and triggered the so-called Great Recession.
The two companies, which essentially buy mortgages from lenders and repackage them for investors, support about 70 percent of all U.S. mortgages, or $16 trillion, and have a crucial role in keeping the U.S. mortgage market’s balance.
While Trump has been weighing the possibility of taking the two mortgage giants for a while now, he thinks “the time would seem to be right” now because “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are doing very well, throwing off a lot of CASH,” as he wrote on Truth Social.
What People Are Saying
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Bloomberg in an interview in February: “The priority for a Fannie and Freddie release, the most important metric that I’m looking at, is any study or hint that mortgage rates would go up.”
Gary LaBarbera, president of the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York and member of the Housing for U.S. coalition, said on Wednesday: “President Trump is right to free Fannie and Freddie. But even better, let’s use the proceeds—some $250bn—to build middle-class housing for American workers by American workers. Housing for U.S. stands ready to work with President Trump to make it happen.”
Bill Pulte, head of the FHFA, told CNN in March: “Fannie and Freddie shouldn’t be in conservatorship forever. But it’s critical to ensure any discussion about exiting conservatorship needs not only to ensure safety and soundness but how it would affect mortgage rates.”
What Happens Next
Previous attempts to take Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac off the government’s conservatorship have failed, and it is unclear whether the U.S. president can succeed this time. Trump has not offered many details on how he plans to go about his attempt this time, but invited voters to “stay tuned” to his next moves.
If successful, the move could have a huge impact on the U.S. mortgage and housing markets.
The post Trump Giving ‘Very Serious Consideration’ to Major Mortgage Companies Move appeared first on Newsweek.
