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Fannie, Freddie to Suspend Foreclosures to Aid Virus Relief

Fannie and Freddie to Suspend Foreclosures to Aid Virus Relief

(Bloomberg) -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Department of Housing and Urban Development all plan to suspend mortgage foreclosures, adding to the federal government’s aggressive response to help Americans hit hard by the economic pain of the coronavirus.

Fannie and Freddie, mortgage giants that backstop about $5 trillion of home loans, will halt foreclosures for 60 days, their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said in a Wednesday statement. President Donald Trump separately announced that HUD would suspend foreclosures and evictions through the end of April.

The FHFA is also extending mortgage payment relief to consumers who need it to help those struggling with the threat of job cuts and lost income, as the coronavirus outbreak shuts down businesses and grinds the U.S. economy to a halt. FHFA Director Mark Calabria added that Fannie and Freddie would also suspend property evictions for 60 days, to prevent raising public-health risks by putting Americans on the streets as the virus spreads.

‘National Emergency’

“This foreclosure and eviction suspension allows homeowners with an Enterprise-backed mortgage to stay in their homes during this national emergency,” Calabria said in the statement.

Calabria urged borrowers affected by coronavirus to reach out to their mortgage servicers as soon as possible, adding that Fannie and Freddie are working with such companies to provide assistance.

HUD’s decision will help 8.1 million households with mortgages that are insured by the Federal Housing Administration. The FHA enables borrowers who have comparatively low credit scores to get home loans, while making little in down payments. The program is a favorite of first-time homebuyers.

“Millions of Americans face significant financial hardships because of the coronavirus outbreak, which means some people will not have income,” HUD Secretary Ben Carson told reporters on a conference call Wednesday. “So we have decided to make an attempt to stem the tide there by placing a moratorium on foreclosures.”

Payment Forbearance

The FHFA announced earlier this month that Fannie and Freddie would provide payment forbearance to borrowers hurt by coronavirus. Such forbearance will allow mortgage payments to be suspended for as long as a year for affected borrowers, the FHFA said Wednesday.

Calabria, in an interview, said the regulator isn’t providing a mortgage-payment holiday for homeowners who can make their payments. He said giving Americans a broad based exemption from paying their mortgages would put Fannie and Freddie out of business.

Fannie and Freddie don’t make loans. Instead, they purchase mortgages from banks and other lenders and package them into securities. Those securities have guarantees that protect investors from the risk of homeowners defaulting. The process is crucial to the U.S. housing market because it keeps financing flowing.

Delayed Rule

The federal government has controlled Fannie and Freddie since the 2008 financial crisis, when they got into serious trouble as the housing market cratered. After receiving $191 billion in taxpayer funds to keep them afloat, the companies have become profitable again, paying out more than $300 billion in dividends to the Treasury.

The Trump administration has been eager to release Fannie and Freddie from the government’s grip, and Calabria has been working on a rule that would stipulate how much capital the companies must have to protect them from another housing crash that triggers significant losses. The regulation is considered a key step in ending Fannie and Freddie’s federal conservatorships.

Calabria said Wednesday that the coronavirus had forced the FHFA to delay proposing the new capital requirements until late May because the agency can’t meet with outside parties to discuss the rule.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.