The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), under the direction of Bill Pulte, is charting a new course for its 2026–2030 strategic plan—one that shifts its focus from broad housing access and equity initiatives to a more risk-based supervisory framework. This pivot comes in direct response to recent executive orders issued by President Donald Trump, which have reprioritized regulatory approaches across federal agencies.
The Federal Reserve is increasingly sounding the alarm about growing risks in the U.S. housing and labor markets. In its latest meeting minutes, officials emphasized that a “more substantial deterioration in the housing market” could spill over into broader economic weakening, with particular concern for employment.
Mortgage industry data reveal signals pointing toward an uptick in home‑sales activity in 2026, driven largely by shifts in borrower behavior, equity patterns, and the unwinding of the “rate‑lock” effect. While affordability remains a headwind, the evolving mortgage landscape suggests increased turnover and sales opportunities on the horizon.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has unveiled its proposed housing goals for the 2026–2028 cycle, revealing a shift toward easing affordable housing mandates on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The changes reflect growing concerns that current benchmarks may be distorting market behavior and placing undue strain on lenders.
President Donald Trump has publicly challenged Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to catalyze a surge in homebuilding activity, asserting that developers are sitting on a record number of vacant lots. His remarks, made on October 5, signal renewed pressure on the government‑backed mortgage firms to play a more active role in alleviating housing shortages.
On March 29, 2016 Fannie Mae issued an updated regarding DU 10.0 and Multiple Financed Properties. Previously, we lenders had to manually calculate the reserve requirements because DU did not provide that information. Well, that will all change the weekend of June 25, 2016. DU will now calculate the number of financed properties the borrower has and calculate the reserves for both the subject property and the “Other financed properties.” But before we get into the calculations for the total number of financed properties and reserves, let’s talk about the multiple finance property rule and when it applies.
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
Recently Fannie Mae has issued communication regarding some upcoming changes with Desktop Underwriter (DU), the Single Family Selling Guide, and Collateral Underwriter (CU).
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
Fannie Mae has announced the launch of their Home Ready Program which is the replacement product of the Community Home Buyer Program.
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
Recently I wrote an article inquiring and asking if Hurricane Sandy Victims were going to be victims again. The information is somewhat favorable for more than 38,000 mortgagors who reside in areas impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Previously it was pointed out that more than 38,000 mortgagors received six month forbearance agreements from their mortgage servicers for mortgages owned by Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and by Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac).
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
Anyone who is familiar with my article writing over the past several years probably knows I am a huge advocate for training and education in our industry whether it be for those coming in to the lending environment fresh with no prior experience or for the most seasoned veteran such as myself who have been working in the lending environment for well over 20 years or more.
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
We’re all familiar with many of the components of LQI because most of them have been effective for quite some time now. We’ve become accustomed to checking interested parties against various exclusionary lists, validating each borrower’s social security number, assuring we’re including unit numbers in property addresses for condominium units, rounding the LTV calculations properly, following policies to detect and uncover undisclosed debts etc.
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
I usually tend to lean toward writing articles on government loans but this week I thought I’d step over the conventional side of things because there are several items of interest that have been announced by Fannie Mae recently and also earlier this year.
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
Review of the Fannie Mae HomePath Financing Program. I’ve seen a lot of press and advertising on the latest Fannie Mae home loan program so, I thought I would do some research to see what I could learn about the program. What I found very odd was that I was able to find very little product information on the HomePath program even with a major effort digging to find information.
Opinion-Editorial (Op-Ed) Disclaimer For NAMP® Library Articles: The views and opinions expressed in the NAMP® Library articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect any official NAMP® policy or position. Examples of analysis performed within this article are only examples. They should not be utilized in real-world application as they are based only on very limited and dated open source information. Assumptions made within the analysis are not reflective of the position of NAMP®. Nothing contained in this article should be considered legal advice.
Written By: Bonnie Wildt
I have said it before and I will say it again and that is, do not believe everything you hear or read for that matter. In this particular instance I am referring to AUS Findings. I have had countless conversations with processors and loan officer who want to know why I am asking for documentation that the AUS findings have clearly stated wasn’t needed or worse, they can’t believe I am turning a loan down that has an Approve/Eligible. So here it is again and pay particular attention to the details because just because you have an Approve/Eligible or Accept doesn’t necessarily mean you have a done deal.