Dec 24th 2010 9:00AM
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were in the news a lot this year. For starters, there was the presidential summit in August, to solicit ideas for what to do with the ailing government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs for short). That was followed by midterm-election wrangling over whether to replace the struggling mortgage giants... Continue Reading »
Sep 10th 2010 8:32AM
If the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is on its way out, as I declared in Part 1 of this series, many more Americans will be living in rentals. So let's take a brief look at what the future of rentals might look like, since many of you reading this now will be renting for a lot longer than you ever imagined: Continue Reading »
Sep 8th 2010 9:14AM
The 30-year fixed rate mortgage, the foundation of the American housing market, may be on the endangered species list, thanks to the Obama administration. Based on recent observations, the Obama administration seems committed to moving American housing policy away from homeownership toward rentals. They would do this by:... Continue Reading »
Dec 11th 2009 9:12AM
When Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Wall Street mortgage-backed securities machine all went the way of King Kong and Godzilla last year, that left just one home finance giant standing: the Government National Mortgage Association, or Ginnie Mae. Ginnie Mae bundles together mortgages into securities, and backs their sale... Continue Reading »
Oct 3rd 2009 12:00PM
If the housing bust's low prices have you tempted to buy versus rent a home, here are some things to consider. Over the long haul, the thinking goes, buying a home will make your expenses more stable because unlike rent -- which can increase with a month's notice -- home mortgages don't go up if you have a fixed rate... Continue Reading »
