News Topic: Affordable housing

The dominant player in manufactured housing lauded the Trump administration's review of construction standards, but other commenters worry the plan will undermine housing quality. ... Read full article

Lawmakers approved a measure to increase the program's funding by nearly $3 billion over four years. ... Read full article

The Federal Home Loan banks could "design and implement" their own system for deciding how to allocate resources for affordable housing initiatives under the proposal by the Federal Housing Finance Agency. ... Read full article

Banking and affordable housing advocates are encouraged by a provision in the tax reform legislation that could increase investment in underserved communities by allowing investors to defer capital gains taxes when they reinvest in federally chartered ... Read full article

Since stepping down as CEO of Webster Bank last month, James Smith has spent much of his time co-chairing a panel tasked with solving his home state’s fiscal and economic woes. Banks, and perhaps even fintechs, could be a part of its comeback story, he ... Read full article

The House Financial Services Committee chairman is calling out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac's regulator for authorizing payments to two housing trust funds while the mortgage giants have their own financial struggles. ... Read full article

Freddie Mac posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $3.3 billion and will request $312 million from the Treasury after recent tax reform legislation forced it to write down the value of deferred tax assets. ... Read full article

Despite a legislative push by some senators and other stakeholders to jump-start housing finance reform, efforts to form consensus over a bill once again are stuck in neutral. ... Read full article

Supporters of an unreleased bill to revamp the housing finance system say the plan strikes a middle ground that can gain support from both sides of the aisle. ... Read full article

Craig Phillips, a top aide to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, said his department "broadly" agrees with the FHFA plan, which would return Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the private market and provide them an explicit government guarantee. ... Read full article

The tax law is expected to eliminate 300,000 affordable housing units over 10 years in part because it will reduce the value of banks’ low-income tax credits, which finance half of all affordable housing units. ... Read full article

For decades, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac helped working-class Americans get mortgages. That essential and powerful role in the national economy is fading. ... Read full article

The FHFA is allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to invest in the credits for the first time since they entered conservatorship. Its purpose is to promote affordable housing in underserved markets. ... Read full article

Housing advocates are pressing Senate Republicans to expand the low-income housing tax credit program while pushing back against a House GOP plan that would eliminate financing for half of all affordable housing units. ... Read full article

The prospect of a lower corporate rate resulting from looming tax reform discussions may be a blessing for the industry, but it could be bittersweet for one particular group of bankers. ... Read full article

While Freddie Mac is moving cautiously into buying manufactured housing loans not secured by land, Fannie Mae is moving more aggressively. Industry representatives are divided on which approach is superior. ... Read full article

The Federal Housing Finance Agency made just incremental changes to two of the seven affordable housing benchmarks. ... Read full article

Both parties appear interested in a deal on housing finance reform, but tough fights are ahead. ... Read full article