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Fannie Mae's gross mortgage portfolio took a huge downward turn in November, while the mortgage giant's Book of Business inched upward, according to Fannie Mae's November 2014 Monthly Summary. The balance of the gross mortgage portfolio dropped from $4.36 billion in October down to $4.24 billion in November, marking the 52nd time in the last 53 months Fannie Mae's portfolio declined month-over-month. With the exception of December 2012, the value of the portfolio has declined every month since June 2010.
Meanwhile, Fannie Mae's Book of Business increased in November at a compound annualized rate of 0.7 percent up to $3.12 trillion, marking only the second time in the last 12 months the Book of Business has increased month-over-month. Year-to-date, the Book of Business has declined at an average compound annual rate of 1.5 percent. Also in November, the serious delinquency rate of Fannie Mae's conventional single-family mortgage loans declined by one basis point from October down to 1.91 percent.
President Barack Obama signed into law H.B. 5771, known as the Tax Increase Prevention Act of 2014, which retroactively extended 55 tax provisions – including one that provides distressed homeowners relief on forgiven mortgage debt. The tax provisions covered by the bill, which expired on December 31, 2013, were retroactively extended for one year until December 30, 2014, and will be effective on income tax returns filed for the year 2014. One of those provisions allows homeowners to exclude the remaining mortgage loan balance when a home is sold in a short sale from their gross income when filing tax returns.
