The ""New York Federal Reserve Bank"":http://www.newyorkfed.org/index.html purchased $23.142 billion in ""mortgage-backed securities"":http://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/mbs/ (MBS) from government agencies this week. Of the Fed's new commitment to buy $1.25 trillion in MBS this year, its purchases now stand at $404 billion.
The central banks' expanded debt purchases are intended to drive down borrowing costs and mortgage rates, and keep them low through the remainder of 2009. The Fed's efforts thus far have sent rates for home loans plummeting well below the five percent mark, to record-low levels.
Officials hope the low rates will boost home sales and help to reduce housing inventories, which have become inflated with the growing numbers of foreclosed properties now on the market. The low rates have also contributed to a surge in refinance activity, allowing struggling homeowners to lower their monthly mortgage payments to more affordable levels.
The gross amount of the Federal Reserve's ""MBS purchases this week"":http://www.newyorkfed.org/markets/mbs/ totaled $59.565 billion. The Fed bought $40.960 billion in mortgage securities from Fannie Mae, $18.105 billion from Freddie Mac, and $500 million from Ginnie Mae.