Tag Archives: Federal Housing Finance Agency

Declines in mortgage interest rates helped spur a pickup in refinances in August, even as interest in the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) continues to wane.

In a separate agreement the GSEs and FHFA are also reportedly considering programs that could reopen the door to guarantee some mortgages with down payments as low as 3 percent, including loans to first-time homebuyers, according to the Wall Street Journal. Fannie Mae stopped taking such loans last year, while Freddie Mac stopped guaranteeing them years ago.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has announced the appointment of Janell Byrd-Chichester as the organization's new chief of staff.

The total number of mortgage refinances in the U.S. experienced a slight increase in June as mortgage rates dropped from May, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency's (FHFA) Second Quarter 2014 Refinance Report. HARP-refinanced homes made up only about 15.7 percent of total refinances in Q2.