Posted by
admin on Sep 28, 2008 in
Finances,
Mortgages The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for possible corporate fraud. Officials also confirmed that Lehman Brothers and insurer American International Group are under investigation as well. The financial downfall of all four of these institutions are seen as the major trigger of recent economical turmoil and the subsequent $700 billion bailout plan currently being pushed by the Bush administration. Earlier this summer, federal prosecutors charged two portfolio managers of the now defunct Bear Stearns with conspiracy and securities fraud, following an FBI investigation into the company’s business practices.
The FBI said that in addition to the 26 major corporate cases, there were open investigations into about 1,400 smaller companies and individuals whom the agency suspects of mortgage fraud.
Tags: Fannie Mae, fraud, Freddie Mac, mortgages
Posted by
admin on Sep 24, 2008 in
Marketplace,
Misce4llaneous Staying warm doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Here are some ideas from the U.S. Department of Energy for conserving heat and saving money.
The U.S. Department of Energy offers these simple tips and relatively inexpensive home improvements that will help ensure cold gusts stay out and your furnace doesn’t have to work harder than it should.
The goal is to conserve energy and keep more of your hard-earned dollars in your own pocket.
1. Plug air leaks with caulking, sealing, or weather stripping. Save 10 percent ($190 per year) or more on energy bills. Focus on windows, doors, outlets or switch plates on exterior walls.
2. Properly maintain the heating system. Heating accounts for half the average family’s energy bill (approximately $950 per year). Make sure the furnace or heat pump receives professional maintenance each year. The small cost (about $75-100 for most service calls) will pay back in better performance all year long.
3. Install a programmable thermostat. Programming the thermostat from 72ºF to 65ºF for eight hours a day while no one is home, or everyone is tucked in bed, will cut the heating bill up to 10 percent ($90 per year), paying for a basic unit in less than a year.
4. Seal and insulate heating ducts. A system can lose up to 60 percent of its warmed air before it reaches the register (wasting $570 in warmed air per year) if ducts are not properly insulated in unheated areas such as attics and crawlspaces.
5. Insulate, insulate, insulate. Adequate insulation in the attic, ceilings, exterior and basement walls, floors, and crawlspaces can save up to 30 percent on home energy bills ($630 per year). Focus on the attic. (Heat rises.) Most homes should have between R-30 and R-49 insulation in the attic. Learn more at www.eere.energy.gov/consumer.
6. Close fireplace dampers when not in use. When in use, reduce heat loss by opening dampers in the bottom of the firebox (if provided) or open the nearest window about an inch, close doors to the room, and lower thermostat setting to 50-55ºF.
7. Let the sun shine in. Open curtains on south facing windows during the day to allow sunlight to naturally heat the home, and close them at night to reduce the chill from cold windows.
8. Stay out of hot water. Water heating accounts for 15 percent of household energy use. Reduce water heating costs by lowering the water heater’s thermostat setting. Each 10ºF reduction can save between 3-5 percent in energy costs. Also insulate the hot water heater and hot water pipes.
9. Install storm windows over single-pane windows or replace them with Energy Star qualified windows. Storm windows reduce heat loss by 25 to 50 percent, and storm windows with low-e coating that reflect heat back into the room during the winter months save even more energy. Look for the Energy Star label to maximize savings. Energy Star qualified windows reduce heating and cooling bills by an average of $345, but could be higher in cold and hot climates, compared with uncoated, single-pane windows. Can’t afford new windows just now? Tape clear plastic sheeting to the inside of window frames if drafts, water condensation, or frost are present.
10. Net big savings with a little label. When replacing appliances, light bulbs, electronics, or heating and cooling systems, cut energy bills by up to 30 percent ($600 per year) with Energy Star labeled products. Use compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) in place of comparable incandescent bulbs. Find retailers at http://www.energystar.gov/.
These and other improvements that impact the energy efficiency of a home can save home owners money in the short term and serve as a selling point to potential buyers later. Be sure to save receipts, documentation, and manufacturer’s information. Try the Department of Energy’s online energy audit tool at http://hes.lbl.gov. In the long run, a whole-house energy audit is a fool proof way to make a plan to address wasted energy and make a home operate efficiently for years to come.
Tags: DOE, efficiency, energy, energy audit, energy bills, energy efficiency, energy savings
There seems to be a new game in town. Sellers who are seeking short sales are encountering a new twist to the approvals from banks and lenders. The lenders are agreeing to let some short sales go through, however, they want the home owners to sign a note promising to pay some or all of the balance due. These debts that could burden borrowers for the rest of their lives in terms of their credit and financial viability to rent currently or buy another home in the future.
Moody’s Economy.com estimates that about 10 million home owners have negative equity, a condition known colloquially as being upside down or underwater. By next June, the forecasting company expects the total to rise to 12.7 million; this is a quarter of all home owners who have mortgages.
“The first wave of foreclosures involved a lot of investors who just disappeared,” says Lance Churchill of Frontline Seminars, which teaches real estate practitioners how to negotiate with lenders on short sales. “Now, home owners with jobs and assets are underwater and want to sell. The banks want as much as they can get, today or in the future, and the owners want to get away clean.”
Now comes the conundrum. If the lender does a short sale without extracting anything from the seller, everyone in the country who is upside down could try to wiggle out from under and banks will take a fresh wave of hits. But if the lender pushes too hard, the borrower will default, leaving the bank in worse shape. It’s a extremely difficult balancing act to find a mutually acceptable solution.
The real estates agents are the primary solution to this issue. The real estate agents have to stop using the short sales as a gimick to drive business to themselves. Since we expanded into the pre-foreclosure market we have heard some real horrendous stories from home owners about some of the agents that they have spoken to or have dealt with. It seems that a large majority of the real estate agents in our market are using the short sale as a gimick to entice home owners to sign a listing agreement with them by either touting themselves as experts in that field or guaranteeing the short sale will go through fast. Both of these advertisings are WRONG. Every single short sale is unique becuase each bank and each case worker has their own set of guidelines and rules they use. Additionally, with so many agents pushing short sales onto unsuspecting home owners, and those home owners being led to believe that they will be getting something (a clean slate) for nothing, the lenders are being overwhelmed with short sale applications. This results in thre lenders taking more time to make a decision.
So, it does not come as a surprise that the lenders are now pushing back and not going to allow that many debt forgivenesses. Lenders are also pushing back on the listing agent by trimming the commission that they will allow. The agent who proposed the short sale and listed the property under those conditions now attempts to short the agent who represents the buyer.
The listing agent (LA) is told by the lender that they will only pay a 3% commission on the sale. The LA then tells the buyers agent (BA) that the lender will only allow the BA to get 1% commision, thus keeping the lion’s share for himself. The LA also tells the BA that if they don’t accept this 1% then the deal is off and they can explain to their buyer why they allowed the deal to collapse.
As Foreclosure Prevention Consultants we never recommend that a financially distressed home owner entertain a short sale as a primary alternative. Why do other agents do so? Because many other alternatives do not put any money in their pockets, even though they would be of more benefit to the home owner. Our recommendations are always to avoid foreclosure, first and foremost, then to try to stay away from marketing the home as a short sale. Always, and we do mean ALWAYS, try to work out a mutually agreeable solution with the lender. They don’t want the house and they don’t want to lose any money, either. It is to their benefit to keep the home owner in the house, making some type of payment, and allowing the market forces to increase the value of the home at a normal rate and over the long-term.
With this new revelation of lenders not alolowing as many forgivenesses the only people to gain from using a short sale as a primary solution is the real estate agent and everyone else who will charge a fee for the transaction.
Terry Iwaniw
Foreclosure Prevention Consultant
REALTOR Associate
RE/MAX Home Team
609-417-1086
Tags: Foreclosures, mortgages, real estate sales, short sales
Posted by
admin on Sep 23, 2008 in
Announcements Laurel Springs, New Jersey – September, 23 2008 – In light of the current financial market, many home buyers are retreating and “circling the wagons”. First time home buyers can move forward with confidence because of the launching of a new web site focusing exclusively on first time home buyers.The first time home buyers are the most vulnerable real estate customers and the most suseptible to misinformation, gimmicks, and other questionable tactics. The reason for this is that the first time home buyers have never bought a home nor do they know the process that they need to complete in order to complete it with a minimum of problems and stress. Many real estate agents do not spend nearly enough time with these first time home buyers to help them navigate through the sometimes complex series of tasks and transactions required to purchase a home. These real estate agents just want to get these buyers into a house that is close to what they are looking for, get them to make an offer, sign a sales contract, and then move onto their next prospect. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Linda and Terry Iwaniw, REALTOR Associates with RE/MAX Home Team, known as the I Team believe that first time home buyers deserve more consideration and closer working relationship because they have never had to go through the home buying process or have not had to do so in recent years. First time home buyers are defined as those that have never owned a home or have not owned one in the previous three years. In order to foster a closer working relationship and to help present information and resources for first time home buyers, Linda and Terry have created and launched a new web portal for the first time home buyer. Information, resources, and relevant articles will be presented at the web site at http://www.homes4firsttimebuyers.com . As First Time Home Buyer Specialists, Linda and Terry will insure that the information on the web site is concise and timely for use by the first time home buyer.
It is important that the first home purchase a potential home owner participates in should be as trouble-free and unstressful as possible. A nightmarish real estate transaction could taint a home buyer’s attitude for years to come. One of the key tasks that every REALTOR is responsible for is to educate, inform, and guide clients and customers regarding the real estate market and the transaction process. To this end, The First Time Home Buyer portal at http://www.homes4firsttimebuyers.com was created.
Linda and Terry Iwaniw are REALTOR Associates with RE/MAX Home Team, and are known as The I-Team as well as First Time Home Buyer Specialists. They pride themselves on their focus on customer service and the fact that they treat their customers as real people not just a transaction. When you hire Linda and Terry you deal with them, directly. They do not pass you to some underling like so many others do. You can reach them at their web site at http://www.i-teamhomes.com/.
Tags: Buyer Information, buyer resources, first time home buyers, home buyers
The information below provided from NAR, published September 09, 2008 -
The level of home sales is expected to show little movement in the months ahead, according to the latest projections by the National Association of Realtors®. The Pending Home Sales Index,¹ a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in July, fell 3.2 percent to 86.5 from an upwardly revised reading of 89.4 in June, which had risen 5.8 percent from May. The July index remains 6.8 percent below July 2007 when it stood at 92.8.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said home sales continue to edge up and down. “Pending home sales are oscillating month-to-month, with the long-term trend essentially flat,” he said. “Overly stringent lending criteria imposed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the past month no doubt held back contract signings.”
Even with the latest pullback, pending home sales have been fairly stable on a national basis for nearly a year, with dramatic local market differences continuing. “Contract signings have been steaming ahead, nearly doubling in activity from a year before in several California and Florida markets,” Yun said.² “The outer Washington, D.C., exurbs also are coming around very strongly. The Northeast region retreated following a robust gain in the previous month, and soft activity was observed in the broad midsection of America despite very affordable conditions.”
The PHSI in the Midwest rose 2.8 percent to 81.6 in July but remains 2.4 percent below a year ago. In the South the index was unchanged, holding at 93.7, but is 13.4 percent below July 2007. The index in the Northeast fell 7.5 percent to 73.6 in July and is 13.2 percent below a year ago. In the West, the index dropped 10.6 percent to 90.3 but is 6.5 percent higher than July 2007.
NAR President Richard F. Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in Long Beach, Calif., said there’s been a surge in FHA mortgage applications. “Unfortunately, many people in high-cost areas aren’t familiar with FHA programs, which is why we produced a toolkit so Realtors®, lenders, and other real estate professionals can familiarize themselves with this increasingly valuable program,” he said.
“FHA is taking a more active role in serving a broad cross section of home buyers, but it will take some time to fully get up to speed. We’re working with regulators to improve the process, and the good news is that this is becoming a big help to first-time buyers,” Gaylord said.
Yun said there are many ambiguities in the marketplace. “The economy is producing more, yet cutting jobs. A first-time home buyer tax credit and lower interest rates on newly conforming jumbo loans favors consumers, yet buyer confidence remains low,” he said. “Even with the Treasury Department’s direct intervention in the secondary mortgage market, it is unclear if we will go back to sound normal underwriting criteria, or if it will remain overly stringent. The housing market outlook is very cloudy.”
Yun mentioned that the speed and timing of a recovery depends on local market conditions. “Based on local market fundamentals, I expect robust home price growth in places like Denver and Houston over the next two years,” Yun said. “In addition, the frequent reporting of multiple bids in California and Florida may be signaling a bottom in home prices in these areas. Nationally, home sales are stable now but are expected to increase in coming quarters.”
Looking at middle-ground assumptions, existing-home sales are projected to total 5.01 million this year before rising 6.9 percent in 2009 to 5.35 million. After declining an average of 4 to 7 percent this year, home prices are forecast to rise by 2 to 4 percent next year.
New-home sales will total about 508,000 in 2008 and 463,000 next year, down significantly from 775,000 in 2007. With builders motivated to clear inventory, housing starts, including multifamily units, will probably fall 17.1 percent in 2009 to 801,000 units from 966,000 this year.
The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, which also has been moving up and down, should trend up to 6.6 percent by the end of this year, edging up to 6.7 percent in 2009. NAR’s housing affordability index is likely to remain favorable throughout 2008, averaging 13 percentage points higher than last year.
Growth in the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) is forecast to remain positive with a growth rate of 2.0 percent for all of 2008, and 2.0 percent also next year. The unemployment rate is estimated to average 5.8 percent over the coming year.
Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, is anticipated at 3.8 percent this year and 1.6 percent in 2009. Inflation-adjusted disposable personal income is projected to grow 1.8 percent in 2008 and 2.1 percent next year.
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¹The Pending Home Sales Index is a leading indicator for the housing sector, based on pending sales of existing homes. A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed but the transaction has not closed, though the sale usually is finalized within one or two months of signing.
The decline from July 2007 was the most modest annual decline since December of 2006 when it was 3.9 percent below a year earlier.
The index is based on a large national sample, typically representing about 20 percent of transactions for existing-home sales. In developing the model for the index, it was demonstrated that the level of monthly sales-contract activity from 2001 through 2004 parallels the level of closed existing-home sales in the following two months. There is a closer relationship between annual index changes (from the same month a year earlier) and year-ago changes in sales performance than with month-to-month comparisons.
An index of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, which was the first year to be examined as well as the first of five consecutive record years for existing-home sales.
²Market information is from unpublished snapshot data; please contact your local association of Realtors® for more information.
Existing-home sales for August will be released September 24; the next Pending Home Sales Index / Forecast will be released October 8.
Tags: housing market, NAR, projections, property values, real estate market
In April of 2008 the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® conducted an on-line survey of members on issues related to the credit crunch, foreclosures, and short sales. They released approximately 5,800 responses. Below is a summary of the results of that survey.
Short Sales
What is a short sale? A short sale is usually defined as a case in which a bank or other mortgage lender “discounts” the balance of the loan, usually due to a borrower’s financial or other economic hardship. The property owner/borrower then sells the property at that lower price and the proceeds from the sale are turned over to the lender. Typically, short sales are done in order to prevent foreclosure.
In the national NAR survey, REALTORS® indicated that overall 40 percent of their clients have been involved in a short sale. And of those REALTORS® that participated in short sales, 55% of them reported that they had assisted the buyers and 45% had assisted the sellers.
We are always being asked about short sales because buyers in New Jersey, based on what they are reading in the news media, belive that a large portion of the homes being marketed are short sales. To clear up any misconceptions that anyone gets from reading the mainstream news media, the top states in terms of the percentage of REALTORS® involved in short sales were
- Nevada (65%)
- Rhode Island (52%)
- California (52%)
- Florida (50%)
- Arizona (47%)
The states with the lowest percentage of REALTORS® involved in short sales were:
- Vermont (less than 1 percent)
- Wyoming (11%)
- Mississippi (17%)
- Alaska (17%)
- Delaware (18%).
Since short sales involve some write-down by the lender of the amount owed, the survey asked REALTORS® about the extent of write-downs. More than a quarter of respondents who participated in short sales, approximately 26.7 %, stated that the short sales involved more than 20 percent debt forgiveness. Only a small percentage, about 4.4 %, said that the short sales involved less than five percent debt forgiveness.
Foreclosures
REALTORS® were also asked about the share of active listings in their market (or in their multiple listing service) were foreclosed properties. The median percentage of “foreclosure” listings was
6%. More than a 1/3 of respondents didn’t know the number of active listings were foreclosed properties. Also, some MLS’s do not list foreclosed homes. Almost 15% of the REALTORS® indicated that one to five percent of their market listings were foreclosed properties. Overall, this is an extremely low number as compared to what the news media’s articles would lead you to believe.
Credit
In addition to asking the participants about short sales and foreclosures, REALTORS® were also asked about recent availability of credit and what percent of their clientele were having difficulties/challenges
in obtaining approval for mortgage loans. Over a third of respondents indicated that all or nearly all of their their clients/customers encountered no problems in getting a loan.
But there were differences in some states. Fully two thirds of the participating REALTORS® from Alaska reported that their clients had no problems obtaining approval for a loan. Similar trends were reported in New Jersey (59%), Montana (48%), Wisconsin (47%), and the District of Columbia (46%).
Postponing the Homebuying Decision
Some potential homebuyers have been “on the fence” – perhaps waiting for prices to dip further, for interest rates to decline, or for their personal financial/economic situations to improve. In a difficult housing market, it is sometimes challenging to determine the factors that are influencing a buyer’s decision whether or not to purchase a home.
The survey asked REALTORS® if their recent clients had postponed the home buying decision. More than half indicated that their clients did actually purchase a property. But more than a 1/5 reported that buyers wanted to wait for home prices to decline even more before purchasing. Almost 8% said that their buyers were not able to purchase a home because they needed to sell their current home in order to use the proceeds on their next home purchase. But only 3.9 percent participants reported that buyers postponed a home purchase for personal reasons.
Some Positive Signs for the Future
Now, for some good news! Mortgage purchase applications are up according to recently released data from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The purchase portion of the MBA’s Mortgage Applications Index increased by 6.4%, from 349.0 to 371.5 for the week ending September 5, 2008. That is a fourth consecutive weekly increase. What this means is that buyers are returning to the market, it may be at a moderate pace but it’s still in numbers that can be measured. It may take some time for customers to absorb the recent positive housing news, the affordable home prices, a large selection of existing inventory, and the still historic low mortgage rates, these factors are already attracting the fence sitters.
Tags: Foreclosures, foreclosures for sale, home buyers, mortgages, real estate market, short sales
Previously, we detailed the news about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Today the news broke about Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch. The on-going saga of the sub-prime mortgage loans claims another set of victims. One is down for the count and the other is on life-support. Again, greed overcame common-sense.
One of our key strategic mortgage partners sent us the following message that gives a summary of that news.
“Its just another manic Monday”…The Bangles. If you thought last Monday was wild on the news from Fannie and Freddie, the headlines that lead us into this week are even crazier. First, Mortgage Bonds are up sharply, which should lead to much better home loan rates and the great refinance opportunities that we have been expecting.
Let’s begin with more fallout in the financial sector. Lehman Brothers is done after 158 years, thanks to their exposure to sub-prime mortgages. And another casualty, that was narrowly avoided was Merrill Lynch, which is being acquired by Bank of America, again this is all due to their greed and exposure in the risky mortgage business. Also on the ropes is insurance giant, AIG, as they try to raise cash quickly to stay afloat.
So what do all these headlines mean to us in the mortgage business? It’s a time to look for opportunities. Pricing will be at its best level in some time, homes are at much more attractive prices, terms to purchase are far more favorable than they have been and the forecast could get even better. Prices should improve nicely today as money flows out of Stocks – but there is another story on the Bond side. We know that Treasury Bonds offer the lowest yield with the lowest risk. Then Mortgage Bonds offer a higher yield and for an even greater yield, there are Corporate Bonds. But they do carry higher risk. With all the turmoil in the financial sector, the risk on Corporate Bonds has increased significantly. While this will translate to higher yields being offered, the risk on Corporate Bonds may be greater than the appetite or tolerance of investors. In fact, many funds will preclude
investments in riskier Bonds.
As fund managers and investors seek alternatives they will notice that Mortgage Bonds offer a much higher yield than Treasuries with the same guarantee. This should help Mortgage Bond pricing down the road…especially, with some potential good news on inflation. The Dollar has made significant gains against other major currencies, which should help import prices. The Job market is weak and that should keep wage based inflation in check. The move in Oil lower has been dramatic. A $52 drop in two months puts Oil at $95…likely on its way to $85. All these positive inflationary factors spells good news for mortgage rates.
But this time it will not be as easy, as credit and appraised values will represent more of a challenge. That said, there are a lot of deals to be had. Brush up on how to improve credit scores with the tools inside MMG and do as much research as possible on valuations for potential refi clients ahead of time.
Remind your clients that these drops in rates don’t last forever and should be taken advantage of if they make sense. Greed kills.
As we have said quite a few times, both on this blog, in messages to our cusotmers, and in face-to-face meetings that the wrong focus is one that focuses on the price of the home you are looking at, but the price of the money you need to purchase that home. You will purchase that home only once, but you will be making payments for that mortgage loan month after month for many years.
Essentially, this is the time to buy a home! The price of money, in terms of interest rates are low. FHA loans are at 5.5% and Conventional 30 year loans are at 5.875%. If you can qualify for a mortgage loan and want to buy a home, this is the time to do it. People who were looking for homes are now giving up because they’ve been told that it is the “end of the home selling season” and will stop pursuing that new home. You nnow have less competition out there. The homes that were for sale did not automatically get removed from the market. Many are still for sale!
But no activity or serious offers will cause them to pull their homes off the market…either permenantly or temporarily.
This is the period that most buyers miss out on opportunities. They want to wait until the next home selling season next year, when EVERYONE IS THINKING OF DOING THE SAME THING. Think about it. When would you like to be purchasing a new home? When everyone else is looking at the same home as you or would you prefer that they stay home so you can have your pick of homes?
If we can’t find your new home, it doesn’t exist.
Linda & Terry Iwaniw
REALTOR Associates
RE/MAX Home Team
Laurel Springs, NJ
http://www.snewjerseyhomes.com/
http://www.i-teamhomes.com/
609-417-1086
Tags: home inventories, home inventory, home marketplace, home sales, housing market, Marketplace, mortgage rates, Real Estate
A real estate index that focuses on detached single-family homes reports prices were up almost 1 percent in July.
Denver-based Integrated Asset Services says the average price of a single-family home inched up 0.9 percent compared to June.
Broken down by regions, IAS said the Northeast (which includes New Jersey), Midwest and the South all showed slight price increases in July. In the far West, however, prices were still in decline.
Tags: home inventory, home market, home prices, homes for sale, real estate for sale
Has everyone heard the news about Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac being placed in ‘conservatorship’? We may like it or not, the government agreed to pump billions of dollars into Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and assume responsibility for trillions of dollars of their debt, while handing control of the companies to federal regulators and eliminating stockholder equity. That’s bad news for the shareholders. As a real estate professional, I along with everyone else is hoping that this latest move restores confidence in the mortgage markets.
The seizure of Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac will cost taxpayers billions of dollars, but what option was there? What has it done to a mortgage loan rep’s day-to-day job, besides make them wonder about the loans they locked in last week?
- The spread between conforming mortgage-backed securities and Treasury securities has dropped dramatically! For example, the 5-yr Treasury Note is worse in price by a point, but a 6% mortgage is better by .75 in price.
- Fannie’s trading desk suspended operations, temporarily, but is now back in business.
- The Government announced that they will make a market in trading MBS securities.
- The stock markets around the world are rallying on the news.
- Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac must cease lobbying efforts.
- Debt interest is expected to be paid.
- Shareholder dividends are expected to cease.
- Future Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac losses would be covered by the US Government, and in turn, the taxpayer.
- The Treasury will lend to both Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac.
- FHFA will gain management control of the two companies and the Treasury will acquire $1 billion in preferred shares in each company.
- Many small banks had capital tied up in the preferred shares of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, depending on the dividends for reliable income, and the value of those shares to meet the capital levels required by regulators. Apparently either gone or under consideration.
Tags: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, mortgages, shareholders
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