Tag Archives: Mel Watt

In a speech on Monday, FHFA Director Mel Watt outlined the next steps the agency is taking to expand Americans' access to mortgage credit while ensuring that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are equipped to manage risk.

In an event in Chicago, FHFA Director Mel Watt said fear of being scammed is to blame for low participation rates in the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP). According to an FHFA report, the number of homeowners refinancing monthly through HARP has dropped nationally to just less than 20,000 loans in April 2014, down year-over-year from almost 107,000 in April 2013.

After staying quiet for months following his swearing-in as head of the agency, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mel Watt took the stage at the Brookings Institution this week to outline his own plans for the GSEs. Like FHFA's original Strategic Plan for Enterprise Conservatorships, the newly unveiled plan is built on three blocks: maintain, reduce, and build. However, Watt's revised plan suggests a shift in focus toward broadening credit access.

A top official for the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is looking at a felony charge for allegedly threatening the agency's former acting director, Edward DeMarco. According to a case summary from the District of Columbia Courts website, Richard Hornsby, FHFA's COO, was charged in late April with "[threatening] to kidnap or injure a person," resulting in an order for him to stay away from DeMarco.

After serving the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) for nearly six years, former acting director and current senior deputy director Edward DeMarco announced his intent to part ways with the agency at the end of April. DeMarco confirmed his departure plans in a letter directed to current agency director Mel Watt, saying, "I believe the time has come for me to seek other opportunities."

According to a market report from FBR Capital Markets, bank stocks managed to outperform compared to many others. FBR says the improvement stemmed from rising investor expectations in response to interest rates moving higher and the economy showing signs of improvement. "However," FBR says, "we believe most banks will not be able to live up to these expectations as loan growth remains weak, pressures on margins still exist, and mortgage banking results should remain relatively poor."

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced Wednesday that it has directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to delay implementation of planned changes to their guarantee fee (g-fee) structure.

After months of contentious debate, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) finally has a new director.

Rep. Mel Watt (D-North Carolina) is already making waves with an announcement that he plans to delay an imminent increase in guarantee fees (g-fees).