Split power in Congress means lawmakers are unlikely to overhaul how the government backstops more than half the U.S. mortgage market. That provides an opportunity for the Trump administration to take steps on its own — and the industry is lobbying to soften any potential changes, the Wall Street Journal reported. In the short term, congressional inaction is likely good news for the housing market as home sales and prices weaken amid rising interest rates. But the White House is expected to consider steps in the coming months that could reduce the government’s footprint in backstopping the market through mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which have been under government control since the 2008 crisis. There are limits on what the administration can do with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac absent legislation. But their overseer, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has the authority to raise fees on lenders and adjust the size of loans the companies can buy, among other things. The president is expected to nominate a successor to the agency’s Obama-appointed director in the coming weeks.
