Search Results: Freddie Mac

Despite his objections over a $3.9 billion provision that would assist communities devastated by foreclosures, President George W. Bush has dropped his opposition to housing rescue legislation. He was previously threatening to veto the legislation. The housing rescue package, which the House of Representatives passed late July 23, 2008, outlines approximately 20 various provisions, including establishing a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, creating a program within the FHA (Federal Housing Administration) to refinance distressed loans and providing $3.9 billion in funding to stabilize communities devastated by the mortgage crisis. Bush’s veto threat regarded the $3.9 billion emergency…

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told the Senate Banking Committee today the housing crisis coupled with rising oil prices are “at the heart of the current (economic) uncertainty.” Bernanke (pictured) predicted that the uncertainty would continue until problems in the housing market are stabilized. “The (housing market is) affecting consumer wealth and consumer expectations,” Bernanke said this morning during his semiannual testimony before the Senate committee. “My suggestion in the near term would be to focus on issues related to housing. That’s the most critical and central issue that we face.” While Bernanke was giving his testimony, President George W….

Is the other shoe in the ongoing financial crisis the failing solvency of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? Statements yesterday by long-standing Fannie Mae critic William Poole, former St. Louis Federal Reserve president, questioned the two companies’ solvency, and sent their share prices on a roller coaster ride. According to Poole, who is now a fellow at the Cato Institute, Freddie Mac owed $5.2 billion more than its assets were worth in the first quarter of 2008, thus making it insolvent under fair value accounting rules. Moreover, the fair value of its assets fell 66 percent to $12.2 billion during…

After executing $6 billion in new acquisitions during 2007, TIAA-CREF plans to invest about the same amount this year, according to Trevor Michael managing director of real estate acquisitions and joint ventures for the fund. He has found encouragement in solid fundamentals across the four major property types, as well as corporate earnings that have weathered the downturn fairly well so far and continued diversification in the U.S. economy.Other investors are also finding opportunity in this volatile economy, although a certain amount of favoritism is showing for specific property types. A rocky economy could make multi-family properties the most-favored investment…

Capmark Finance Inc. has assembled a syndicate of 11 lenders, including a Capmark affiliate, to provide a $405 million financing package for The Peabody Orlando hotel in Orlando, Fla. The floating-rate loan refinanced existing debt originated by Capmark Finance in 2005 and provides construction financing for an expansion that will nearly double the size of the hotel. The loan has a four-year term with a one-year extension option. The syndicate members contributed an average of about $36.8 million to the total loan, which is typical for such a large package, Alan Stoller, senior vice president in Capmark’s hospitality lending group…

A day after the stock market’s surge, investors pulled back a bit today, even with better than expected quarterly results from Morgan Stanley. As of early this afternoon, the Dow Jones industrial index fell approximately 60 points after yesterday’s 420 point surge, which came on the heels of the Federal Reserve’s announcement that it would slash the federal funds rate 75 basis points, to 2.25 percent. Though many observers had expected a 100 basis point cut, the Fed’s move was nonetheless greeted with optimism by the market. Also driving yesterday’s gains—the Dow saw its biggest jump in more than five…