REFinBlog

Editor: David Reiss
Brooklyn Law School

September 4, 2018

Housing Finance Transitions

By David Reiss

The Congressional Budget Office released a report, Transitioning to Alternative Structures for Housing Finance: An Update. The report updates a 2014 analysis to inform policymakers about how different approaches to restructuring the housing finance system would affect federal costs, risks … Continue reading

August 24, 2018

GSE Shareholders Floored, Again

By David Reiss

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit issued an opinion in Saxton v. FHFA (No. 17-1727, Aug. 23, 2018). The Eighth Circuit joins the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and D.C. Circuits in rejecting the arguments of Fannie and … Continue reading

May 7, 2018

Housing in the Trump Era

By David Reiss

  The Real Estate Transactions Section of the American Association of Law Schools has issued the following Call for Papers: Access + Opportunity + Choice: Housing Capital, Equity, and Market Regulation in the Trump Era Program Description: The year 2018 marks the … Continue reading

March 12, 2018

Nonbanks and The Next Crisis

By David Reiss

    Researchers at the Fed and UC Berkeley have posted Liquidity Crises in the Mortgage Markets. The authors conclusions are particularly troubling: The nonbank mortgage sector has boomed in recent years. The combination of low interest rates, well-functioning GSE and … Continue reading

March 9, 2018

De Facto Housing Finance Reform

By David Reiss

David Finkelstein, Andreas Strzodka and James Vickery of the NY Fed have posted Credit Risk Transfer and De Facto GSE Reform. It opens, Nearly a decade into the conservatorships of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, no legislation has yet been passed … Continue reading

March 6, 2018

Mortgage Insurers and The Next Housing Crisis

By David Reiss

The Inspector General of the Federal Housing Finance Agency has released a white paper on Enterprise Counterparties: Mortgage Insurers. The Executive Summary reads, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) operate under congressional charters to provide liquidity, stability, and affordability … Continue reading

February 28, 2018

A Fix Already in Place for Housing Finance?

By David Reiss

Executives at Pimco, the world’s largest bond fund manager, have posted U.S. Housing Finance Reform: Why Fix What Isn’t Broken? I think their analysis is interesting, but seriously flawed: The topic of housing finance reform has come in and out of … Continue reading