Newsroom

June 30, 2015

FHFA: G-fees up since 2009

The Federal Housing Finance Agency's report on guarantee fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2014 showed a 250 percent increase in the level of g-fees charged in 2014 compared with those in 2009.

The report, which the FHFA is required to submit to Congress annually, shows that the government-sponsored enterprises charged average fees of 58 basis points in 2014, versus 22 basis points in 2009. The level in 2013 was 51 basis points.

After a review of g-fee policy that concluded in April, and following concerns lodged by NAFCU over the potential impact of fee increases, the agency decided to not change the general level of g-fees. However, it made some targeted fee adjustments that it said were "roughly revenue neutral and will result in little or no change for most borrowers."

NAFCU has consistently urged FHFA against raising g-fees to help keep down borrower costs and promote lending. NAFCU continues to advocate for housing reform that guarantees credit unions access to the secondary mortgage market, with fair pricing based on loan quality rather than volume.

The report noted that changes in the GSEs' capital estimation models caused the gaps on 30-year fixed rate loans to be more negative and on 15-year loans to be more positive than both had been in 2013. The report also showed that the percentage of loans that GSEs purchased from small lenders grew "substantially" in 2014, and that pricing differences between large and small sellers remained small.