Housing Bust Lingers for Generation X

(RECAP: The group of Americans known as Generation X has suffered more than any other age cohort from the housing bust, according to an analysis of federal data, suggesting homeownership rates for that group could remain depressed for years to come. The data show an enormous swing in the fortunes of people born between 1965 and 1984, the group defined by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies as Generation X. Compared with previous generations, Gen X went from the most successful in terms of homeownership rates in 2004 to the least successful by 2015, according to the data, which date to the early 1980s.)

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Unsealed government documents may reveal truth about Fannie, Freddie fate

(RECAP: In the years since the government modified its agreement with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to sweep all the profits from the GSEs into the government’s coffers, many observers questioned whether the so-called “Third Amendment sweep” was even necessary. In the aftermath, a series of Fannie and Freddie shareholders sued the government, claiming the “Third Amendment sweep” was not only unnecessary, but illegal as well. The investors’ cause grew from several court cases into a viral movement on Twitter, where “#FannieGate” has become shorthand for the government’s supposed theft of Fannie and Freddie. Now, it appears that #FannieGate movement has a point about the government’s sweep. A series of now-unsealed depositions show that not only were Fannie and Freddie on track to be profitable for at least 10 years, the government allegedly knew that fact, and more, before choosing to sweep away the GSEs’ profits.)

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JPMorgan Chase CEO declares mortgages bad for business

(RECAP: JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon did more than predict a coming economic crisis in his yearly letter to shareholders. In his letter, Dimon also openly questioned why the bank is still in the mortgage business, telling shareholders that one of the main reasons that the megabank is still engaged in mortgage lending is for the benefit of its customers, despite the “volatile” nature of the business and the “increasingly lower returns” coming from mortgages. Dimon goes on to say that the megabank has reduced its number of mortgage offerings from 37 to 15. One of those products that Chase is cutting back on is its Federal Housing Administration lending program. Dimon writes that FHA lending is currently “too costly and too risky” to pursue extensively.)

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