FHFA, Treasury Suspending Certain Portions of 2021 Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements

Housing Finance
Published

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) announced today they are suspending certain policy provisions added in January 2021 to the Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPAs) that govern Treasury’s support for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises).

NAHB, together with the American Bankers Association, the Mortgage Bankers Association and the National Association of Realtors®, sent a letter to Treasury and FHFA on Sept. 9, 2021 recommending the policy changes that we believe have caused -- or had the potential to cause -- disruptions to the housing market. The suspended provisions include limits on the Enterprises’ cash windows (loans acquired for cash consideration), multifamily lending, loans with higher risk characteristics, and second homes and investment properties.

The suspended provisions include limits on the Enterprises’ cash windows (loans acquired for cash consideration), multifamily lending, loans with higher risk characteristics, and second homes and investment properties.

The Enterprises will continue to build capital under the continuing provisions of the PSPAs. FHFA also continues to direct the Enterprises to operate in a safe and sound manner consistent with their statutory mission, and to foster resilient housing finance markets given prevailing housing market conditions, which include elevated demand relative to available inventory. Additionally, FHFA is reviewing the Enterprise Regulatory Capital Framework and expects to announce further action in the near future.

Letter Agreement for Fannie Mae

Subscribe to NAHBNow

Log in or create account to subscribe to notifications of new posts.

Log in to subscribe

Latest from NAHBNow

Membership

Dec 29, 2025

NAHB Mourns the Passing of Past Chairman John “Joe” Robson

John “Joe” Robson, 2009 NAHB chairman, passed away on Saturday, Dec. 27. As founder and president of The Robson Companies, Inc., Robson was a leader in the Tulsa, Okla., area home building and development industries for decades.

Economics | Membership

Dec 29, 2025

Last Chance to Complete the 2025 Census Survey

Members will receive a final reminder this week from NAHB to complete our 2025 Builder and Associate Member Census. We encourage you to fill this survey out by Dec. 31, 2025, to help us better understand the composition and characteristics of the members who belong to our Federation.

View all

Latest Economic News

Economics

Dec 22, 2025

State-Level Employment Situation: September 2025

In September 2025, nonfarm payroll employment was largely unchanged across states on a monthly basis, with a limited number of states seeing statistically significant increases or decreases. This reflects generally stable job counts across states despite broader labor market fluctuations. The data were impacted by collection delays due to the federal government shutdown.

Economics

Dec 19, 2025

Existing Home Sales Edge Higher in November

Existing home sales rose for the third consecutive month in November as lower mortgage rates continued to boost home sales, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). However, the increase remained modest as mortgage rates still stayed above 6% while down from recent highs. The weakening job market also weighed on buyer activity.

Economics

Dec 18, 2025

Lumber Capacity Lower Midway Through 2025

Sawmill production has remained essentially flat over the past two years, according to the Federal Reserve G.17 Industrial Production report. This most recent data release contained an annual revision, which resulted in higher estimates for both production and capacity in U.S. sawmills.