While the previous story MHProNews posted questions the rationale of the Federal Housing Finance Administration’s (FHFA) desire to raise certain mortgage fees for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac-backed mortgages, incoming director of the FHFA, Mel Watt, says he will postpone the fees and possibly cancel them altogether. Set to take effect April 1, the FHFA announced earlier this month of its plan to raise the fees, which housing experts say will penalize those with less than perfect credit scores. As housingwire.com reports, mortgages will likely become more expensive anyhow when the Federal Reserve tapers its quantitative easing, which was designed to keep interest rates low. David Stevens, CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), states Fannie and Freddie have returned to profitability, and have paid back most of their $187 billion taxpayer-funded bailout. “The GSEs are making a lot of money,” said Stevens. “There’s no rationale for the increases.”
