Today, to help support immediate needs for liquidity in the secondary mortgage market, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has authorized Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) to enter into additional dollar roll transactions (dollar roll transactions provide mortgage-backed securities investors with short-term financing of their positions, providing liquidity to these investors). Eligible collateral is limited to Agency mortgage-backed securities and the transactions must be undertaken via an auction or similar mechanism to ensure that they occur at a fair market price.
Today’s announcement is the latest action that FHFA has taken to ensure the Enterprises fulfill their mission of providing market liquidity during the coronavirus national emergency. Other actions include a suspension of foreclosures and evictions for at least 60 days and offering forbearance for borrowers facing hardship due to coronavirus.
FHFA and the Enterprises are monitoring the coronavirus national emergency’s effect on the housing finance market and will continue to update our policies when necessary.FHFA’s Webpage on Coronavirus Actions