FHFA's Strategic Plan: Provide Liquidity for State HFAs

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released on Nov. 21 the final version of its strategic plan for fiscal years 2015-2019. The FHFA was established by the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) and is responsible for the effective supervision, regulation, and housing mission oversight of the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), and the Federal Home Loan Bank System, which includes 12 Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBs) and the Office of Finance. The agency’s mission is to ensure that these regulated entities operate in a safe and sound manner so that they serve as a reliable source of liquidity and funding for housing finance and community investment. Since 2008, FHFA has also served as conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

FHFA’s strategic plan discusses several steps that FHFA will take to help Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHLBs maintain liquidity in the housing finance market. The report acknowledges that having a housing finance market that provides liquidity throughout the country requires strong participation by a wide range of lenders, including small lenders, lenders serving rural areas, and state and local housing finance agencies (HFAs). And the FHFA stated that it would work with both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to address barriers that prevent them from working with state HFAs.