This morning, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson announced the expected government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Executives in both companies were given their walking papers in the move, with former Merrill Lynch vice chairman Herb Allison taking over the reigns at Fannie Mae, and former US Bancorp vice chairman David Moffett was tabbed to lead Freddie Mac. Analysts on CNN praised the move as a positive step in the right direction.
What does this mean to the American Public? Well, if you own stock in either Freddie or Fannie, don't expect a rebound in your fortunes--the stock price has been in the tank and probably won't come out of it anytime soon. However, for people looking to get a 30-year fixed mortgage, interest rates may come down a little bit for those with good to excellent credit.
Sentator Jon Kyl of Arizona supporting the measure and Governor Tim Kaine of Virginia saying it was "too little, too late." Given the fact that both politicians are on opposing parties and that they were introduced as supporters of McCain & Obama, respectively, I couldn't help but wonder why they were asked to speak on the issue at all. Neither one had any substance to back up their support...just party hacks trying to take credit for their party.
Stay tuned, kids - next we'll see a pillow fight between donkeys & elephants with the winner taking credit for inventing Christmas!
Specializing in Buyer Representation in the Tucson, Arizona real estate market.
"Never forget - Real Estate Is About People"
Shake things up and let the NEW improved folks have their run. I don't see anything in the loss column here.
Well said! I was just hearing the same thing!
Kent you said: "What does this mean to the American Public?" I always have a problem making sense of these types of "headliners!" Ultimately, that is the most important question! Which never gets answered!
Thanks for your insight!
Randall, REO Broker, Richard - thanks for jumping in with your thoughts. So far, the response from the financial markets has been positive across the board!