Schöner Spruch unten: "dim bulbs" - funzelige Glühbirnen - für US-Politiker, die auf der Suche nach einer "schnellen Lösung" für die Hypo-Krise sind und nun Fannie Mae und Freddie Mac die Suppe auslöffeln lassen wollen - übrigens auf Kosten vieler kleinerer privater Hypobanken wie Wells Fargo (WFC).
Bill O'Connor/Street.com
Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac Loan Cap Boost Is Not a Cure-All8/7/2007 3:38 PM EDT
Many backs are getting slapped in D.C. and on Wall Street on how giving Fannie Mae (FNM)/Freddie Mac (FRE) increased loan caps is some sort of 'solution'.
To begin with, this will not solve the subprime or Alt A problem as those loans don't meet FNM's standards. While it's probably best that we return to some sanity and require borrowers to have some real employment history and be able to put down 20%, I fail to see how this helps the credit debacle.
The only folks bailed out by increased FNM/FRE caps are the builders and the legions of soon to be unemployed real estate agents. And there is a REAL downside to this 'solution'!
If they bumped up loan caps from current $400+k limit to say $750k , you can say good bye to thousands of jobs and prime real estate lenders around the country who will NOT be able to compete in the jumbo loan sector anymore. Folks at WFC who just increased their jumbo rates from 6.875% to 8% will find that business to be 100% gone even if they go back to 6.875% .
All the dim bulbs in DC out today pushing for increased caps on FNM/FRE are soon going to be hearing from local financial institutions how this will shut down much of their prime home lending business ( as well as how it won't help subprime or Alt-A borrowers at all ).
Then again , the dim bulbs in DC love to jump onboard 'easy solutions' while completely missing the 'law of unintended consequences' .
FNM/FRE management must be in shock and awe at how they have gone from being seen as a huge potential problem to the US financial system ( as Greenspan used to suggest ) to instead being called its savior and given an ability to drive probably most of the remaining prime lenders out of business if caps are increased .
They will literally become the defacto government mortgage company to most of the country. Have the fools in DC forgotten how it was just a few years ago the world worried they might be in serious financial straits ?