FHFA Rescinds Problematic Proposed Upfront Fees Based on Debt-To-Income Ratio
In January, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced a new fee for borrowers with debt-to-income (DTI) ratios at or greater than 40 percent on loans acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The housing industry strongly opposed this DTI ratio-based fee. The fee would be difficult for lenders to implement and confuse borrowers with potential pricing changes throughout the loan application process. The fee was scheduled to take effect on Aug. 1.
In response to industry concerns, on May 10, FHFA announced it rescinded this loan fee on borrowers with a DTI ratio greater than 40 percent.
In its press release, FHFA Director Sandra Thompson called the feedback from the industry valuable and said that to continue the dialogue FHFA will “provide additional transparency on the process for setting the Enterprises’ single-family guarantee fees and will request public input on this issue.”
The press release further states that details about the upcoming Request for Input (RFI) on the single-family guarantee fee pricing framework will be released shortly.
Latest from NAHBNow
Housing Affordability
Nov 07, 2025
NAHB Leaders Discuss Obstacles to Home Building at U.S. Chamber Housing SummitIn partnership with NAHB, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on Nov. 6 hosted a daylong housing summit that included several panel discussions featuring members of Congress, industry leaders, and state and local officials that focused on how to resolve the housing affordability crisis and boost the housing supply.
Membership Recruitment and Retention
Nov 07, 2025
How NAHB is Thanking Top RecruitersNAHB's Fall Recruitment Competition and IBS perks are among the ways all recruiters are being appreciated for their efforts.
Latest Economic News
Economics
Nov 07, 2025
Which Local Markets Track National Trends the Most: 2024 Multifamily MAIFollowing the release of the 2024 single-family MAI last week, the National Association of Home Builders developed the Multifamily Market Association Index (MAI) to measure how closely multifamily building permits in metro areas follow national patterns.
Economics
Nov 06, 2025
Multifamily Developer Confidence Increases in Third Quarter, But Still in Negative TerritoryThe Multifamily Production Index (MPI) had a reading of 46, up six points year-over-year, while the Multifamily Occupancy Index (MOI) had a reading of 74, down one point year-over-year.
Economics
Nov 05, 2025
Bedrooms in New Single-Family Homes in 2024Three-bedroom single-family homes reached their largest share of starts since 2011 and remained the most prevalent number of bedrooms among new homes.