Billionaire investor Bill Ackman floats plan to relist mortgage giants on the New York Stock Exchange this year, but says it's too soon for the government to sell any of its stake
The Trump administration has assured industry groups that a stable housing finance system and low mortgage rates are a 'North Star' in their plans, but Dems complain they've been shut out
Democratic senators asked federal regulator Bill Pulte on Aug. 29 to pause any efforts to reprivatize Fannie and Freddie and study potential impact on mortgage rates
Impact on rates depends on the structure of rumored IPO. Whatever the plan, the Trump administration has stacked the boards at the mortgage giants with its supporters
Lawmakers want assurances that privatizing the mortgage giants or taking them public won't drive mortgage rates up, or put investor profits 'over the homes of millions of Americans'
Shares in mortgage giants tumble as investors weigh whether the Trump administration is more interested in mining Fannie and Freddie's profits than privatizing them
Promise that the government will maintain 'implicit guarantees' of the companies' obligations suggests that what Trump has in mind is monetization, not privatization