The


Federal
Housing
Finance
Agency
(FHFA)
this
week
released
its
fair
lending
final
rule,
following
up
on
a
proposal
made
last
year
in
alignment
with

plans
first
laid
out
in
2022
by
the
government-sponsored
enterprises
(GSEs)


Fannie
Mae
and


Freddie
Mac.

The
rule
“addresses
barriers
to
sustainable
housing
opportunities
for
underserved
communities
by
codifying
existing
FHFA
practices
in
regulation
and
adding
new
requirements
related
to
fair
lending,
fair
housing,
unfair
or
deceptive
acts
or
practices,
and
Equitable
Housing
Finance
Plans,”
according
to
the
rule’s
entry
in
the
Federal
Register.

The
final
rule
codifies
FHFA’s
fair
lending
oversight
requirements
for
the
GSEs
and
the
Federal
Home
Loan
Banks
(FHLBs);
the
GSEs’
equitable
housing
finance
plans;
collections
of
homeownership
education,
housing
counseling
and
language-preference
information
from
the
Supplemental
Consumer
Information
Form;
and
new
FHLB
reporting
requirements
in
the
existing
regulatory
framework.

The
rule
itself
goes
into
effect
60
days
after
its
publication
in
the
Federal
Register.
The
only
exception
is
the
rule’s
“subpart
D.”
This
governs
data
collection
actions
by
the
GSEs
and
reporting
requirements
to
the
FHFA
concerning
borrowers’
language
preferences
and
whether
they’ve
completed
homeownership
education
or
counseling.
The
effective
date
for
this
provision
is
Feb.
15,
2026.

FHFA
explained
some
of
the
actions
it
has
taken
to
address
housing
inequality.
These
include
having
served
nearly
2.6
million
families
under
the
Equitable
Housing
Finance
Plans
”by
educating
consumers,
reducing
closing
costs,
introducing
innovation
into
underwriting,
and
combating
appraisal
bias,”
the
agency
stated.

Fannie
Mae
and
Freddie
Mac
are
also
proposing
new
actions
for
2024,
including
a
focus
on
promoting
homeownership
opportunities
to
first-generation
homebuyers.

FHFA
Director
Sandra
Thompson
said
that
the
publication
of
the
final
rule
is
necessary
at
a
time
of
housing
unaffordability
for
many
Americans.

“As
we
reflect
on
the
significance
of
Fair
Housing
Month,
FHFA
and
its
regulated
entities
will
continue
to
address
barriers
that
make
affordable
housing
difficult
to
find,”
Thompson
said.
“These
initiatives
are
critically
important
at
a
time
when
housing
affordability
remains
a
persistent
challenge.”

FHFA
will
hold
a
public
session
on
the
final
rule
in
June
and
anticipates
releasing
updates
to
the
Equitable
Housing
Finance
Plans
in
January
2025.

On
Tuesday,
several
housing
groups
and
trade
associations
lauded
the
agency
for
passing
the
new
rule.

“This
rule
represents
a
milestone
in
the
agency’s
ongoing
efforts
to
promote
a
robust
and
inclusive
housing
market,”
said
David
Dworkin,
the
CEO
of

National
Housing
Conference.
“Through
the
introduction
of
new
initiatives
like
Special
Purpose
Credit
Programs,
which
provide
new
homebuyers
with
downpayment
and
closing
cost
assistance,
and
rent
payment
reporting
programs
to
help
renters
use
on-time
rent
payments
to
improve
their
credit
scores,
FHFA
is
taking
proactive
measures
to
address
critical
housing
issues
facing
underserved
communities.
This
rule
promises
to
foster
greater
confidence
and
resilience
within
the
housing
finance
ecosystem.”

The


National
Association
of
Realtors
(NAR)
also
expressed
support.

“The
Equitable
Housing
Finance
Plans
are
an
active
step
in
closing
homeownership
gaps
among
demographic
groups,”
Bryan
Greene,
NAR’s
vice
president
of
policy
advocacy,
said
in
a
statement.
“We
applaud
the
work
that
FHFA
has
done
to
support
lenders
who
create
special-purpose
credit
programs.

“This
work
promotes
more
fairness
and
greater
soundness
in
the
housing
finance
system
and,
ultimately,
more
homeownership
opportunities
for
more
Americans.
We
look
forward
to
working
with
FHFA
to
further
support
homeownership
and
narrow
the
homeownership
gaps.”

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