Fannie Mae - St Louis Real Estate News

A Major Condo Rule Just Changed—But Financing Isn’t Getting Easier

By Karen Moeller, on April 9th, 2026

The 50% owner-occupancy rule is evolving, but a deeper shift is quietly making condos more complex to buy

If you’ve spent any time around the condo market lately, you’ve probably heard some version of this: “They got rid of the 50% owner-occupancy rule.” For years, that benchmark has been one of the key gatekeepers in condo financing. If too many units in a building were rented, it could limit or even block conventional financing, which in turn affected demand, pricing, and resale. So when word started circulating that the rule is “gone,” it sounded like a turning point. More Continue Reading →

Housing Market Sentiment Hits New Low: Only 14% Think It’s a Good Time to Buy

By Dennis Norman, on June 18th, 2024

According to the latest data from the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index, shown below, a mere 14% of consumers currently believe it’s a good time to buy a home. This starkly contrasts with the increasing sentiment that it’s a bad time to buy, which has surged to nearly 80%. Over the past decade, the confidence in the housing market has drastically shifted, with a significant decline in the optimism seen in previous years. The reasons behind this sentiment could range from rising mortgage rates to economic uncertainties.

At MORE, REALTORS®St, we closely monitor market trends and data like the Continue Reading →

NAR and MBA Seek Assurance from Fannie Mae and HUD on Commission Practices to Protect Homebuyers

By Dennis Norman, on March 29th, 2024

One of the issues receiving significant attention following the announcement of the REALTOR® commission suit settlement is the topic of buyer commissions, specifically regarding whether a buyer has to pay them and how lenders will treat the commissions.

In a recent letter to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac, NAR and MBA sought confirmation on the treatment of buyer agent commissions following a proposed settlement agreement in the Burnett et al and Moehrl et al cases.

What does this mean for homebuyers? Under the Continue Reading →

Consumer Confidence in Mortgage Rates Soars, Marking a Positive Shift in Housing Sentiment for 2024

By Dennis Norman, on February 9th, 2024

The latest release from Fannie Mae on the Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI) is particularly illuminating, showing a notable uptick in consumer optimism towards mortgage rates. For the first time since March 2022, the HPSI has climbed to 70.7, a 3.5-point increase driven largely by heightened confidence in job security and an unprecedented share of consumers expecting mortgage rates to dip in the coming year. This optimism isn’t just numbers on a page; it’s a palpable shift in the air, with 82% of respondents now feeling secure in their employment prospects, and an all-time survey high of 36% predicting lower Continue Reading →

NAR President Traci Casper Addresses Housing Market Challenges and Commission Lawsuits in CNBC Interview

By Dennis Norman, on December 19th, 2023

Traci Casper, NAR President

In a recent interview with CNBC, Traci Casper, the President of the National Association of Realtors (NAR), shared her views on the current state of the housing market and the implications of recent commission lawsuits. Her remarks provide an insight into the challenges and changes shaping the real estate industry, particularly relevant for the St. Louis market.

Casper highlighted the impact of fluctuating mortgage rates on the housing market, mentioning, “We do have still such a pent-up buyer pool that’s just been waiting on the sidelines… we are starting to feel them Continue Reading →

Housing Market Sentiment Shifts: Buyer Optimism Hits All-Time Low as Seller Confidence Slightly Retreats from Record High

By Dennis Norman, on October 10th, 2023

Every month, Fannie Mae surveys consumers to gauge their sentiment on whether it’s a good time to buy or sell a home. The results are published in their Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI). In the most recent HPSI report, 84% of respondents said they felt now was a bad time to buy a home. This is the highest percentage holding this view since the survey’s inception in 2012.

On the flip side, 63% of those surveyed believed now was a good time to sell a home. This is a slight dip from last month’s 66%.

As for interest rates, a Continue Reading →

Seventy-Eight Percent of Consumers Say Now is a Bad Time to Buy a House

By Dennis Norman, on July 10th, 2023

Every month Fannie Mae surveys consumers to gauge their sentiment toward whether its a good time to buy or sell a home and publishes the result in their Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI). In the most recent HPSI report, 78% of the people surveyed said they felt now was a bad time to buy a home, this is a decline from 80% in May. Conversely, 22% of consumers think now is a good time to buy a home up from 19% the month before. Interestingly enough, everyone had an opinion as the percentage of those that did not Continue Reading →

A new twist on lending…The cost of a home loan will go down for bad credit scores and increase for good credit scores…

By Dennis Norman, on April 26th, 2023

The headline of this article is not clickbait nor sensationalism. In fact, it’s based on something that’s about to happen. Fannie Mae, which, along with Freddie-Mac, is involved in almost two-thirds of the home loans in the United States, is set to release a new Loan Level Price Adjustment Matrix (LLPA) on May 1, 2023. The LLPA is used by lenders to determine the cost (interest rate) of a loan for a borrower, and it’s not entirely new, as there’s an existing one already in effect. The new LLPA is similar to the current one, as it also charges varying Continue Reading →

Lending Limits Increase on Fannie-Mae and FHA Loans

By Dennis Norman, on December 2nd, 2022

This week the Federal Housing Finance Administration (FHFA) announced that the limits for all conforming home loans to be acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie-Mac (most of the conventional home loans originated) will increase to $726,200 on January 1, 2023. This is an increase of $79,000 for the current loan limit of $647,200.

Also this week, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced that the limits for all FHA loans will increase to between $472,030 and $1,089,300 for single-family homes depending on the area the property is located in. Below are the limits for the low cost mortgage areas as well Continue Reading →

Survey Shows Majority Of Consumers Think Now Is A Good Time To Sell A Home But Not Buy One

By Dennis Norman, on October 27th, 2022

Monthly, Fannie Mae surveys consumers to gauge their sentiment toward whether it’s a good time to buy or sell a home and publishes the result in their Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI). As the chart below illustrates, in the most recent survey, which was just released, the HPSI index was at 60.8, the lowest level in nearly 11 years. No doubt the higher interest rates and softening economy are taking their toll on homebuyer’s optimism about the prospects of buying a home in the current market. This marks the seventh-consecutive monthly decline in the index and the first time since Continue Reading →

Fannie Mae Predicts Lower Home Sales and Home Prices Next Year

By Dennis Norman, on October 13th, 2022

Yesterday, Fannie Mae released their October housing forecast in which they forecast, among other things, where home sales and prices are headed. The report incudes a forecast for next year, which included:

Home prices in 2023 to decline 1.5% from 2022 Home sales to finish 2022 down nearly 18% from last year and drop another 22% in 2023 New home construction to end 2022 down 3.6% from last year and drop another 25% in 2023. Mortgage Interest Rates will continue to rise the rest of these year, ending the year at 6.7% and then will ease back to 6.4% in Continue Reading →

Consumer Sentiment Toward Now Being A Good Time To Buy Hits Record Low

By Dennis Norman, on June 11th, 2022

Every month Fannie Mae surveys consumers to gauge their sentiment toward whether its a good time to buy or sell a home and publishes the result in their Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI). In the most recent HPSI report, 79% of the people surveyed said they felt now was a bad time to buy a home, which is the highest percentage of people feeling this way since the survey was begun in 2012. Seventeen percent of those surveyed felt it was a good time to buy a home and 4% didn’t know whether it was or not.

[xyz-ips Continue Reading →

Two-Thirds Of Consumers Say They Would Buy A Home vs Rent If There Were To Move

By Dennis Norman, on April 9th, 2022

Yesterday, I shared that, according to the Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI), nearly three-fourths of consumers think now is not a good time to buy a home. However, the same survey that produced that data also showed that tw0-thirds of the consumers that responded said if they would buy a home vs rent if they were in fact going to move. As our chart below illustrates, for 3 of the last four months, 66% indicated they would buy. While the percentage that indicated they would buy was as high as 72% last May, it was in fact the Continue Reading →

Nearly 75 Percent Of Consumers Think Now Is A Bad Time To Buy a Home

By Dennis Norman, on April 8th, 2022

Every month Fannie Mae surveys consumers about owning and renting a home as well as about other issues related to the housing market and economy and from the results publishes its Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI). One of the components of the index is what the sentiment is on whether now is a good time to buy a home or sell a home. In April 2022, HPSI consumers’ sentiment on whether now is a good time to buy a home hit an all-time low with just 24% of respondents saying now is a good time to buy a home. As Continue Reading →

Seventy-Percent of Consumers Think Now is a Bad Time To Buy a Home-83% Of Millennial’s Feel That Way

By Dennis Norman, on February 11th, 2022

According to Fannie Mae’s® Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI), 70% of consumers say it’s a bad time to buy a home while 25% feel it’s a good time to buy. As the chart below illustrates, this is the highest level reached for it not being a good time to buy in the 3-year period the chart covers. Actually, this is the highest level it’s reached since Fannie Mae began tracking the data in 2010.

Millennials are pessimistic about home buying…

The bottom chart also reflects the sentiment of consumers in the survey about buying a home now but Continue Reading →

About Half of Consumers Surveyed Think Home Prices and Interest Rates are Going Up

By Dennis Norman, on May 13th, 2021

Every month Fannie Mae surveys consumers about owning and renting a home as well as about other issues related to the housing market and economy and from the results publish their Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI). One of the components of the index is what the sentiment is on whether now is a good time to buy a home or sell a home. In the April 2021 HPSI 49% of consumers felt home prices would go up in the next 12-months and 54% felt interest rates would increase in the next 12-months.

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Continue Reading →

Consumer Sentiment Toward Now Being A Good Time To Buy A Home Drops To Record Low

By Dennis Norman, on May 12th, 2021

Every month Fannie Mae surveys consumers about owning and renting a home as well as about other issues related to the housing market and economy and from the results publish their Home Purchase Sentiment Index® (HPSI). One of the components of the index is what the sentiment is on whether now is a good time to buy a home or sell a home. In the April 2021 HPSI consumers sentiment on now being a good time to buy a home hit an all-time low with just 47% of respondents saying now is a good time to buy a home. Continue Reading →

Why St Louis Is Not Headed Toward Another Housing Market Bubble or Crash

By Dennis Norman, on May 5th, 2021

Lately, I’ve noticed several articles questioning whether the kind of crazy real estate market we’ve in for a while now is reminiscent of the early 2000’s which lead to a housing bubble that eventually burst in 2008. Granted, even in St Louis where we tend to not see the market extremes one way or the other like the coasts do, one could get the idea that maybe we’re headed that way with buyer’s fighting over new listings and bidding wars that have homes often selling for over the list price. However, in my humble opinion, this market is very different Continue Reading →

Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac Increase Maximum Loan Amounts

By Dennis Norman, on December 2nd, 2020

Last week, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)announced that effective January 1s, 2021, the maximum loan amounts for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conforming loans will be increased from $510,400 to $548,250. Once a home buyers loan amount exceeds the Fannie and Freddie limits, their loan is considered a “jumbo” loan and typically less attractive terms, so an increase in the Fannie and Freddie limits is definitely helpful to home buyers in higher price ranges.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are also increasing the loan limits for loans to purchase multi-family properties as well. The multi-family property limits for 2021 Continue Reading →

Mortgage Interest Rates Expected To Continue Falling Until Hitting 2.9 Percent Next Year

By Dennis Norman, on April 23rd, 2020

Fannie Mae issued their monthly housing forecast for April which includes, among other data, a forecast of what mortgage interest rates will be in the coming months. Last months forecast had projected that mortgage rates would continue to decline moving forward but only to a low of 3.1% before the end of 2021 while the April forecast predicted the interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage would fall to 2.9% in the 2nd quarter of 2021 and stay there through the balance of the year.

If you’re able, now’s the time to buy!

While the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, Continue Reading →

Fannie Mae Offers Mortgage Payment Deferral Plans for Eligible Homeowners

By Dennis Norman, on March 29th, 2020

Fannie Mae, the leading source of financing for home mortgages in the U.S. (they purchase home loans from lenders), earlier this week announced some payment deferral plans to help borrowers. Fannie Mae is authorizing it’s loan servicers to provide options to borrowers that have fallen delinquent or are having trouble making their house payments, which is likely a result of the financial impact on them of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While it’s complicated, there are several options that Fannie Mae has made available to loan servicers to offer to borrowers that are struggling. Complete details are in Fannie Mae Lender Letter Continue Reading →

HUD, Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac Suspend Foreclosures for at least 60 days

By Dennis Norman, on March 18th, 2020

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), as well as the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) (which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac), directed their loan servicers to suspect foreclosures and evictions for at least 60 days to help those people affected.

In a statement, Mark Calabria, the Director of the FHFA, said that borrowers affected by the coronavirus who are having difficulty paying their mortgages should reach out to the mortgage servicers as soon as possible.

HUD Secretary Ben Carson said that “The halting of all foreclosure actions and evictions for Continue Reading →

Mortgage Interest Rates Drop to Lowest Rate In Over a Year

By Dennis Norman, on February 19th, 2019

After mortgage interest rates on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage nearly hit 5 percent back in November, they have steadily declined and this past week fell to an average of 4.37% according to the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey. Last weeks 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate of 4.37% was the lowest average rate report by the survey since Feb 8, 2018, when the average rates were 4.32%.

The outlook for mortgage interest rates looks promising as well with the most recent Fannie Mae Housing Forecast predicting the 30-year fixed rate will stay at 4.5% through the end of 2020.

Continue Reading →

Zillow’s “New” Instant Offer Is Nothing New

By Dennis Norman, on May 28th, 2017

I am always marveled by great marketing and promotion therefore I must give a tip of the hat to Zillow® for their new “Instant Offer” program. First, it’s getting them tons of attention and press, particularly within the REALTOR® community, which is probably where it is the most beneficial to them since agents are, after all, Zillow’s® paying customers. Continue Reading →

Help For Underwater Homeowners – One-time principal reduction plan

By Dennis Norman, on May 6th, 2016

In mid-April the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced a new program aimed to help homeowners with a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac loan that are seriously underwater on equity, meaning that their mortgage balance is at least 115 percent of the current value of their home. This new principal reduction modification program offers, to those that qualify, a one-time reduction in the balance of their mortgage to bring them out of a negative equity position. Continue Reading →

Bank and Government Owned Home Sales Down But Selling For Record Percentage of List Price

By Dennis Norman, on July 2nd, 2015

St Louis bank and government owned home sales are down as banks and government enterprises such as Fannie Mae, FHA, VA and Freddie Mac whittle down their inventory of foreclosed homes while, at the same time, new mortgage delinquencies and foreclosure rates continue to decline. While this is Continue Reading →

Do Conventional Buyers Get Better Deals Than FHA Buyers?

By Dennis Norman, on June 5th, 2015

The other day I had a client, who was planning on using FHA financing, as me if I thought she would be able to negotiate as good of a deal as if she was obtaining a conventional loan. The concern was that, as an FHA buyer, would she be perceived as a weaker buyer in the seller’s eyes since FHA’s credit and income guidelines are not as stringent as Fannie Mae, and FHA requires a smaller downpayment as well. Continue Reading →

FHFA Says No To HOA Liens or Super-Priorty Liens Wiping Out Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac Home Loans

By Dennis Norman, on April 22nd, 2015

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) issued a release yesterday stating that while that agency acts as conservator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, no “property of the Agency shall be subject to levy, attachment, garnishment, foreclosure, or sale without the consent of the Agency.” The release went on to say that Title 12 United States Code Section 4617(j)(3) “precludes involuntary extinguishment of Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac liens while they are operating in conservatorships and preempts any state law that purports to allow holders of homeownership association (HOA) liens to extinguish a Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac lien, Continue Reading →

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Told To Allow Foreclosed Homeowners To Buy Their Home Back

By Dennis Norman, on November 25th, 2014

Today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) told Fannie May and Freddie Mac to change their policies to allow foreclosed homeowners the opportunity to buy their home back at the property’s fair-market value, just like any other purchaser can. Currently, if a foreclosed homeowner wanted to buy their home back from Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac they would be required to pay the entire amount owed on their previous mortgage although a non-related purchaser, not buying the home for the benefit of the former homeowner, only has to pay the current fair market value.

“This is a targeted, but important Continue Reading →

Survey Shows Two-Thirds of Americans Think Now Is a Good Time to Buy a House

By Dennis Norman, on August 19th, 2014

The Fannie Mae monthly national housing survey for July 2014 shows 67 percent of those surveyed feel now is a good time to buy a home, down from 70 percent that felt that way the month before and down from 74 percent that responded in July 2013 that it was a good time to buy. Forty-three percent of the respondents feel now is a good time to sell a home, an increase from 40 percent the month before and up from July 2013 when 40% felt it was a good time to sell. Continue Reading →