On the House: Mortgage landscape has shifted

0 Comments | Philadelphia Inquirer, The, August, 2008 | by Al Heavens Inquirer Columnist

On March 15, 1994, Fannie Mae announced with great fanfare a $1 trillion initiative to create 10 million more homeowners in six years.

Six years later, in 2000, Fannie Mae announced that the 1994 initiative had succeeded and that $2 trillion would be committed to add 18 million homeowners to the 10.6 million the first program had created.

Don't bet the farm on a similar announcement anytime soon. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are in big trouble, and, from what I'm told, even if they avoid a federal takeover that shifts the burden of paying for their mistakes to taxpayers, the era of "Hey, buddy, need a couple of hundred thou for a house" is gone.

Some say they brought this on themselves.

"I served for two years on the Freddie Mac Loan Prospector Advisory...