S&P Lowers Fannie, Freddie Citing Reliance on Government
By Lorraine Woellert
Standard & Poor’s lowered credit ratings on debt issued by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and other lenders backed by the federal government, citing the U.S. loss of its AAA status. The mortgage finance companies were lowered one step from AAA to AA+, S&P said in a statement today. The downgrade reflects their “direct reliance on the U.S. government,” S&P said.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were placed into government conservatorship in September 2008 as losses tied to subprime mortgage lending pushed them toward insolvency. Since then, the two government-sponsored enterprises, or GSEs, have drawn almost $170 billion in federal aid. The GSEs own or guarantee more than half of U.S. mortgage debt.
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Comment: A move that has been overdue for quite some time.
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