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Fannie Mae Doubles Fee To Borrowers

By
Real Estate Agent with Market Advantage Real Estate

Fannie_mae

The cost of obtaining a loan just went up for a large number of borrowers. This week, Fannie Mae announced that it will double a fee that it introduced in December to compensate for the risks of doing business in what it calls an "adverse market."

Fannie Mae first introduced the "adverse market delivery charge" eight months ago. At that time, it was $250 per $100,000 borrowed. Lenders paid the fee and passed the buck on to borrowers, either as a charge or as a slightly higher rate.

Fannie just announced that it will be doubling the fee to $500 per $100,000 borrowed, or one-half of 1 percent. That translates (roughly) into an increase in the rate of one-eighth of a percentage point.

The higher fee will be added onto loans sold to Fannie beginning October 1. Because it takes time to sell a loan, lenders will start passing along the higher cost to borrowers almost immediately. Industry professionals say that Freddie Mac will follow Fannie's lead and introduce higher fees as well.

Chuck Carstensen
RE/MAX Results - Elk River, MN
Minnesota/Wisconsin Real Estate Expert

That seems like a silly fee.  But it is what it is.

Aug 14, 2008 06:57 AM
Laura Sellers
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Preferred Real Estate, Inc.; www.AuburnOpelikaALRealEstate.com - Auburn, AL
www.AuburnOpelikaALRealEstate.com

Most fees seem to be ultimately passed on to the customers.

Aug 14, 2008 07:03 AM
Danilo Bogdanovic
Market Advantage Real Estate - Ashburn, VA
Real Estate Consultant - Loudoun and Fairfax County

I agree that it's a junk fee, but Fannie and Freddie need all the help they can get to stay in business. If Fannie and Freddie get in any more trouble or go under, we're all screwed. Paying the junk fee to help keep them around and healthy is the lesser of the two evils.

Aug 14, 2008 08:15 AM