States to help subprime owners refinance: WSJ

(Reuters) - State officials hope this will be enough to keep some vulnerable low and moderate income neighborhoods from sliding into decline.




The Journal said some of the programs will be similar to existing government-lending programs, in which the state extends mortgages to homeowners and then sells those home loans, in some cases to companies such as mortgage and finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.


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Freddie Mac opts not to issue REMICs in July

(Reuters) - Freddie Mac last issued reference REMICs in June, selling
$1.265 billion R013 with a final maturity of Dec. 15, 2021.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Freddie plans up to $17 bln reference notes in Q3

(Reuters) - With $10 billion of reference notes set to mature, Freddie
Mac said net reference debt outstanding will shrink by $1
billion if it issues the minimum amount of new notes planned.
It if it issues the maximum during the quarter, net reference
debt outstanding will increase by $7 billion.




In the current quarter, Freddie Mac has issued $12 billion
of reference notes and increased the reference debt outstanding
by $5 billion because $7 billion of notes matured.


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U.S. Stocks Gain on Easing Subprime Concern; Freddie Mac, Apple Advance

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks advanced after oil prices
fell and concerns eased that losses tied to subprime mortgages
will hurt financial company earnings.

Freddie Mac, the second-biggest U.S. mortgage finance
company, gained after its treasurer said the subprime slump is
``contained.'' Apple Inc., maker of the iPod music player, and
Google Inc., the world's most popular Internet search engine,
climbed after brokerages recommended buying the shares.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Subprime Turmoil Is `Severe But Contained,' Freddie Mac's Bitsberger Says

(Bloomberg) -- Freddie Mac Treasurer Timothy
Bitsberger said the subprime mortgages slump is ``severe but
contained.''

While rising defaults on subprime loans have pushed at least
60 mortgage companies to close or sell their operations and
forced Bear Stearns Cos. to offer a $3.2 billion bailout for one
of two money-losing hedge funds, the number of borrowers
potentially affected is limited, Bitsberger said in a speech in
London today.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Freddie Mac Has Third Straight Quarterly Loss on Lower Derivatives Returns

(Bloomberg) -- Freddie Mac, the second-largest source
of money for home loans, reported its third consecutive quarterly
loss after a drop in the value of derivatives it uses to hedge
interest rate risk.

The net loss was $211 million, or 46 cents a share, compared
with net income of $2 billion, or $2.80 a share, a year earlier,
the McLean, Virginia-based company said today in a statement.
Revenue from providing guarantees on mortgage bonds jumped 11
percent to $460 million.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Freddie Mac launches $3 bln new 5-year notes

(Reuters) - The other joint lead managers on the sale are Barclays
Capital and RBS Greenwich Capital.




Freddie Mac will also sell on Thursday $1.0 billion in
two-year reference notes in a reopening of an existing two-year
issue due June 11, 2009.


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US 30-year mortgage rates drop in week

(Reuters) - The costs of mortgages remained well below their year-ago levels, when 30-year mortgages averaged 6.53 percent, 15-years were 6.17 percent, and the one year ARM was 5.63 percent.

Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist, said indications that the United States is experiencing little inflation helped push the rates down. On Tuesday, the Labor Department reported that consumer prices only rose 0.6 percent in March and on April 13 it reported that producer prices rose 1 percent that month.


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