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78 78 78 INVESTMENT GOVERNMENT PROPERTY PRESERVATION Journal REPORT HIGHLIGHTS THE FHA'S ROLE IN AFFORDABLE FINANCING As required by law, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has provided to congress and the public its annual report on the finan- cial status of its Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund (MMI Fund). e MMI Fund is used to operate the FHA Single Family mortgage insur- ance programs under the color of the National Housing Act. e intent of the report is to show the FHA's significant role in supporting affordable financing for first-time homebuyers and people of color while also continuing to keep people in their homes who are experiencing residu- al COVID-19 effects. e report also gives updates on the FHA's work to support increased housing supply and affordability while reducing barriers to fair and equitable homeownership. FHA's achievements in fiscal year 2022 are supported by a strong MMI Fund, as demon- strated by the Fund's capital ratio of 11.11% as of September 30, 2022. "I'm so proud of FHA's work to make home- ownership possible for our nation's underserved households and communities," said Julia R. Gordon, Federal Housing Commissioner. "Behind the bottom-line numbers are some two million individuals and families who were able to achieve homeownership or stay in their homes through hard times thanks to assistance from FHA." All-in-all, the FHA has helped more than one million homeowners who were behind on their mortgages to obtain a forbearance or recov- ery option during the pandemic. In 2022, FHA reduced the number of serious delinquencies— mortgages 90 or more days past due—by almost half, ending with a serious delinquency rate of 4.77% on September 30, 2022. is number had reached more than 11% during the height of the COVID-19 crisis. e FHA also highlighted its work to reduce barriers to homeownership and increase the housing supply and affordability. is was helped through new FHA policies allowing the use of rental history as a factor in FHA first-time home- buyer mortgage underwriting assessments, revised procedures to deal with any applicant employment gaps, and program modifications to FHA's proper- ty disposition programs to provide priority purchase