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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 70 November 2023 J O U R N A L LOOKING BACK ON 10 YEARS OF CRT T en years ago, Fannie Mae launched a new program known as CRT, or Credit Risk Transfer, which off- loads risky loans to investors which in turn helps taxpayers and helps the GSE provide opportunities for investors and reinsurers to invest in U.S. housing, and ultimately helps to build a stronger and more durable housing finance system. In total, 125 CRT transactions have taken place through its two primary CRT programs: Connecticut Avenue Securities (CAS) and Credit Insurance Risk Transfer (CIRT). Between these two programs, Fannie Mae has offloaded $88 billion of risky mortgages on $2.9 trillion of unpaid principal balances at issuance as of the end of September. Fannie Mae maintains $3.6 trillion of single-family guaranty book of business as of the end of June 2023 and remains one of the largest credit risk managers in the mortgage industry. "Over the years, we've developed ro- bust policies, underwriting and servicing applications for our lender partners, and analytics for managing that credit risk so that we can continue to serve our hous- ing mission," Fannie Mae said. "Not only are these tools important for our borrow- er, renter, and lender stakeholders, but they're also critical to our investors." The program began in 2013 when Fannie Mae sought to share mortgage credit risk with investors and reinsurers, which facilitated the flow of private cap- ital between the GSE's lender customers and a diverse swath of private market participants. The initial goal was to build the market and expand liquidity, while protecting taxpayers, during a time when the GSEs were not permitted to retain earnings. The success of this program to date, as evidenced by the broad interest from investors and reinsurers, reinforces our confidence in CRT as an important tool for our company, even now as Fannie Mae is able to retain earnings to restore capital. "The valuable partnership we've built with an array of investors and reinsurers Government has been integral to building a broad and liquid market," said Devang Doshi the SVP of Single-Family Capital Markets for Fannie Mae. "We're grateful for our deep and diverse CRT community who regu- larly engages with us to strengthen the programs, which is critical in shaping our strategy and delivering on our mission." By the numbers: » Brought over 125 CAS and CIRT trans- actions to market. » Developed a deep and diverse investor base with participation from over 265 investors and 50 reinsurers. » Transferred over $88 billion of credit risk on over $2.9 trillion of unpaid principal balance (UPB) at issuance as of September 30. » Repurchased $7.9 billion original principal amount of CAS debt across five tender offers. » Exercised our early termination option to cancel 36 CIRT transactions before their scheduled maturity dates. » Published a historical research dataset of over 54 million loans. "We remain committed to CRT and look forward to the continued partner- ship ahead," Fannie Mae concluded. BIPARTISAN LEGISLATION AIMS TO SUPPORT VETERAN HOMEBUYERS U .S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, Chair of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN) have introduced new legislation, the VA Home Loan Awareness Act of 2023, to help inform veteran homebuyers of their eli- gibility for the VA Home Loan Program, which helps more veterans achieve the dream of homeownership. "By letting veterans and servicemem- bers know they may be eligible for a VA home loan, we can help make the dream of homeownership a reality for more military families and make sure that the Ohioans who have served our country