FHFA Cancels Adverse Market Refinance Fee

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will eliminate their controversial Adverse Market Refinance Fee for loan deliveries effective Aug. 1, 2021.

To allow families to save more money, lenders will no longer be required to pay the Enterprises a 50-basis point fee when they deliver refinanced mortgages. The fee was designed to cover losses projected as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The success of FHFA and the Enterprises' COVID-19 policies reduced the impact of the pandemic and were effective enough to warrant an early conclusion of the Adverse Market Refinance Fee. FHFA's expectation is that those lenders who were charging borrowers the fee will pass cost savings back to borrowers.