The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) submitted its annual report to Congress on the financial status of its Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund which is used to operate its single-family mortgage insurance programs under Title II of the National Housing Act.
The report highlighted FHA’s role in supporting affordable mortgage financing for first-time homebuyers and borrowers of color while continuing to assist homeowners affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to keep their homes. It also underscored FHA’s work to support increased housing supply and affordability while reducing barriers to fair and equitable homeownership.
In fiscal year 2022, FHA reported provided an insurance endorsement on mortgages for nearly 285,000 self-identified individuals and families of color, approximately 29 percent of its total forward mortgage insurance endorsements.
“I’m so proud of FHA’s work to make homeownership possible for our nation’s underserved households and communities,” Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon said in a press release. “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.”
The report noted that FHA helped more than one million homeowners who were behind on their mortgage payments to obtain an FHA COVID-19 forbearance and/or recovery option to stay in their homes despite the dislocations caused by the pandemic. According to the report, FHA helped reduce the number of serious delinquencies – mortgages 90 or more days past due – by almost half. The serious delinquency rate was 4.77 percent as of Sept. 30, 2022, down from almost 12 percent during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The MMI Fund had a strong performance year, according to FHA’s reporting. The overall capital ratio of the fund increased by 3 percentage points from the previous fiscal year, ending at 11.11 percent. FHA’s forward mortgage portfolio achieved a standalone capital ratio of 10.47 percent, a 2.48 percentage point increase from the previous fiscal year. The FHA Home Equity Conversion Mortgage portfolio’s standalone capital ratio was 22.77 percent, a 16.69 percentage point increase from the previous fiscal year. The MMI Fund had $147.7 billion in MMI capital, a $41.2 billion increase from fiscal year 2021.
The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) President and CEO Bob Broeksmit stated, following the release of the FHA annual report:
“Thanks to prudent risk management over the past several years by HUD and FHA lenders, the fund’s capital reserve ratio is more than five times the statutory minimum reserve ratio and is well positioned to withstand an economic slowdown. We commend HUD and mortgage servicers for their ongoing work together during the pandemic to help homeowners successfully exit forbearance programs and stay in their homes.
“Given FHA’s healthy financial position, MBA continues to believe that HUD should make FHA loans more affordable by reducing mortgage insurance premiums as soon as budgetary opportunities allow. This move would help offset the impact of higher mortgage rates and improve the purchasing power for many prospective first-time homebuyers, minority buyers, and those with low and moderate incomes.
“With further slowing in the housing market expected in the months ahead, MBA will work with HUD and FHA leadership to ensure FHA can safely and sustainably perform its countercyclical role in the market, particularly for first-time homebuyers and underserved communities.”