Today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) proposed its 2021 housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises). Due to the economic uncertainty related to the COVID-19 national pandemic, FHFA is proposing benchmarks for calendar year 2021 only, and those levels will remain the same as they were for 2018-2020. Once finalized, the proposed benchmark levels would extend those benchmarks that are currently set to expire on December 31, 2020.
The proposed rule would establish both single-family and multifamily housing goals.
Single-Family Housing Goals:
| Goal | Current benchmark level for 2018-2020 | Proposed benchmark level for 2021 |
| Low-Income Home Purchase Goal | 24 percent | 24 percent |
| Very Low-Income Home Purchase Goal | 6 percent | 6 percent |
| Low-Income Areas Home Purchase Subgoal | 14 percent | 14 percent |
| Low-Income Refinancing Goal | 21 percent | 21 percent |
To meet a single-family housing goal or subgoal, the percentage of mortgage purchases by an Enterprise that meets each goal or subgoal must exceed either the benchmark level set in advance by FHFA or the market level for that year. The market level is determined retrospectively each year, based on the actual goal-qualifying share of the overall market as measured by FHFA based on Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data for that year.
Multifamily Housing Goals:
| Goal | Current benchmark level for 2018-2020 | Proposed benchmark level for 2021 |
| Low-Income Goal | 315,000 units | 315,000 units |
| Very Low-Income Subgoal | 60,000 units | 60,000 units |
| Low-Income Small Multifamily Subgoal | 10,000 units | 10,000 units |
To meet a multifamily housing goal or subgoal, an Enterprise must purchase mortgages on multifamily properties (properties with five or more units) with rental units affordable to families in each category, as well as a subgoal for properties with 5-50 units. FHFA measures Enterprise multifamily goals performance against benchmark levels set by FHFA.
Interested parties are invited to submit comments on this proposed rule within 60 days of publication in the Federal Register. Comments should be submitted to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Division of Housing Mission and Goals, 400 7th Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20219 or via FHFA.gov.
Link to proposed rule.
For more information about the Enterprise housing goals, click here.