Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) are publicly traded companies created by the U.S. government to increase access to credit and promote affordable homeownership opportunities across the country. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae are three of the best-known GSEs in existence today.

Benefits of having GSEs

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provide liquidity and stability to the secondary mortgage markets by purchasing mortgages from lenders, packaging them into security bonds, and selling them in global capital markets. This helps ensure that lenders have access to capital for making more loans. Ginnie Mae offers a range of loan programs, such as FHA-insured mortgages, VA-guaranteed loans, and other loan products that help low-income and first-time homebuyers access the credit market. Together, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae provide crucial support for the mortgage industry by helping to ensure that credit markets remain stable and accessible.

GSEs play an important role in the mortgage industry by providing access to credit and helping to promote affordable homeownership opportunities across the country. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provide liquidity for lenders, while Ginnie Mae helps low-income and first-time buyers access credit markets. As such, GSEs are critical components of the U.S. housing finance system.

Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae is a publicly traded company created in 1938 to provide liquidity to the secondary mortgage market. Fannie Mae purchases mortgages from lenders and then packages them into securities for sale on global capital markets, providing credit for lenders to make more loans. Fannie Mae also offers loan programs such as Fannie Mae HomeReady® and Fannie Mae HomePath®, which help to provide access to credit for low-income and first-time homebuyers.

Freddie Mac

Freddie Mac is another publicly traded company created in 1970 as a sister organization of Fannie Mae. Like Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac provides liquidity to the secondary mortgage market by purchasing mortgages from lenders and packaging them into securities for sale on global capital markets. Freddie Mac also offers loan programs such as Home Possible® and Home Possible Advantage®, which help to make mortgage financing more accessible for low-income borrowers.

Ginnie Mae

Ginnie Mae is a government-owned corporation established in 1968 to help improve access to credit for low-income and first-time homebuyers. Ginnie Mae guarantees the payment of principal and interest on securities backed by FHA, VA, Rural Housing Service, and other loans that are insured or guaranteed by government agencies. By guaranteeing these securities, Ginnie Mae helps to ensure that lenders have access to capital to make more loans. Ginnie Mae also offers FHA-insured mortgages, VA-guaranteed loans, and other loan products that help low-income and first-time homebuyers access the credit market.

GSEs are an important part of the U.S. housing finance system, as they provide liquidity to lenders, promote affordable homeownership opportunities, and help to ensure that credit markets remain stable and accessible. Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae are three of the most well-known GSEs today, each offering loan programs designed to stabilize the housing market. By providing these loan programs, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae help to promote a stable housing finance system in the United States.

The Reverse Mortgage Resource Center provides financing options for Reverse Mortgages, Reverse Mortgages for Purchase, Cash Out Reverse Mortgages, HECM to HECM Refinance Reverse Mortgages, and Jumbo Reverse Mortgages options.