Bill Pulte, the grandson of PulteGroup founder William J. Pulte, is a private equity CEO, philanthropist, and Trump supporter with 3 million followers on X.
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In what is seen as a potential step toward privatizing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, President-elect Donald Trump has announced that private equity CEO and philanthropist Bill Pruitt will He has been named the head of the mortgage lending giant’s federal regulator.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Commissioner Sandra Thompson, who has led FHFA since June 2021, is scheduled to resign on January 19th.
Bill Pelt
Mr. Pulte, the grandson of William J. Pulte, founder of the home construction company Pulte Group, on Thursday thanked Mr. Trump, who has more than 3 million supporters, and called Mr. Trump “the greatest of all time.” President,” he promised, “under your leadership, we will take back the American nation.” A dream for everyone!
Although not currently affiliated with the company, Pulto helped oust his grandfather, Pulto Group Chairman and CEO Richard Dugas, in 2016 and remained on the company’s board until May 2020.
As the founder of Pulte Capital Partners LLC and through his philanthropy, Pulte has maintained ties to the housing industry.
david dworkin
“Bill is not well known in Washington, but we worked together in Detroit. I can tell you first-hand that he has a deep knowledge of the industry,” said David, CEO of the National Housing Council. Dworkin said in a statement. “When Detroit was at its worst with the 2013 bankruptcy, Bill returned to his hometown to work in the areas hardest hit by the foreclosure crisis. We look forward to being an important voice in the Trump administration’s efforts to make housing more affordable.”
Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO Bob Bruksmit also congratulated Pulte on his nomination, but said that if Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were to be privatized, the government would not be able to sell the mortgage collateral they issue. He made it clear that there is a need to continue to provide a backstop to securities.
bob bruksmit
“The Fannie Mae-Freddie Mac conservatorship was never meant to be permanent,” Burksmit acknowledged. MBA said, “The government is working to ensure that the transition to the post-conservatorship era for the GSEs is done in the right way, including the important step of Congress approving an explicit federal backstop for GSE mortgage-backed securities. and “We are prepared to work with Congress to prevent serious market disruptions” in securities. ”
Like the National Association of Realtors, the MBA has proposed a “public utility-style” framework for Fannie and Freddie that maintains its mission of supporting affordable housing.
President Trump began the process of recapitalizing Fannie and Freddie, which were placed under government conservatorship in 2008 as mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures increased during the Great Recession of 2007-2009. However, after Trump’s defeat in the 2020 presidential election, Democrats stalled plans to privatize Fannie & Freddie, leading to top executives at both companies retiring.
Project 2025, a 922-page policy document put together by the conservative Heritage Foundation, which President Trump has distanced himself from, lays out an even more radical approach to privatization than those advocated by NAR and MBA.
Project 2025’s Treasury chapter advocates for eliminating Fannie and Freddie in an “orderly manner” and moving toward “privatizing these large housing finance institutions.” This will restore a sustainable housing finance market with a robust private mortgage market that does not rely on explicit or implied taxpayer guarantees. ”
Scott Bessent, President Trump’s nominee for Treasury secretary, was not asked about the privatization of Fannie & Freddie during his confirmation hearing Thursday. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) asked Bessent 17 questions about the future of the mortgage giant.
elizabeth warren
“If we decide to end Fannie and Freddie’s conservatorship, will we pursue it through executive action or through legislative legislation by Congress?” Warren asked in the Jan. 12 letter. “In your opinion, what conditions must be met for a conservatorship to end? Is there any parliamentary action required to abolish a conservatorship?”
Vice President Kamala Harris argued on the campaign trail in August that the privatization of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could add $1,200 a year in interest costs to the typical U.S. mortgage.
“Privatization is likely to have an impact on mortgage lending, but it is difficult to know with certainty how deep the changes will be,” experts interviewed by PolitiFact said.
The Harris campaign told PolitiFact that the $1,200 annual estimate was based on a 2015 analysis by Moody’s Analytics and the Urban Institute.
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