The cutely nick-named Fannie Mae (short for Federal National Mortgage Association) and Freddie Mac (short for Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation) make the market for home mortgages in the U.S through their lending and guaranteeing activities . With the real estate industry in trouble, these two bulwarks of home ownership are having their own difficulties.http://www.newser.com/2008 - Newseren-usNewser Feed GeneratorFri, 29 Aug 2008 4:19:42 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/35991/top-execs-booted-at-fannie-mae.html?refid=rss_all_defaultBattered mortgage-finance provider Fannie Mae has ousted three top executives in a bid to boost investor confidence, Bloomberg reports. Fannie Mae CEO Daniel Mudd is replacing his chief officers for finance, business and risk management as he struggles to prove that the company has enough capital to ride out the remainder of the mortgage crisis that have sunk shares 85% this year.http://www.newser.com/story/35991/top-execs-booted-at-fannie-mae.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWed, 27 Aug 2008 23:00:22 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/35334/pressure-mounts-for-a-freddie-fannie-bailout.html?refid=rss_all_defaultA federal bailout for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac looks more likely every day, both the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times report, as the mortgage giants find it increasingly difficult to borrow and their stock continues to take a pounding. Freddie was able to auction $3 billion in debt yesterday, but at unusually hefty interest rates, which in turn could be passed on to borrowers.http://www.newser.com/story/35334/pressure-mounts-for-a-freddie-fannie-bailout.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWed, 20 Aug 2008 6:28:23 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/35236/fannie-freddie-take-another-beating-on-bailout-fears.html?refid=rss_all_defaultShare prices of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac took another precipitous plunge yesterday as investors fear the home mortgage giants will not be able to avoid a government bailout, the Wall Street Journal reports. An article in Barron’s stoked smoldering concerns that the companies will not be able to raise more capital by selling shares and that a Treasury bailout will render existing shares worthless.http://www.newser.com/story/35236/fannie-freddie-take-another-beating-on-bailout-fears.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 19 Aug 2008 7:08:10 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/35186/financials-skid-spark-sell-off.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThe markets took a tumble today as familiar fears about a government bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac returned to the fore, MarketWatch reports. Led by its financial components, the Dow fell 180.02 to close at 11,479.88. The Nasdaq shed 35.54, settling at 2,416.98, while the S&P 500 dropped 19.54 to close at 1,278.66.http://www.newser.com/story/35186/financials-skid-spark-sell-off.html?refid=rss_all_defaultMon, 18 Aug 2008 15:26:05 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/34475/fannie-misses-estimates-slashes-dividend.html?refid=rss_all_defaultFannie Mae reported its fourth straight losing quarter today, Bloomberg reports, coming in $2.3 billion in the red and slashing its dividend. The $2.51-per-share loss far exceeded the 72-cent average predicted by analysts, much as Freddie Mac surprised investors two days ago. “Neither of these companies have properly provisioned for what we're heading into,” said one analyst. “This thing is going to get worse and last longer and deeper than they originally thought.”http://www.newser.com/story/34475/fannie-misses-estimates-slashes-dividend.html?refid=rss_all_defaultFri, 08 Aug 2008 8:28:47 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/34273/freddie-has-4th-straight-loss-as-2nd-quarter-charges-rise.html?refid=rss_all_defaultRising delinquencies and a still-skidding home market combined to make Freddie Mac’s second quarter losses three times worse than analysts predicted, reports Bloomberg . The government-backed mortgage enterprise lost $821 million, or $1.63, in the quarter, prompting it to also announce a third quarter slash in dividends from 25 cents to 5 cents a share.http://www.newser.com/story/34273/freddie-has-4th-straight-loss-as-2nd-quarter-charges-rise.html?refid=rss_all_defaultWed, 06 Aug 2008 6:34:29 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/34152/freddie-ceo-dismissed-bad-omens-for-years.html?refid=rss_all_defaultThe CEO of Freddie Mac disregarded several warnings from inside the company that the mortgage giant faced imminent disaster. More than two dozen current and former high-ranking employees told the New York Times that Richard Syron dismissed repeated recommendations from as early as 2004 to limit its exposure to bad loans, which now threaten to saddle taxpayers with a multibillion-dollar bailout.http://www.newser.com/story/34152/freddie-ceo-dismissed-bad-omens-for-years.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTue, 05 Aug 2008 3:39:39 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/33439/senate-passes-massive-housing-relief-bill.html?refid=rss_all_defaultCongress has passed a housing rescue bill aimed at sparing 400,000 struggling homeowners from foreclosure. President Bush is expected to sign the measure quickly. The Senate passed the legislation by a 72-13 vote in a rare Saturday session. The measure lets homeowners who cannot afford their monthly payments refinance into more affordable government-backed loans rather than losing their homes.http://www.newser.com/story/33439/senate-passes-massive-housing-relief-bill.html?refid=rss_all_defaultSat, 26 Jul 2008 10:32:18 CDThttp://www.newser.com/story/33358/a-believer-in-hands-off-now-a-defender-of-hands-on.html?refid=rss_all_defaultTreasury Secretary Henry Paulson is in the midst of a reluctant about-face of his economic principles. The Los Angeles Times looks at how Paulson—a former chief executive at Goldman Sachs with a long history of faith in laissez-faire capitalism—has had to become the point man for the Bush administration's decidedly hands-on approach to fixing the nation's economic troubles.http://www.newser.com/story/33358/a-believer-in-hands-off-now-a-defender-of-hands-on.html?refid=rss_all_defaultFri, 25 Jul 2008 7:41:55 CDT