Why America's public-private mortgage giants threaten the world economy—and what to do about it
The financial collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2008 led to one of the most sweeping government interventions in private financial markets in history. The bailout has already cost American taxpayers close to $150 billion, and substantially more will be needed. The U.S. economy—and by extension, the global financial system—has a lot riding on Fannie and Freddie. They cannot fail, yet that is precisely what these mortgage giants are guaranteed to do. How can we limit the damage to our economy, and avoid making the same mistakes in the future?
Guaranteed to Fail explains how poorly designed government guarantees for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac led to the debacle of mortgage finance in the United States, weighs different reform proposals, and provides sensible, practical recommendations. Despite repeated calls for tougher action, Washington has expanded the scope of its guarantees to Fannie and Freddie, fueling more and more housing and mortgages all across the economy—and putting all of us at risk. This book unravels the dizzyingly immense, highly interconnected businesses of Fannie and Freddie. It proposes a unique model of reform that emphasizes public-private partnership, one that can serve as a blueprint for better organizing and managing government-sponsored enterprises like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In doing so, Guaranteed to Fail strikes a cautionary note about excessive government intervention in markets.
Viral V. Acharya, Matthew Richardson, Stijn Van Nieuwerburgh, and Lawrence J. White are professors at the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University, and are experts in applied financial economics. Acharya and Richardson are the coeditors of Restoring Financial Stability and Regulating Wall Street. Van Nieuwerburgh is an expert on household finance and mortgage markets. White has studied government-sponsored enterprises for many years and served on the board of Freddie Mac from 1986 to 1989 as part of his government service as a board member on the Federal Home Loan Bank Board.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ix Prologue 1 CHAPTER ONE: Feeding the Beast 11 CHAPTER TWO: Ticking Time Bomb 31 CHAPTER THREE: Race to the Bottom 41 CHAPTER FOUR: Too Big to Fail 61 CHAPTER FIVE: End of Days 80 CHAPTER SIX: In Bed with the Fed 99 CHAPTER SEVEN: How Others Do It 115 CHAPTER EIGHT: How to Reform a Broken System 132 CHAPTER NINE: Chasing the Dragon 165 EPILOGUE 178 Appendix: Timeline of U.S. Housing Finance Milestones 183 Notes 187 Glossary 207 Index 211
What People are Saying About This
From the Publisher
"Guaranteed to Fail is a down-to-earth analysis of why Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac collapsed and why housing finance is broken. The authors provide clear solutions to fixing this complex problem. This is a timely and important book."—Nouriel Roubini, coauthor of Crisis Economics: A Crash Course in the Future of Finance"Guaranteed to Fail is a comprehensive and well-written study of the role played by Fannie and Freddie in the events leading up to the financial crisis. It also suggests the way forward. This book is timely as well as insightful, and will be an influential contribution to the debate on the role of government-sponsored enterprises."—Raghuram G. Rajan, author of Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World Economy"This is an excellent book. Guaranteed to Fail presents a cogent proposal for the resolution of the current conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It documents the historical, economic, political, and financial issues that led to the current crisis, and presents all the issues in a fair and informative manner."—Dwight Jaffee, University of California, Berkeley
