Take Action: Yes in My Backyard (YIMBY) Act

• By: MBA/MW Staff
• On: 08/27/2024 22:23:37
• In: News

Dear MAA Member,

Please contact your U.S. Representative today and ask him/her to urge congressional leaders to bring H.R. 3507, the bipartisan Yes in My Backyard Act (YIMBY) legislation introduced by Congressmen Mike Flood (R-NE) and Derek Kilmer (D-WA), to the House floor for a vote in September. 

America is facing a housing affordability crisis. While challenges vary from city to city and state to state, housing affordability is a nationwide problem. For decades, America has witnessed the escalating challenge created by demographic shifts, lack of development, and economic changes culminating in the inability of families to rent, buy, or maintain stable, affordable, and safe homes. Underproduction of housing is also a persistent and nationwide problem, leading to a supply and demand imbalance across the country.

The YIMBY Act would help to eliminate discriminatory land use policies and remove barriers that depress production of housing in the United States. By requiring Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) recipients to report periodically on the extent to which they are removing discriminatory land use policies, and promoting inclusive and affordable housing, it will increase transparency and encourage more thoughtful and inclusive development practices.

- Why it matters: Housing affordability is a national problem that demands the attention of federal policymakers. The YIMBY Act is an important incremental step to help mitigate this crisis.

- What’s next: MBA will continue to work with coalition partners to encourage House leaders to bring this important piece of legislation to a vote on the House Floor.  

As a MAA member, we need you to contact your U.S. Representative to ask them to urge House leaders – either Republican or Democratic — to bring H.R. 3507 before the full House Floor in September. 

Hamilton Fout, Fannie Mae’s Vice President of Economic & Strategic Research to present at Lenders Conference.

• By: MBA/MW Staff
• On: 08/09/2024 18:11:01
• In: News

Hamilton Fout, Fannie Mae’s Vice President of Economic & Strategic Research will present at Lenders Conference on September 25. For more information and to register for the conference, please visit our event page here.


Hamilton Fout is Fannie Mae’s Vice President of Economic & Strategic Research, reporting to the Senior Vice President and Chief Economist. Fout is responsible for providing the forecasts of loan volumes and profiles to various business units of Fannie Mae. Fout is an important source of information regarding regional housing risks, home price dynamics and forecasts, interest rate model updates and projections, the transmission of macro developments through the mortgage market, stress testing, and issues related to mortgage risks and cash flows. Fout is responsible for driving market insights and has piloted public releases of Fannie Mae data, such as the newly released Refinance Application-Level Index and Fannie Mae Home Price Index. Fout and the economic forecast team were recent recipients of the 2022 Lawrence R. Klein Award for Blue Chip Forecast Accuracy, recognizing the strength of the 2018-2021 forecasts and smallest average error of predictions of GDP, inflation, and unemployment compared to other industry forecasts.

Prior to joining the Economic & Strategic Research group, Fout worked in the Underwriting and Pricing division of Fannie Mae focusing on issues related to credit risk. In this role, he had primary responsibility for tracking and reporting on regional risks within Fannie Mae’s credit portfolio, developing property-level and loan-level risk models, and monitoring and evaluating portfolio-level risks and opportunities for the company’s Single-Family book of business.
 

Bill Killmer will present a legislative update at September 25 conference.

• By: MBA/MW Staff
• On: 08/02/2024 18:05:26
• In: News

MBA/MW is happy to share that Bill Killmer will present a legislative update to attendees of MBA/MW's Lenders Conference on September 25.

Senior Vice President for Legislative and Political Affairs
Mortgage Bankers Association

Bill Killmer is Senior Vice President for Legislative and Political Affairs at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). A veteran of nearly three decades in the housing arena, Bill joined MBA in 2010 and is responsible for managing the real estate finance industry's federal legislative, grassroots, and political fundraising activities, in close coordination with the MBA member leadership and its public policy, economics, public affairs, and lobbying teams. He oversees MBA's direct outreach to Congress, and is a regular guest speaker on the intersection of politics, policy, and industry issues. Under Killmer's leadership, grassroots participation through MBA's Mortgage Action Alliance has tripled, while donations to MORPAC, the industry's political action committee, have more than doubled, enhancing the association's ability to develop and execute effective advocacy strategies on the industry's behalf. 

Killmer came to MBA after nearly 20 years in the policy space at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), where he last served as Executive Vice President for Advocacy, managing all aspects of the group's public policy outreach. During his tenure at both organizations, he has been named as a Washington trade association "Top Lobbyist" by publications such as The Hill and CEO Update.  He previously served as a Senior Legislative Officer for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor during the George H.W. Bush administration. Killmer holds a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration (BBA), with a concentration in Finance, from Baylor University.

MAA Update: Senate Vote Falls Short on Motion to Proceed to Tax Bill

• By: MBA/MW Staff
• On: 08/01/2024 12:18:40
• In: News

As flagged yesterday in a Mortgage Action Alliance (MAA) update, the full Senate took a vote earlier today on a procedural “cloture” motion to proceed to a debate on H.R. 7024 – the bipartisan, House-passed tax package that includes much-needed Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program improvements and enhancements. Unfortunately, the procedural vote on the bill failed – as expected – by a tally of 48-44 (60 votes needed) due to differences over non-housing-related policy matters (such as the size and scope of the federal Child Tax Credit). Eight Senators failed to vote on that cloture motion this afternoon.

Why it matters: A broad bipartisan group of Senators have expressed strong support for the LIHTC provisions embedded in the bill’s affordable housing title. That language would restore a LIHTC program ceiling increase from 9 percent to 12.5 percent for calendar years 2023 through 2025, which would allow states to allocate more credits for affordable housing projects. It would also temporarily lower the Private Activity Bond (PAB) threshold test from 50 percent to 30 percent for 4 percent LIHTC property projects with an issue date before 2026. These changes, if enacted, have been projected to help produce an additional 200,000 rental units nationwide over a two-year span.

What’s next: Since February, MAA members have sent almost 3,000 messages urging the Senate to take a vote on H.R. 7024. That show of support for affordable housing programs like LIHTC will continue to be crucial to maintain momentum for supply-related housing credits – and other key industry priorities – as part of a more comprehensive tax policy debate in 2025.  Along with our coalition partners, MBA will continue to advocate strongly for the enactment of similar LIHTC program improvements and enhancements.

For more information, please contact Bill Killmer at (202) 557-2736, Ethan Saxon at (202) 557-2913, and George Rogers at (202) 557-2797.