- US housing official says agency working on 50-year mortgage.
- FHFA weighs “relief” for 5-, 10-, and 15-year mortgages.
- Right-wing conservatives criticize “lifetime” mortgages.
President Donald Trump downplayed potential 50-year mortgages as a way to make homes more affordable than typical 30-year loans, while some supporters opposed a plan that would make homeowners pay more interest and take longer to build equity.
“All it means is you pay less per month. You pay it over a longer period of time. It’s not a big factor. It might help a little bit,” Trump said. fox news‘”The Ingraham Angle” on Monday, blaming her Democratic predecessor Joe Biden and the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policies for concerns about housing affordability.
Conservative lawmakers, influencers in Trump’s Make America Great Again movement and economists were among those who dismissed the idea, noting that it would take longer for people to actually own their homes. Some analysts, however, said it could boost some investors.
Over the weekend on X, Republican U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote “In debt forever, in debt for life!” while right-wing activist Mike Cernovich reacted with “lifetime mortgages.”
Housing affordability is a key issue
US Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte said on Saturday that the FHFA was “working” on a five-decade-long mortgage after Trump, a Republican, posted an image of himself under the heading “50-Year Mortgage” on social media.
“A complete game changer,” Pulte wrote in X.
“We are also working on ways to provide relief on the 5-year mortgage, the 10-year mortgage and the 15-year mortgage,” he wrote separately on Sunday, without offering details and adding that the agency was examining “assumable or portable mortgages.”
The FHFA did not respond to requests for comment.
“Everyone is working together to implement the president’s policies,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle said, adding that any policy changes would be announced by the White House.
American households are grappling with increases in the cost of living even as inflation has grown at a slower pace. Prices took center stage in last week’s election, which saw Democrats sweep key races as Trump doubled down on his economic agenda.
“I don’t know if they’re saying that. I think the polls are fake. We have the greatest economy we’ve ever had,” Trump told Fox on Monday.
Affordability could remain a challenge for many prospective buyers as home prices remain high, on average nearly 60% above pre-COVID-19 levels.
While home sales rose in September, pending sales remained unexpectedly stable despite lower mortgage rates, which fell after the Federal Reserve cut benchmark interest rates last month.
Despite the lower rates, the housing market remains stagnant, with the average age of a first-time buyer at a record 38 last year, well above the reading of the late 20s that was typical in the 1980s.
‘Fix the supply side’
Trump has urged the Fed to make more drastic rate cuts; Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blamed current rates for what could already be a recession in the housing sector and White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said Tuesday that home prices remained a priority.
The US president could address housing and affordability issues in an upcoming executive order, according to people briefed on the matter.
The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is at a one-year low of 6.19% after rising to 7.04% in January, Freddie Mac data showed last month.
“It’s unclear how much this could reduce the monthly payment because we don’t know what the interest rate would be compared to a 30-year mortgage,” Daryl Fairweather, chief economist at Redfin, wrote in X. “A more effective long-term solution is to fix the supply side.”
TD Securities analysts told investors Monday that the 50-year loan idea could take at least a year to materialize and “only works if there is a corresponding increase in housing supply,” requiring lower construction costs to make it happen.
By increasing demand for homes, such mortgages could also drive up home prices, putting them even further out of reach for buyers.
Greene, who represents a Georgia district, also said more could be done to make renters qualify for mortgage loans, among other measures.
Looking at the industry, BTIG analysts said 50-year mortgages could boost companies such as Ellington Financial EFC.N, United Wholesale UWMC.N and Rocket Companies RKT.N, which owns Redfin.
