Overview
- FHFA Director Bill Pulte said on X that the administration is working on a 50-year mortgage after President Trump signaled support in a Truth Social graphic, but no formal rollout details have been released.
- Post‑2008 Qualified Mortgage rules under Dodd‑Frank do not permit 40‑ or 50‑year terms, meaning broader use would require regulatory or legislative changes or would be limited to higher‑rate non‑QM loans.
- Longer amortization would reduce monthly payments but substantially increase total interest paid and slow the pace at which homeowners build equity, according to analysts’ comparisons.
- Economists caution the move could raise home prices and increase default and interest‑rate risk, while Republicans including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie criticized the idea in public posts.
- If Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were to purchase such loans, the GSEs would face unresolved secondary‑market issues including securitization pools and investor demand.