Welcome to the Ginnie Mae Web Site

Supporting the Expansion of Affordable Housing in America

Message from the President

Ginnie Mae has been a cornerstone of the U.S. housing finance system since it was created more than 40 years ago. Our organization attracts private capital to the U.S. housing market and facilitates government-insured financing without imposing undue risk on the taxpayer. We have continued to deliver liquidity to the housing finance system during periods of economic stress, and remain a strong supplier of capital that finances affordable single-family and rental housing.

Since the onset of the credit crisis in September 2008, Ginnie Mae has guaranteed $1.3 trillion in MBS, enabling it to play a direct role in providing homeownership and housing opportunities for 5.1 million households. Ginnie Mae continued in this role during FY 2011 by providing guarantees on $350.4 billion in securities, representing nearly 1.6 million households across the country. Ginnie Mae's growth is the result of the countercyclical support it has provided to the housing finance system during the housing downturn, and the operational capabilities that enable Ginnie Mae to step in and provide such support when the private market has retreated.

Ginnie Mae is well positioned to continue providing this support. It has accumulated substantial reserves over the years and throughout the crisis has remained profitable. For FY 2011, Ginnie Mae earned excess revenues over expenses (profit) or nearly $1.2 billion. In fact, nearly every year since its inception, Ginnie Mae has earned money for taxpayers. That is no small accomplishment given the economy and performance of other organizations in the MBS market. I truly believe there is no government or industry MBS market player safer and more secure than Ginnie Mae.

In part, Ginnie Mae remains financially strong because it takes a conservative approach to the management of its MBS program. The foundation of the Ginnie Mae business is the simple pass-through security. Ginnie Mae does not hold mortgage-backed securities or whole loan portfolios for investment purposes. Therefore, it is not subject to the mark-to-market losses often associated with these assets nor does it need sophisticated derivatives to hedge interest rate risk. Additionally, the collateral underlying its securities is government-insured. I believe avoiding undue risk has served Ginnie Mae well.

It is easier to effectively manage risk when it is clear who you serve. Thus, at Ginnie Mae, we are aided by the fact that we do not have the fundamental conflict between executing the nation's housing policy and earning a return for private shareholders. Ultimately, the taxpayers are our shareholders. This allows Ginnie Mae to act as an excellent steward of the U.S. government's full faith and credit guaranty.

Being a good steward of taxpayer interests is not our only priority; we are also committed to keeping housing affordable. The Ginnie Mae MBS is a primary way of doing so because it ensures that a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is available regardless of the economic environment. Prior to Ginnie Mae inventing the MBS 40 years ago, local areas experienced regional credit crunches. Since that time, our nation's capital markets have been transformed by the ease with which capital now flows into local housing markets through the mortgage-backed security.

We are proud of creating the MBS, and of our role in maintaining a stable housing finance system. We intend to further solidify our already strong foundation in the secondary market by comprehensively evaluating our current programs and relationships with investors and Issuers. At Ginnie Mae, we will continue helping lead the country out of its housing problems and serving you well in the coming years.