Mortgage clearinghouses Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced that in addition to rescinding fee increases they may be scaling back current surcharges. During the Mortgage Bankers Association’s annual meeting, a discussion panel revealed that Fannie and Freddie are in the process of reevaluating pricing of their loan guarantees and working harder to keep borrowers out of foreclosure.

Currently, all but the most bullet-proof of applications are loaded with risk-adjustment fees–extra charges for higher loan-to-value ratios (in addition to the mortgage insurance required for these loans), ARMs or even fixed rate loans exceeding 15 years, interest-only, 40 years terms, investment property, multi-family property, cash-out refinances, condos, high-rises, mobile homes, etc., and big add-ons for credit scores formerly considered acceptable or even good. Fannie Mae’s Loan-Level Price Adjustment Matrix, gives this example:

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