Brian T. Moynihan, Bank of America Corp.’s chief executive officer, said the U.S. government, lenders and borrowers need to reset their expectation that everyone can own a home.
“We need to look hard at some of the old assumptions and ask the question is homeownership the right solution for everyone?” Moynihan said Friday in remarks prepared for delivery at the Brookings Institution in Washington.
The reset should include a modified role for government in housing, Moynihan said. He called for an “orderly transition” in the role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and said the Federal Housing Administration needs to return to its original focus on helping low- and moderate-income borrowers.
“FHA has been instrumental in sustaining the market the past few years, but they have come a long way from their original mission,” he said.
The government mortgage insurer said last month it would raise premiums and sell off delinquent loans after disclosing it might need U.S. Treasury aid to balance its books for the first time in its 78-year history.
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