By September 2008, the sharp decline in home values in many U.S. markets left the housing finance market in crisis. A leading player in that market was, and is, the Federal National Mortgage Association, better known as Fannie Mae.
Deemed too important to let fail, the federal government placed the company into conservatorship, and appointed the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) as its conservator. It was a wrenching time for the mortgage business, and Fannie Mae was at the heart of efforts to both repair the damage and put the mortgage market on a sound long-term footing.
