Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008

Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008
Citations
Public law	Pub. L. 110–289 (text) (PDF)
Statutes at Large	122 Stat. 2654
Legislative history
	Introduced in the House by Nancy Pelosi (D–CA) on July 30, 2007; Signed into law by President George W. Bush on July 30, 2008;
United States Supreme Court cases
	Collins v. Yellen, No. 19-422, 594 U.S. ___ (2021);

The United States Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (commonly referred to as HERA) was designed primarily to address the subprime mortgage crisis. It authorized the Federal Housing Administration to guarantee up to $300 billion in new 30-year fixed rate mortgages for subprime borrowers if lenders wrote down principal loan balances to 90 percent of current appraisal value. It was intended to restore confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by strengthening regulations and injecting capital into the two large U.S. suppliers of mortgage funding. States are authorized to refinance subprime loans using mortgage revenue bonds. Enactment of the Act led to the government conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.