IPO

Freddie Feels Mortgage Crisis; $4.8 Billion in Write-offs, Loan Loss Reserves 

Freddie Mac today announced its third quarter results, and it’s pretty clear that the troubles in the U.S. housing market have reached well beyond “slump” status into what may now best be described as a crisis. The GSE reported a net loss of $2.02 billion for the quarter, and absorbed both a $1.2 billion provision for credit losses as well as a $3.6 billion charge in mark-to-market activity for its portfolio assets. Earlier estimates had pegged potential losses at up to $5 billion.