FHFA Requests Input on Multifamily Tenant Protections

June 5, 2023

The Federal Housing Finance Agency last Tuesday requested input on tenant protections at multifamily properties with mortgages backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

FHFA’s RFI is part of the Biden Administration’s January 2023 announcement of a set of actions it will take in order to enhance tenant protections and further principles of fair housing. That announcement included new actions by several federal agencies, a “Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights” and a voluntary challenge to the industry to adopt stronger policies and practices that better serve tenants. MBA and other industry stakeholders have met with the Biden Administration numerous times over the last several months on the topic of tenant protections and have stressed the importance of increasing affordable housing supply and avoiding unnecessary regulations such as rent control

FHFA noted Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have a public mission to support the availability of safe, decent and affordable housing through their role as secondary market participants in the multifamily housing market. “This request for input will assist FHFA in exploring possible ways that the enterprises could advance their mission,” FHFA said. “Specifically, the RFI will collect information that highlights tenants’ experiences and stakeholders’ perspectives and solicit ideas for improved data collection to better quantify the size and scope of the issues identified by tenants.”

FHFA Director Sandra Thompson said the enterprises have a responsibility to not only ensure liquidity is available for affordable rental housing, but also to address challenges faced by tenants and property owners in the multifamily housing market. “FHFA is seeking public input to help identify these challenges nationwide, particularly in underserved communities,” she said.

FHFA invited interested parties to provide written input, feedback and information on all aspects of this RFI by July 31, 2023. Comments may be submitted via www.FHFA.gov (select “Tenant Protections” from the “Select a Topic” menu) or mailed to the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Office of Multifamily Analytics and Policy, 400 7th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20219.

MBA will work with its members to review the RFI and will provide recommendations by the July 31, 2023 deadline. For more information, contact Stephanie Milner at smilner@mba.org at (202) 557-2747