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Originally Posted by LegendaryLars
http://www.homeownershipalliance.com...eownership.php
Who are the major investors in mortgages in the United States?
In 1999, commercial banks and thrifts provided about 27 percent of the total investment in mortgages. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac accounted for 17 and 16 percent of mortgages respectively. The rest of the investment came from life insurance companies, pension funds, credit unions, foreign investors and other sources, including private individuals.
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hmm. good link, but i bet that number has grown significantly. nevertheless, those "companies" are known as government sponsored enterprises (GSEs). that means they are backed up by the federal gov't. this enables them to borrow on the cheap to buy mortgages. they can borrow cheap, because their debt is backed up by the treasury. both of them have been in deep shit recently, and i bet you the true damage is only known to a few deep insiders. if the public knew how fucked they were, people might panic. 2 trillion dollar between them is huge when our total GDP is - what - 10 - 11 trilion?