WASHINGTON–For the first time a government-sponsored entity has agreed to guarantee the debt of an institutional owner of single-family houses.
In this case, Fannie Mae has agreed to backstop up to $1 billion in debt from the country's largest owner of single-family rental homes, Blackstone Group LP's Invitation Homes Inc., which disclosed such an agreement with Fannie in a filing detailing the company's finances ahead of its planned initial public offering.
After the foreclosure crisis, the New York investment firm spent roughly $10 billion buying and fixing up houses to rent through Invitation Homes, according to reports.
One analyst said that Fannie Mae's involvement is an indicator that it believes homeownership will remain out of reach for many Americans and that Wall Street's housing wager will become a long-term business, not just an opportunistic trade made after the foreclosure crisis.
Fannie's support will likely make it cheaper for buyers like Blackstone to add homes in the future, analysts say.