Yep.
And according to banking analysts at Fox-Pitt Kelton ( Howard Shapiro ) Fannie and Freddie would have to post pre-tax losses and writedowns of about $77 BILLION before the U.S. would be compelled to start a rescue.
Fannie Mae would need to lose $40 billion ``immediately'' and Freddie Mac $37 billion to be considered insolvent, New York- based Fox-Pitt analyst Howard Shapiro said in a report this week. For Fannie Mae, house prices would need to decline 40 percent nationally and delinquency rates would need to rise as much as 10-fold to 12 percent on loans from 2006 and 2007 to reach critical capital levels, Shapiro said.
``We believe this is very unlikely,'' Shapiro said.