WASHINGTON–The White House is reportedly “furious” with Bill Pulte, director of Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), who reportedly talked President Trump into supporting a plan for 50-year mortgage terms in order to make housing more affordable.
The CU Daily first reported the plan here, including a social media post by Pulte that read, “Thanks to President Trump, we are indeed working on The 50 year Mortgage – a complete game changer,” Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte wrote in a statement on the social platform X.
“The White House was blindsided by the idea, according to two people familiar with the situation granted anonymity to discuss internal thinking, and is now dealing with a furious backlash from conservative allies, business leaders and lawmakers,” according to Politico.
The report noted that over the weekend Pulte arrived at President Donald Trump’s West Palm Beach Golf Club with a roughly 3-by-5 posterboard in hand. A graphic of former President Franklin Roosevelt appeared below “30-year mortgage” and one of Trump below “50-year mortgage.” The headline was “Great American Presidents.”
Roughly 10 minutes later, Trump posted the image to Truth Social.
‘Angry Phone Calls’
“Almost immediately, aides were fielding angry phone calls from those who thought the idea – which would endorse a 50 year payback period for a mortgage – was both bad politics and bad policy, a move that could raise housing costs in the long run, the person said,” according to Politico. ““He just sold POTUS a bill of goods that wasn’t necessarily accurate. He said ‘FDR did it, you can do it, it’s gonna be a big thing.’ But he didn’t tell him about all the unintended consequences.”
Later, Trump said during an interview on Fox News that “All it means is you pay less per month, Pay it over a longer period of time. It’s not like a big factor. It might help a little bit.”
Immediate Pushback
As the CU Daily reported there was almost immediate pushback on the plan, from members of Congress to real estate experts to conservative think tanks.
