FREDDIE MAC ANNOUNCES A 90-DAY FORBEARANCE PERIOD FOR ITS MULTIFAMILY SELLER/SERVICERS

New York, NY– In an effort to help multifamily sellers/servicers and borrowers work through the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Freddie Mac's Multifamily Division announced that it is offering a 90-day moratorium on payments of principal and interest to borrowers whose properties are located in areas designated by FEMA as major disaster areas qualifying for Individual Assistance.

“We are taking this step to help ensure that our multifamily seller/servicers and borrowers have the financial resources they need in the wake of this unusually destructive storm,” said Richard F. Syron, Freddie Mac chairman and CEO. “Today’s announcement further underscores Freddie Mac’s commitment to fostering a stable long-term supply of affordable apartments for America’s families.”

“Freddie Mac truly took a leadership position by offering this 90-day forbearance to its seller/servicers and borrowers so soon after the devastation caused by Katrina,” said Michael Lipson, GMAC executive vice president. “This offering demonstrates Freddie Mac’s unparalleled flexibility in working with its customers. We applaud Freddie Mac’s efforts on behalf of those who may have been negatively affected by the hurricane.”

Multifamily borrowers with properties in the major disaster areas qualified for Individual Assistance as designated by FEMA as a result of Hurricane Katrina should contact their Freddie Mac seller/servicer for more information.

This forbearance policy for Freddie Mac’s multifamily seller/servicers and borrowers complements the forbearance policy set forth for its single-family borrowers, a $100,000 donation to the Red Cross, and a combined $10 million donation from Freddie Mac and the Freddie Mac Foundation to aid relief organizations.

Since the introduction of the Freddie Mac Program Plus network of multifamily loan originators and servicers in 1993, Freddie Mac has provided financing for over 40,000 multifamily properties totaling more than $100 billion.

Freddie Mac is a stockholder-owned corporation established by Congress in 1970 to support homeownership and rental housing. Freddie Mac purchases single-family and multifamily residential mortgages and mortgage-related securities, which it finances primarily by issuing mortgage pass-through securities and debt instruments in the capital markets. Over the years, Freddie Mac has made home possible for one in six homebuyers and nearly four million renters.

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