Obama Mulls Mortgage-Industry Fees

It will be interesting to see if Republicans support this: President Obama is considering new fees for the mortgage industry that would essentially require companies to pay for federal backing. The move comes amid a general consensus that the mortgage market needs federal support to keep functioning. The Wall Street Journal says administration officials want the cost of a guarantee fully offset by the industry. The government is hoping to avoid a repeat of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac fiasco, which Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said was due to the firms not adequately charging for the risk they were taking on.