Mortgage Veteran May Head FHA

[Update 1 reflects HUD’s announcement.] Wells Fargo Home Mortgage veteran David Stevens is expected to face an appointment later Monday to head the Federal Housing Administration. Anonymous sources told The Washington Post that Stevens, with a solid history in mortgage financing, was an attractive candidate for the administration and has been undergoing routine background checks. Stevens worked as a banker before joining Freddie Mac (FRE) in 1999 and running the single-family business there for six years. After a brief post at Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, where he worked with mortgage brokers on the wholesale channel, Stevens joined Washington-based real estate firm Long & Foster in 2006. The administration did not confirm the reports to the Post, but sources told the pub Stevens’ background makes him a prime candidate. “They needed someone with a deep knowledge of the mortgage industry because of the challenges facing the country and the FHA in particular, and he fits the bills,” one source told the Post. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released a statement late Monday confirming that Stevens had been nominated for housing assistant secretary and FHA commissioner, although the White House had not yet posted the nomination. Stevens told HousingWire he could not comment “until the White House does.” Write to Diana Golobay at diana.golobay@housingwire.com. Disclosure: The author held no relevant investment positions when this story was published. Indirect holdings may exist via mutual fund investments. HW reporters and writers follow a strict disclosure policy, the first in the mortgage trade.