In the aftermath of the housing market bubble, the federal government placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac under a financial conservatorship to help the housing market recover. Some

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-backed mortgage giants, could be headed for privatization under Donald Trump 's second term, a move experts say might drive mortgage rates higher in a housing market already plagued by affordability challenges.

Political challenges stand in the way of the president-elect pulling off what the hedge fund manager called “the biggest deal he’s ever done.”

Shares of government-backed home loan giants Fannie Mae (OTC:FNMA) and Freddie Mac (OTC:FMCC) experienced a slump on Thursday, even as Bill Ackman from Pershing Square put forward a positive argument for the stocks,