Taxpayers have spent about $169 billion to rescue Fannie and Freddie, the most expensive bailout of the 2008 financial crisis. The government estimates it could cost up to $51 billion more to support the companies through 2014.

Freddie and Washington-based Fannie own or guarantee about half of all U.S. mortgages, or nearly 31 million home loans worth more than $5 trillion. Along with other federal agencies, they backed nearly 90 percent of new mortgages over the past year.

Charles E. Haldeman Jr., Freddie’s chief executive, said many homeowners are refinancing at lower mortgage rates or are shortening the terms of their mortgage. While that saves homeowners money, it is pushing Freddie deeper into the red.

“In fact, borrowers we helped to refinance will save an average of $2,500 in interest payments during the next year,” he said.

Meanwhile, on July 9, 2011, rightwinggranny.com reported that Eric Holder’s Justice Department has asked several major banks to relax their lending standards in order to make home ownership available to more Americans. Here we go again.