Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are private companies with deep ties to the government. Fannie Mae was created during the Depression as part of the New Deal as a way to revive a collapsed housing market by providing mortgage guarantees to low- and middle-income Americans. Today they own or guarantee a mind-boggling $5 trillion in loans far more than any other lender, which is why the fear that they could go under has been so nerve rattling. ‘If they were to go out of business, most of middle America would not be able to get a mortgage,’ said Howard Shapiro, an analyst for global adviser Fox-Pitt, Kelton. Even if you haven’t heard of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, there’s a good chance, if you’re a homeowner, they own your loan. Here’s how it works: After a bank gives you a mortgage, it often packages it with other mortgages and sells it, most often to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. If Fannie and Freddie were to fail, analysts say mortgage rates would soar, mortgage lending would grind to a halt and borrowers of all kinds would pay higher rates sinking the economy […]