Trump appointee fires Freddie Mac CEO

Bill Pulte was quick to launch a cleaning campaign when he was confirmed as the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency on March 13.

According to reports, Pulte terminated Freddie Mac‘s CEO Diana Reid on Thursday. The website of the government-backed Mortgage Financing Provider lists Freddie Mac’s President Michael Hutchins, as interim CEO.

Reid’s LinkedIn profile stated that she has retired on Monday.

Hutchins had previously stepped up as interim CEO after the March 2024 resignation of Freddie Mac’s CEO Michael J. DeVito. He was succeeded by Reid in September 2024, who headed PNC Financial Service Group’s real estate division for over a decade.

Hutchins, who will be Freddie Mac’s president in 2020 began his career in 2013 as a senior executive vice president. He then became an executive vice-president of investments and capital market.

According to reports, the FHFA restructured both Freddie Mac’s board and that of Fannie Mae – another government-sponsored Housing Finance System. Pulte now chairs the boards of both companies. He removed the majority of board members and appointed new ones. Christopher Stanley, an SpaceX Engineer and part of Department of Government Efficiency’s effort to reduce spending, was among the new board members. However, he resigned from the board a day after, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Leaders in the real estate industry speculate that Trump’s administration is moving towards privatizing Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, both of which are based at Tysons.

The request for comment from Freddie Mac did not receive a response immediately.