Fox News op-ed links Trump Accounts to a proposed Trump Mortgage program

Trump Accounts and the author's personal example

Fox News reports that the writer says his daughter Margot was born in March of last year, and that he recently enrolled her in a Trump Account. He describes the account as President Donald Trump's effort to help American children start building wealth early. The article says eligible children born between 2025 and 2028 would receive a $1,000 federal contribution, which the writer says could grow over decades of investment.

The case for a homeownership program

The writer, identified as a former Federal Housing Administration commissioner, says Trump Accounts should be only the first step in helping young Americans build wealth. He argues that a new policy should help families achieve financial independence through first-time homeownership. He says the nation is at a pivotal moment for creating policies that help younger generations buy homes.

Why the writer says homeownership is harder now

Fox News reports that the writer says he bought his first home at age 20 for $200,000 with an FHA-insured mortgage that required 3.5% down, or $7,000, and he also used an $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit. He says that property has more than doubled in value. He adds that he worries the path to owning a home is becoming harder for his daughter's generation. Citing the National Association of Realtors, he says first-time buyers made up 21% of home purchases, which he says is the lowest share on record since tracking began in 1981.

How the proposed Trump Mortgage would work

The article says the writer proposes a "Trump Mortgage" program for qualified first-time buyers, with mortgage rates one to 1.5 percentage points below prevailing market rates. He says the Treasury, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could buy mortgage bonds tied to qualifying first-time buyer loans, using the secondary bond market to lower financing costs. He says this would resemble a strategy already being used by Secretary Bessent and FHFA Director Pulte.

Limits, tax-exempt bonds and a payment example

Fox News reports that the writer says the government should hold the bonds while interest rates stay high and sell them when rates fall. He says the plan would not amount to free money because Treasury, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac already buy mortgage-backed securities, and he says any version would need limits on size, funding costs, prepayment risk and taxpayer exposure. He also says Congress should expand existing tax-exempt mortgage financing, noting that state housing finance agencies have used tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds for decades. He says Congress already has bipartisan legislation to expand these programs.

The article includes an example in which a young couple buys a $350,000 home with a $330,000, 30-year mortgage. Fox News reports that the writer says a 6.5% rate would mean about $2,086 a month in principal and interest, while a 5% rate would reduce that to about $1,772. He says that savings of more than $300 a month, and $100,000 over the life of the loan, could help determine whether a family keeps renting or buys a home.

Homebuilding and the broader goal

Fox News reports that the writer says lower mortgage rates will not solve the housing shortage by themselves. He says efforts to expand financing should be paired with policies that make it easier to build more homes. He says that while leading the FHA, he saw reforms that could reduce costs, improve efficiency and expand access to homeownership without lowering responsible lending standards. He closes by saying he hopes Margot will inherit a country where buying a first home is a realistic milestone, and he says Trump Accounts and a Trump Mortgage could help turn early wealth-building into homeownership.