Trump orders his representatives to buy $200 billion dollars in mortgage bonds

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House

WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he is ordering his representatives to buy $200 billion dollars in mortgage bonds, adding that the step aimed to bring down housing costs.

“Because I chose not to sell Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in my First Term … it is now worth many times that amount — AN ABSOLUTE FORTUNE — and has $200 BILLION DOLLARS IN CASH” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

“I am instructing my Representatives to BUY $200 BILLION DOLLARS IN MORTGAGE BONDS. This will drive Mortgage Rates DOWN, monthly payments DOWN, and make the cost of owning a home more affordable,” Trump wrote on social media.”

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Ryan Patrick Jones)