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Fannie Mae has been working to reduce the climate impact of housing in the U.S. since 2011. That’s a big task, as energy use by homes accounts for 19 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions; home construction and water use have even more impact. And the reach of Fannie Mae, officially the Federal National Mortgage Association, is vast. The privately owned company, created by Congress in 1938, provides the funding for more than 25 percent of the home loans in the United States.
Fannie Mae’s green programs are also big. Last year, the company provided $8.9 billion in financing to support more climate-efficient housing. But that represented only 2.4 percent of the company’s $371 billion volume.
To understand the company’s challenges as it tries to reduce the carbon footprint of the housing it finances, GreenBiz spoke with Laurel Davis, Fannie Mae’s senior vice president for ESG and Mission.