The fact that these groups hold the mortgages for 97% of Americans means their financial floundering will affect millions of Americans. Homeowners can do nothing but hope, but if you have stupidly invested in these companies you should see if you can recoup your loses. Doubtful but worth a shot.

From The Boston Herald:

NEW YORK — Government-sponsored mortgage purchasers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac plan to delist their shares from the New York Stock Exchange. Their shares tumbled in morning trading.

Fannie Mae shares dropped 22 cents, or 23 percent to 70 cents, while Freddie Mac slid 25 cents, or 20 percent, to 97 cents.

The companies’ regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said Wednesday that it expects Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac shares to trade on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board, an electronic quotation service.

Not a surprise of course, but all you “green shootists” should think about how this fits into your “jobless recovery” narrative.

Market Watch reports that the mortgage backers were forced to de-list by the Federal Housing Finance Authority and are also de-listing from the Chicago Securities Exchange. Fannie Mae then makes this snort worthy statement:

Fannie Mae does not expect that the transfer of the trading of its common and preferred stock to the OTCBB will affect, in any way, Fannie Mae’s ability to fulfill its mission to provide liquidity and stability to the mortgage market, or its focus on home-retention, foreclosure-prevention, and refinance efforts under the Making Home Affordable Program. The transition to the OTCBB also will not affect the company’s obligation to file periodic and certain other reports with the SEC under applicable federal securities laws.

By that they mean that the government is about to swoop in and uses tax revenue to continue to prop up this corporatist fiasco. So Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s problems are about to hit every American in the pocketbook.