Fannie, Freddie Will Need U.S. Cash Bailout, WSJ Survey Shows

By Chris Peterson

Aug. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The majority of economists polled by the Wall Street Journal believe the U.S. government will have to provide cash to prop up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the country's main providers of mortgage finance.

The 53 economists polled said on average that there was a 59 percent chance funding would be needed from the backup plan put in place by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson last month; 68 percent said Fannie and Freddie should be pushed to raise capital privately, although one in three said the pair should be nationalized and then split into smaller units when the housing market recovers, the Journal reported.