A Helpless Housing Market Keeps Fannie and Freddie in LimboA Helpless Housing Market Keeps Fannie and Freddie in Limbo

Mortgage-industry industry leaders will attend a summit with government officials today (Tuesday) to discuss how to reform Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNMA ) and Freddie Mac (OTC: FMCC ), the two mortgage giants that so far have devoured close to $150 billion in taxpayer bailout funds. However, that meeting is likely to be derailed by a far greater problem: After making modest progress, the housing market again appears on the verge of collapse. "There's been a feeling in government, which seems to be more pervasive than it was six months ago, that says, 'We've solved this housing problem; let's move on to Fannie and Freddie,'" Laurie Goodman, a senior managing director at mortgage-bond trader Amherst Securities Group LP in New York told The Wall Street Journal . " But you haven't solved this housing problem. We have another round of home prices going down a little more ."