Freddie Mac is a nickname for the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, which is a government-chartered corporation that buys qualified residential mortgage loans from the financial institutions that originate them, securitizes the loans, and repackages them to sell as investment securities. The securities are not guaranteed by the U.S. Government and their market value fluctuates. Bonds issued by Freddie Mac are called agency bonds, which are considered almost as safe as Treasurys, but pay higher yields.
