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62 "He has been a gigantic cheerleader for Ginnie Mae securities internationally," Cipponeri said. "I mean, during the crisis, when a lot of the international investors did not want to invest in U.S. mortgage-backed securities, he was tirelessly out there pitching that, saying 'No, this is fully U.S.-government backed.' He's done a lot of really, really good things." According to Gibbons, it was Tozer's sheer knowledge and experience that positioned him to do those things. "An American mortgage market was not a place that investors were interested in putting money," Gibbons said. "You needed somebody who understood how to reassure very nervous people about what was likely to happen, and he had the authority and the background to do that." It was that same authority and background that helped Tozer right the ship when the waters got rough. Taking the helm at the tail-end of the financial crisis, he had an uphill battle from the beginning. But according to those who were there through it all, he took the challenge in stride—and his leadership provided a much-needed light at the end of the tunnel for American borrowers. "ese were dangerous periods of time, and we had significant decisions to make within the context of no history, no precedent that would be comparable," Gibbons said. "We relied on the ability of Ted to analyze the problems along with us." Konyk said it was Tozer's leadership that made Ginnie Mae "a rock in the marketplace" and "one of the brightest spots government had" throughout the crisis. "e industry needed an outlet for their loans and the borrowers in this country needed the ability to get a mortgage," he said. "Ginnie's ability to keep the lending faucet open when a lot of the other sources of mortgage credit constricted significantly was vitally important to not just the industry who serve them, but to the borrowers in this country who wanted to buy or refinance their homes." Like much of his accomplishments, Tozer downplays his role in Ginnie's near-spotless emergence from the storm. "We only had 10 to 12 issuers go broke," Tozer said. "It really showed the strength of the Ginnie Mae program." FORGING AHEAD As the longest-lasting Ginnie Mae president in history, there's no doubt Tozer made an impact on the agency—and the industry at large. But just because he's left his appointment doesn't mean his job is done. Tozer still has plenty of work to do. Hoping to consult and use his experience and insight for good, Tozer has a number of ideas on how to improve the industry and better serve the American homebuyer. Most of his concerns? ey revolve around the ever-increasing costs getting passed on to the consumer. e Dodd-Frank Act, compliance fines and fees from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the ever-rising costs of defaulting borrowers are all driving up lender expenses—and in the end, there doesn't seem to be a balance between benefit and cost on the consumer side, Tozer said. "ere's not this kind of analysis going on," Tozer said. "Has the borrower gotten their dollar's worth? At the end of the day, we should do an analysis. If a regulation is going to cost $100 a loan, will that consumer get $100 worth of benefit? And if they don't, then you basically shortchange the borrower. I think that's what's missing in the Dodd-Frank discussions. It's this cost-benefit analysis. at's what it ultimately comes down to." But regulations aren't just increasing costs. Because the Department of Justice and CFPB are focusing on enforcement, doling out hefty incompliance fines and penalties, it's also causing lenders to shrink the credit box. "It's very difficult to convince capital today to go take a risk on repayment in that sector when they have to risk not only the repayment of their capital, but whether or not the government will spank them for how they deployed it in the first place," Konyk said. Dodd-Frank, the CFPB, and many of the industry's recent regulatory changes are well meaning, Tozer said, but the question is simple: "Is the medicine going to be more dangerous than the disease itself?" Cipponeri shared a similar sentiment, saying that even though mortgage rates have been low as of late, they should be much lower—and Dodd-Frank is part of the problem. "I think the intentions were good, but the execution was punitive. Really, really punitive," he said. "Eighty percent of all the costs and all the pain of Dodd-Frank just gets passed on to the consumer. It's much harder to get a mortgage, and it's much more expensive to get a mortgage than it should be because of Dodd- Frank." Ultimately, Tozer doesn't think Dodd- Frank or the CFPB should be eliminated—just refocused a bit. "Sometimes you have these unintended consequences and you have to keep re-evaluating when they occur," he said. "Fine-tune your role to get it to do what you it want to do. I think that's what we've been missing with Dodd- Frank and CFPB." Tozer also has serious input on the topic of GSE reform—a particularly hot-button issue since President Trump took office in January. Naturally, he favors adopting a more Ginnie Mae-like system over the privatized structures of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. "e Ginnie structure allows lenders to expand the credit box," Tozer said. "On the government lending side, the Ginnie Mae structure has reduced the barriers of entry for new entrants, which allows disruptors to improve the experience for borrowers. In conventional mortgage lending, disruptors have to obtain permission from the middle organizations—Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac— versus in the Ginnie Mae program where there are no middle organizations." e current structuring of the conventional market is restricting access to credit, Tozer said, as is the overabundance of regulatory fines and fees. ese, according to Tozer, are pushing big banks out of the mortgage sector. According to Tozer, getting these banks back on board is crucial. "We are going to have a recession," Tozer said. "I don't care what they say. Economics is not up for appeal. We are going to have a recession sometime in the future and it could really test the housing market if the independent mortgage bankers don't have the banks to back them up." Ever the dedicated public servant, it's obvious Tozer isn't going quietly into the night just yet. "e market is still going through some growing pains," he said, "so I'd like to give my two cents for whatever it's worth. I really feel strongly about the strength of that housing market and how important it is to the American society. And I want to continue to support and be part of that."