Senate banking committee asks Fannie and Freddie to freeze foreclosures...

Members of the U.S. Senate Banking Committee have asked Fannie and Freddie to freeze foreclosures for loans in their portfolio's for 90 days.

``This action would provide immediate relief to many homeowners'' and let the companies ``turn these non-performing loans into performing assets to minimize losses,'' Senators Charles Schumer, Robert Menendez and other panel Democrats said today in a letter to the companies and the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which is overseeing them under the government conservatorship. The companies also should ease their policies on modifying mortgages, the senators wrote.