Fannie/Freddie support must help homeowners: Obama

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama said on Sunday any government action to support Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should give top priority to the interests of homeowners -- not just shareholders, managers or investors.

The U.S. Treasury was expected to affirm its support for troubled mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on Sunday in a bid to calm concerns before a Freddie Mac debt sale on Monday that is likely to be a key test of investor confidence.

Asked if such action was appropriate without guarantees from the firms, and without congressional involvement, Obama said keeping homeownership affordable was essential.

"We need to do what's necessary in order to assure that mortgages are available and that people can stay in their homes," he told reporters in San Diego.

"Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are critical components of that. I don't want to comment on proposals that haven't actually been put out there yet, but my orientation, my focus, is making sure the housing market stabilizes," he said.

"I certainly think that if we're looking at it from the perspective of homeowners, then any government action should be designed to help them," Obama said.

"That should be our number one priority, not just shareholders, investors or CEOs of companies."

Obama said a lot of the pain and suffering caused by the housing crisis could have been avoided if there had been more effective regulation in place.

(Reporting by Claudia Parsons; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)