[1] The bill, whose full title was "An Act to revitalize the housing industry by strengthening the financial stability of home mortgage lending institutions and ensuring the availability of home mortgage loans," was a Reagan Administration initiative.

[2] The bill is named after its sponsors, Congressman Fernand St Germain, Democrat of Rhode Island, and Senator Jake Garn, Republican of Utah.

The bill had broad support in Congress, with co-sponsors including Charles Schumer and Steny Hoyer.

[4] An important consumer change was to allow anyone to place real estate, consisting of one to four dwelling units, into their own trust without triggering the due-on-sale clause.

According to a 2022 study, this shift happened as a consequence of the congressional reforms of the 1970s, which undermined parochial and Southern populist interests within the Democratic Party.