A new executive order directs federal agencies to consider changing several major mortgage regulations in part to increase mortgage lending by smaller banks. Consumer advocates raised alarms.

Among other actions, the order calls for the CFPB to revise major mortgage regulation, such as the ability-to-repay and servicing rules.

Industry attorneys said it looks like the full DC Circuit will send the National Treasury Employees Union lawsuit against the CFPB back to the district court, mandating a revision of the preliminary injunction.

Chris Willis, a partner at the law firm of Troutman Pepper Locke, said the CFPB is likely to resume investigations into pending enforcement actions.

Industry attorneys see 2025 as a “ramp up period” as certain states look to fill the federal enforcement void.

Consumer advocates said Texas-based developer Colony Ridge’s $68 million proposed settlement with the DOJ and the state’s AG doesn’t provide relief for the harmed consumers.

The Trump administration claimed that federal courts have no authority to prevent it from carrying out its duties, while the NTEU argued that blocking a planned reduction-in-force at the CFPB is essential to ensure the agency still exists at the conclusion of the lawsuit.

As of November, only 5% of consumer gripes filed with the CFPB were closed with relief, according to Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA.

Auditors gave the CFPB’s 2025 financial statements a “clean” opinion even though the bureau reported significant financial changes under new leadership.

The White House Council of Economic Advisers determined that since 2011, the CFPB’s regulatory burden has cost consumers between $237 billion and $369 billion. A CFPB booster disputes the analysis.