A streamlined version of the “Jumpstart GSE Reform Act,” recently reintroduced in Congress, then placed on hold and reintroduced again, could be considered before the end of the year. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Bob Corker, R-TN, Mark Warner, D-VA, and Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, would bar the Treasury from selling its stock in the two government-sponsored enterprises and prevent increases in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac guaranty fees to pay for other government spending. An earlier version of the bill that Corker tried to fast-track through the Senate did not include...

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has issued a final rule to allow more lenders to qualify as smaller creditors doing business in rural and underserved areas. The final rule, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2016, amends certain mortgage rules issued by the CFPB in 2013 under the Dodd-Frank Act. Specifically, the final rule lifts the current origination limit to qualify for “small creditor” status from 500 mortgage loans annually to 2,000 mortgage loans per year – a limit that also excludes loans retained in portfolio from the 2,000-loan cap. In addition, the rule now includes...

Industry groups stepped up their pressure on Congress to block a proposed rule that would alter membership requirements in the Federal Home Loan Bank system. The latest letter came this week and was signed by the Mortgage Bankers Association, National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, Independent Community Bankers of America and Habitat for Humanity International. The Federal Housing Finance Agency proposed...

Ginnie Mae executive Michael Drayne raised concerns about the growing reliance on subservicers and whether there’s enough capacity at these companies...

CFPB Director Richard Cordray believes the mortgage industry overreacted on the issue...

David Lykken, managing partner of Transformational Mortgage Solutions, said he welcomes PIMCO’s investment, believing that it’s a huge positive for the industry.

Cordray is pushing hard to see the guidance released before the Oct. 3, 2015, effective date of the TRID rule, which is Saturday.

The congressman said the decision to sell thousands of loans at a time at sharp discounts to the highest bidder “continues to enrich Wall Street at the expense of neighborhoods and community-based organizations.”

Or as Marc Savitt of the National Association of Independent Housing Professionals put it: “Nothing will pass as long as Obama still has a pen…”

MBA chief Stevens said he and a “certain group of individuals” met with the HUD secretary last Friday to discuss the topic.