Among the critical areas that mortgage lenders must pay close attention to in the CFPB’s ability-to-repay, qualified mortgage rule is what’s known as Appendix Q, which contains detailed underwriting guidance on how creditors must calculate the debt-to-income ratio in order to make a general QM loan subject to the 43 percent DTI limit. As adopted, Appendix Q generally requires items to be considered and verified for the two prior years, and requires well-documented projections for the following three years. However, on April 22...
The National Association of Federal Credit Unions is apprehensive about the unintended consequences of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s decision to limit Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac future mortgage purchases to ‘qualified mortgages’ as defined by the final rule issued earlier this year by the CFPB. Earlier this month, the FHFA directed the two government-sponsored enterprises to limit their future mortgage acquisitions to loans that meet the requirements for a qualified mortgage, including those that meet the special or...
Most of the CFPB’s requirements stemming from its blizzard of mortgage rulemakings in January take effect sometime next year. But there are a few notable exceptions, including the Truth in Lending Act ban on mandatory arbitration provisions in certain mortgage loans, which kicks in June 1, 2013. “Lenders now using mortgage loan documentation containing such provisions should take steps to ensure that they (and references to them) are removed from documentation to be used for loans that will be subject to the ban,” said Alan...
Aspects of the CFPB’s ability-to-repay rule and ‘qualified mortgage’ standards may make credit access difficult for homebuyers with low credit scores, including many low-income and first-time homebuyers, Federal Reserve Board Governor Elizabeth Duke said recently. “First, the QM requirement that borrower payments on all debts and some recurring obligations must be 43 percent or less of borrower income may disproportionately affect less-advantaged borrowers,” Duke said. “Board staff tabulations based on the Survey of Consumer Finances...
Based on a referral from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the CFPB has compelled a Texas homebuilder to surrender more than $100,000 he received in alleged kickbacks for referring mortgage origination business to entities the bureau asserts are sham mortgage companies. According to the CFPB, the homebuilder, Paul Taylor, received illegal referral fees through partnerships with Benchmark Bank and Willow Bend Mortgage Company. Taylor and Benchmark created and jointly owned Stratford Mortgage Services LC, which claimed to...
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