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...

Ocwen had $155 billion of subprime servicing contracts at the end of the first quarter, more than double its next closest competitor.

One of the largest USDA mortgage lenders in the U.S. is giving the boot to third-party loan brokers.

The bulk servicing market continues to heat up. MountainView is out with two new deals.

The Mortgage Bankers Association wants lower guaranty fees from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac but is willing to barter for them.

Sen. Harry Reid is vowing that CFPB director Richard Cordray will get another vote in the Senate.

Progressives and other “Dump DeMarco” advocates are looking to a “Plan B” to replace the current acting head should Rep. Mel Watt’s nomination be significantly prolonged or even stall.

Regulation by Mortgagee Letter. The Department of Housing and Urban Development this week urged House lawmakers to grant it statutory authority to make temporary changes to the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program through mortgagee letters while working to formalize the change through rulemaking. In a hearing before the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance this week, Charles Coulter, HUD deputy assistant secretary for single-family housing, sought specific authority to limit the amount that may be drawn from ...

After some rough sailing, the FHA could use a bit of good news. In a recent audit, the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of the Inspector General found that funds held by lenders have adequately reduced FHA’s payments of single-family mortgage insurance claims. Such funds include buydown funds remaining in escrow, unapplied assistance payments, rental income, escrow funds and others. The audit focused on the FHA’s Single Family Claims Branch and was performed in response to concerns that HUD may not have the ...