The Department of Housing and Urban Development released its long-awaited “disparate impact” final rule last week, formalizing for the first time the long-held interpretation of the Fair Housing Act by HUD, which has repeatedly asserted that housing policies and practices can be determined to be discriminatory not simply through their intent, but also by their effect. “As we’ve learned over the years, housing discrimination comes in many forms. Discrimination doesn’t have to be intentional in order to have a damaging...
The CFPB’s legal position on a borrower’s right of rescission under the Truth In Lending Act again swayed the day for a consumer. This time, it was the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, in Sherzer v. Homestar Mortgage Services, that agreed with the bureau’s legal argument that a lawsuit filed more than three years after a mortgage has been closed can be brought, so long as the borrower sent the lender a written notice of rescission within the three-year period.In this instance, borrowers Daniel and Geraldine Sherzer obtained...
Many in the mortgage finance industry were unsettled with the recent Canning v. National Labor Relations Board ruling, fearing compliance chaos could ensue right as the industry is about to be confronted with implementing a handful of critical new regulations that will transform the landscape of mortgage lending for decades to come, such as the new ability-to-repay final rule. However, some top industry compliance attorneys urged the industry to press on full-speed ahead with their compliance efforts, regardless of the uncertainty...
CFPB Director Richard Cordray told an assemblage of financial industry representatives last week that it would be a mistake for prudential regulators to examine institutions in such a way as to steer them toward providing only mortgages that can be defined as “qualified” under the bureau’s ability-to-repay rule, according to one industry source in attendance. Cordray said the CFPB wants other types of mortgages to flourish as well, the source continued. Bureau staff added that they would expect the percentage of QMs in the...
CFPB Warns Servicers to Protect Borrowers When Transferring Servicing. As Inside the CFPB went to press, the bureau issued a bulletin reminding mortgage servicers about their legal obligations to protect borrowers during transfers of mortgage servicing between firms. Through public feedback and its supervision activities, the CFPB said it has noted a significant number of servicing complications stemming from the large amount of servicing transfers that have taken place in the last year. In a number of instances...
CFPB Director to Testify Before Senate Panel. CFPB Director Richard Cordray is among a number of federal financial regulators scheduled to testify the morning of Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013, before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee on the subject, “Wall Street Reform: Oversight of Financial Stability and Consumer and Investor Protections.” This will be Cordray’s first appearance before Congress since the Canning v. National Labor Relations Board decision was issued by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. FHA Chief to...
New issuance of agency single-family MBS jumped 25 percent from December to January, according to a new Inside MBS & ABS ranking and analysis. The most likely explanation for the sudden jump in agency MBS issuance may be that new, more seller-friendly repurchase policies at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac went into effect for loans sold after Jan. 1, 2013. The revamped policies generally provide that the government-sponsored enterprises will not seek repurchase or indemnification for loans that perform for the first three years after origination. In the case of Home Affordable Refinance Program loans, repurchases will be waived...[Includes one data chart]
The securitization industry has successfully shot down high-profile attempts in San Bernardino County, CA, and in Chicago to use eminent domain to seize underwater, performing mortgages, write them down to fair market value and repackage them for sale to other investors. However, they’re not letting their guard down, as similar efforts continue in a number of other local jurisdictions throughout the country – most notably Brockton, MA, and Salinas, CA. In Brockton, the City Council recently voted 9-2 in favor of setting up a working group to further explore the concept. It also voted to invite a handful of local community activists and city officials, as well as a representative from Mortgage Resolution Partners – the architect of the proposal – to appear before the finance committee. The issue on their agenda is...
David Schneider, CEO of Vericrest Financial, a fast growing servicer that is rumored to be a bidder on Ally Financial’s $122 billion of mortgage servicing rights, has left the company, sources familiar with the situation told Inside Mortgage Finance. Schneider could not be reached for comment at deadline. A spokeswoman for the company would not comment on the situation but would not deny his departure either. Schneider has been building bridges in the servicing community…
RSS