A coalition of mortgage lenders and homebuilders has asked the Federal Reserve Board to make compliance with two interim rules implementing the Mortgage Disclosure Improvement Act optional. The rules are intended to clarify previously issued regulations requiring mortgage lenders to disclose...

A West Virginia judge has ordered Quicken Loans to pay a 45-year old licensed practical nurse and her adult disabled daughter more than $2.7 million in punitive damages and legal costs after finding the lender guilty of fraudulent and deceptive mortgage lending practices. In a Feb. 17 decision, Judge Arthur Recht of the Circuit Court of Ohio County, WV, concluded...

The compensation formula that will most likely be used by mortgage loan originators to comply with the Federal Reserve’s final rule is a percentage of the loan-funded balance with a minimum floor, according to the California Association of Mortgage Professionals. In an analysis of the rule, the CAMP said MLOs will most likely choose...

The Federal Reserve Board has issued a final rule and sought comment on a proposed rule to revise escrow requirements for first-lien jumbo mortgage loans and first-lien, higher-priced mortgages, respectively. The changes to Regulation Z, which implements...

Florida. State Attorney General Pam Bondi has launched a civil investigation into the foreclosure practices of a Ft. Lauderdale law firm shortly after Fannie Mae quit sending business to the firm. Ben-Ezra & Katz and its principals, Marc Ben-Ezra and Marvin Katz, are...

The House Financial Services Committee intends to conduct a hearing to examine the impact of the Federal Reserve’s recent regulation governing compensation to mortgage loan originators. In its oversight plan for the 112th Congress, the HFSC expressed concern that the Fed’s LO pay rules, which take effect April 1, may have an adverse impact on...

The Small Business Administration has joined other stakeholders in asking the Federal Reserve Board to postpone the April 1 implementation date of its final rule on mortgage loan originator compensation. In a recent letter, the SBA’s Office of Advocacy said the compliance guidance for small businesses it had requested...

Most mortgage industry groups have expressed support for a proposal by the Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) to require non-bank residential mortgage lenders and loan originators to establish anti-money laundering (AML) plans and report suspicious financial transactions. The groups, which represent...

CSBS. Registration of mortgage loan originators (MLOs) employed by federally supervised financial institutions is now in full swing. On Jan. 31, the Conference of State Bank Supervisors announced the opening of the Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System and Registry to registration applications from...

Department of Housing and Urban Development Final SAFE Act Rule to OMB. On Feb. 8, HUD sent a final rule under the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act to the Office of Management and Budget for review. The final rule would clarify and interpret...