The Mortgage Bankers Association urged lenders to review the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s new loan-level and lender-level certifications to assess the legal and reputation risks to FHA lending. In a statement, MBA President/CEO David Stevens further urged lenders to analyze whether the new certification language provides sufficient protection from unwarranted false claim enforcement action. The MBA statement came as the Department of Justice, commenting on the new certifications, warned that it will continue to pursue lenders that submit false statements and false claims with the intent to defraud taxpayers. The new loan-level certification language reinforces FHA’s position that lenders should not be penalized for minor mistakes on FHA loans. It requires lenders to certify “to what they know to be true to the best of their knowledge.” Lender-level certification, carved out of the initial loan-level certification, would require lenders to certify they have not ...
House Financial Services Committee Passes Flood Insurance Bill. The House Financial Services Committee recently voted to advance legislation that would provide a private flood insurance alternative to the federal National Flood Insurance Program for homeowners required to purchase flood insurance. H.R. 2901, the Flood Insurance Market Parity and Modernization Act, passed by a unanimous vote of 53-0 and was sent to the House floor for consideration. A Senate counterpart bill, S. 1679, which was reintroduced by Sen. Dean Heller, R-NV, last year, is awaiting action in the Committee of Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. Both bills were introduced jointly in both the House and the Senate in 2015. Currently, due to uncertainty as to whether the coverage satisfies federal requirements, many lenders are reluctant to issue mortgages for homes with ...
“Mortgage g-fees should only be used as a buffer against mortgage defaults, not as a piggy-bank for increased government spending,” said NAR chief Salomone.
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