Fair housing advocates are outraged over the Department of Justice’s recent repeal of mortgage shopping guides and other regulatory guidance, but an industry attorney says it is no big deal. Bent on eliminating agency regulation by guidance, the DOJ last week rescinded 24 guidance documents issued by a variety of government agencies. Among those revoked were guidance that provided information regarding predatory lending, consumer mortgage shopping and discrimination based on national origin. The DOJ action stems from a November 2017 memorandum issued by Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinding guidance that either were issued improperly or were inconsistent with current law. It also complies with a presidential directive to all federal agencies in February to implement and enforce regulatory reform, which called for a review of all existing regulations, policies and guidance for possible repeal ...

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has removed the FHA inspector roster to streamline inspection requirements for FHA single-family mortgage insurance. Removal of the list of approved inspectors recognizes the quality of inspections performed by certified inspectors and other qualified individuals, said HUD. HUD originally established the roster to standardize the inspection process for properties with FHA-insured mortgages. Prior to the roster, cities and states developed their own building codes, which had little uniformity or consistency with each other. Currently, the department abides by the International Residential Code (IRC), which is in use in 49 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The International Code Council, which developed the IRC, also certifies combination inspectors (CIs) and residential ...

Some courts have determined that because non-judicial foreclosures don’t technically obligate borrowers “to pay money,” protections from the FDCPA aren’t available.

A retail lender, the Houston-based NRL has increased staff at a branch in Cincinnati by 25 percent this year…

The American Bankers Association argues the CFPB should acknowledge the bureau is bound by the guidance it issues…

One slide in the GSE presentation is entitled, “The Blob and the Return of the Blob,” a reference to the horror movie classics of the late 1950s…

Fair lending in the mortgage servicing context has become an area of regulatory interest especially when dealing with disabled borrowers and those with limited English proficiency, compliance professionals said at the recent American Bankers Association’s regulatory compliance conference in Nashville.

Freddie Mac plans to launch a new servicing transfer tool within the next couple of weeks, part of a broader effort by the government-sponsored enterprises to enhance liquidity in mortgage servicing rights.

Johnson joined the bureau late last year from the House Financial Services Committee where he held the title of senior counsel.

Fannie said the new lender option allows the GSE to streamline the operational requirements of participating lenders...