The House of Representatives early this week passed H.R. 685, the “Mortgage Choice Act,” bipartisan legislation which would clarify that certain affiliated title costs do not count against the “qualified mortgage” cap on points and fees under the ability-to-repay rule. H.R. 685, introduced by Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-MI, with 37 co-sponsors from both parties, excludes from the definition of points and fees all title charges, regardless of whether they are charged by ...

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are legally bound to poverty and to remain instruments of the federal government in perpetuity, but Treasury officials argue that the current conservatorship arrangement is better for the government-sponsored enterprises and the housing market. At a seminar in Washington, DC, this week, Treasury Counselor Michael Stegman said that the GSEs benefit from the agreement under which nearly all of their profits are siphoned off by the government ...

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-IA, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, sent letters on April 7 to the Department of Justice and the Treasury requesting documents and details regarding the government’s 2011 decision to take the bulk of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s profits. This comes on the heels of reports suggesting President Obama has invoked executive privilege over some of the documents pertaining to the decision. While admitting that he’s unclear whether or not the president asserted executive privilege, Grassley emphasized the importance of transparency and said taxpayers have a right to know what transpired that resulted in billions of dollars going to the Treasury. “But instead of transparency, there appears to be an invocation of executive privilege,” he said. “If true, this is cause for concern.”

Conservatorship has left Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in a state of flux, according to former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman William Isaac, who recently criticized the federal government’s verdict to let the Treasury Department take the bulk of the GSEs profits. As anxiety continues to grow about the sustainable profitability of Fannie and Freddie, Isaac said there doesn’t appear to be light at the end of the tunnel. “We need to bring some fresh thought to this issue,” he said during a teleconference sponsored by Investors Unite last week. Although he said there has been very little movement on the issue within the past year. Isaacs said until a resolution is reached, “it’s very important that the government treat...

Shortly before the U.S. Congress vacated the nation’s capital for its spring recess, the House Financial Services Committee passed, with varying levels of bipartisan support, a package of regulatory relief bills, including a handful related to rulemakings from the CFPB. Most notable among them is H.R. 685, the Mortgage Choice Act, sponsored by Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-MI. H.R. 685 aims to assist banks that originate mortgages through the wholesale channel by modifying the points-and-fees formula in the CFPB’s ability-to-repay rule. The measure would exclude from the calculation insurance and taxes held in escrow and fees paid to affiliated companies as a result of participating in an affiliated business arrangement. The committee approved the bill by a 43-12 vote, despite a ...

Fannie Mae Updates Reverse Mortgage Loan Servicing Manual. Fannie Mae has updated its reverse mortgage servicing manual with changes and clarifications to policies pertaining to Home Equity Conversion Mortgages. For HECMs, Fannie now requires servicers to place a real estate-owned hazard insurance policy upon completion of a foreclosure sale. It also outlined servicers’ responsibilities regarding the documentation and cancellation of REO hazard insurance claims; reimbursement of REO hazard insurance premiums; and remittance of insurance loss proceeds. The revised policy changes must be implemented no later than April 1, 2015. House Democrats Reintroduce Housing Finance Reform Bill. Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee have introduced legislation that would provide private and government risk-share coverage to all mortgages, create a ...

Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro has named one of his senior advisors, Ed Golding, as principal deputy assistant secretary temporarily in charge of HUD’s Office of Housing and the FHA. Golding is currently with the Office of Policy Development & Research and will assume his new post April 7. His appointment, however, has raised a few eyebrows on Capitol Hill because it had not gone through formal Senate confirmation, which some lawmakers say could get HUD in hot water. Golding, a former senior economist at Freddie Mac, is replacing...

Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee have introduced legislation that would provide private and government risk-share coverage to all mortgages, create a single MBS and decommission Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Introduced by Reps. Jim Himes, D-CT, John Delaney, D-MD, and John Carney, D-DE, the bill would require Ginnie Mae to run an MBS program that combines private capital with government re-insurance in lieu of the current federal ...

A bill to replace the Federal Housing Finance Agency with a beefed up Ginnie Mae and set Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on a path to liquidation has been reintroduced in the House. The Partnership to Strengthen Homeownership Act was first introduced in July 2014 to wind down Fannie and Freddie over a five-year timeframe. Reps. John Delaney, D-MD, John Carney, D-DE, and Jim Himes, D-CT, are the lead sponsors of the measure. They said the bill takes the best ideas from both parties to create a housing finance system that combines the strengths of the private and public sectors.The congressmen agreed that things need to be done differently.

A House bill with bipartisan support would delay Basel III capital requirements relating to mortgage servicing rights for all but the largest banks. The House Financial Services Committee this week approved, 49-9, H.R. 1408, the Mortgage Servicing Asset Capital Requirements Act. Introduced by Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-CO, the bill would require federal banking regulators to study the appropriate capital requirements for mortgage servicing assets for ...