A surge in anti-churning efforts by legislators and regulators to address the churning of VA loans has prompted analysts to examine certain policy changes, potential cures and pending legislation designed to protect veterans from predatory serial refinancing schemes. For instance, bipartisan legislation introduced by Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, and Thom Tillis, R-NC, would establish a minimum 50 basis point incentive for qualified VA refi mortgages, recoupment of refi costs within three years, and a six-month seasoning period before the initial loan could be refinanced into a new VA loan. However, Wells Fargo Securities analysts are concerned that S 2304, Protecting Veterans from Predatory Lending Act of 2018, does not distinguish between rate-term refinancing and cash-out refinancing and may wind up eliminating cash-out refi as an option for cash-strapped veterans. Although some lenders used ...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently upheld a lower court dismissal of a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging a lender’s violation of the 2012 National Mortgage Settlement and of the Home Affordable Modification Program. In Laurence Schneider, Appellant, v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., et al., Appellees, the federal government declined to intervene, allowing the qui tam lawsuit to proceed. Schneider, the relator and an owner of a mortgage servicing company that purchased numerous loans from Chase, alleged that the lender falsely claimed compliance with the $25 billion landmark settlement negotiated in 2012 between the federal government, 40 state attorneys general, and a group of large banks, including Chase. The settlement resolved claims against the banks for allegedly improper origination and servicing of conventional, FHA and VA loans that were thought to ...
FHA delinquencies rose sharply in Puerto Rico following the devastation brought by hurricanes Maria and Irma last year. At the end of 2017, 28.8 percent of FHA mortgages on the island were at some stage of delinquency, including 15.8 percent that have fallen 90 days behind on their mortgage payments. Deutsche Bank Securities analysts believe the spike in delinquency rates overall is “a short-term phenomenon.” They noted that FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have declared temporary moratoria on evictions and foreclosures in Puerto Rico and other hurricane-ravaged regions. Issuer exposures in devastated areas remain unclear and Ginnie Mae has not updated its MBS hurricane exposure data since October last year. In the initial disclosure, the agency reported 9.7 percent (1,066,028 loans) of its total MBS portfolio were impacted by Harvey, Irma and Maria. The affected loans’ unpaid principal ...
PennyMac Financial will resume originating jumbo mortgages in the correspondent channel this year, the lender announced this week. And jumbos will be offered in the broker channel operations recently launched by PennyMac. The House approved a bill this week that would shrink the potential market for non-qualified mortgages. H.R. 1153, the Mortgage Choice Act, was approved on a 280-131 vote with some bipartisan support. The legislation would ... [Includes two briefs]
House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling said The Mortgage Choice Act is needed because the CFPB wrote a flawed and problematic definition that grossly miscalculates points and fees...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit last week saved PHH Mortgage and its parent more than $100 million when it sent the lender’s dispute with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over issues related to the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act back to the bureau, basically starting over.
RSS