A staggering 15.8 percent of the island commonwealth’s FHA loans were more than 90 days late as of Dec. 31, and another 13.0 percent were 30-90 days in arrears.
In recent days, Judge Timothy Kelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia circuit ruled, as expected, to deny CFPB Deputy Director Leandra English’s personal legal bid soliciting a preliminary injunction to unseat Acting Director Mick Mulvaney and install her in the job. For multiple reasons, “including that English has not demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits [of her case] or shown that she will suffer irreparable injury absent injunctive relief, her request for a preliminary injunction is denied,” the judge wrote. Further, “The president has designated Mulvaney the CFPB’s acting director, the CFPB has recognized him as the acting director, and it is operating with him as the acting director,” he continued. “Granting English ...
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, recently questioned whether CFPB Acting Director Mick Mulvaney is intentionally trying to undermine the bureau, utilizing some Inspector General concerns about the agency’s data security as a pretext. In a letter to Mulvaney and Leandra English, the deputy director of the federal regulator, Warren said the CFPB cannot fulfill its core functions without collecting personally identifiable information. “When a consumer submits a complaint, the CFPB asks for information such as their name and account number to enable the agency to help resolve the dispute,” Warren said. “CFPB bank examiners and enforcement lawyers regularly use account-level data provided by regulated institutions to detect improper and unlawful activity.” Similarly, the bureau’s Office of Fair Lending collects and analyzes ...
In another historic move, CFPB Acting Director Mick Mulvaney late last week shocked defenders of the bureau under Richard Cordray by announcing he had submitted to the Federal Reserve the bureau’s quarterly appropriations request for the second quarter of fiscal year 2018, requesting zero funds. In a letter to departing Fed chief Janet Yellen, Mulvaney spelled out his rationale. “The reason for this is straightforward: I am informed that the projected second quarter expenses for the bureau are approximately $145 million. “During my review of the financial condition of the bureau, I learned that, as of the beginning of the fiscal year 2018, the bureau had a balance [in its fund] at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in ...
Last week, the CFPB put out a call for evidence to make sure it is “fulfilling its proper and appropriate functions to best protect consumers.” The agency said it will soon publish in the Federal Register a series of Requests for Information (RFIs) seeking comment on enforcement, supervision, rulemaking, market monitoring, and education activities. The bureau’s expectation is that the RFIs will provide an opportunity for the public to submit feedback and suggest ways to improve outcomes for both consumers and covered entities. “In this New Year, and under new leadership, it is natural for the bureau to critically examine its policies and practices to ensure they align with the bureau’s statutory mandate,” said Acting Director Mick Mulvaney. “Moving forward, ...
Despite the fear expressed by consumer advocates that CFPB Acting Director Mick Mulvaney might give financial service industry participants a “get out of jail free” card upon request, the bureau recently filed a motion in opposition to the request of Nationwide Biweekly Administration, a biweekly mortgage payment company, to alter, amend or vacate the prior judgment against the firm. This past September, the CFPB won one and lost one in a ruling from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in the case. The agency won a $7.9 million civil penalty from the defendants. However, it lost out on $74 million in sought-after restitution. The bureau also originally insisted the defendants post a bond, even though that ...
The CFPB has decided to abandon its pursuit of a group of payday lenders it had accused of misleading consumers about the true extent of the costs associated with its loans, which purportedly carried interest rates as high as 950 percent a year. The agency gave no explanation about its decision to reverse course. An interesting twist is that payday lenders are generally regulated at the state level, and since the lenders in this case happen to be associated with a Native American tribe, they can argue that state laws do not apply to them. Payday Lending Rule Kaput? Also last week, the CFPB indicated it might just deep-six its controversial payday lending rule. “Jan. 16, 2018, is the effective ...
The House Financial Services Committee last week advanced a number of bills for a vote by the full House, including legislation that would expand the qualified mortgage box for smaller entities and exempt many institutions from the rules and regulations issued by the CFPB. One of the bills passed was H.R. 2226, the Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act, introduced by Rep. Andy Barr, R-KY. The measure would amend the Truth in Lending Act to allow certain mortgage loans that are originated and retained in portfolio by an insured depository institution or an insured credit union with less than $10 billion in total consolidated assets to be considered as qualified mortgages. Then there was H.R. 1264, the Community Financial Institution ...
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