A dispute over rule interpretation between the Department of Housing and Urban Development and its inspector general regarding the use of gift funds and premium pricing in downpayment assistance has FHA lenders concerned about potential liability and unnecessary legal costs. Last week, HUD Deputy Secretary/FHA Commissioner Edward Golding sought to allay lender concerns by refuting the IG’s position on lender use of downpayment assistance programs sponsored by state housing finance agencies. In a memo to the industry, Golding upheld...
Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase recently launched programs to deliver low-downpayment mortgages to Fannie Mae that differ from the government-sponsored enterprises’ recent expansion into high loan-to-value financing. Both banks introduced new 97 percent LTV programs they believe are easier to use than the GSE initiatives and, for certain borrowers, a better choice than FHA financing. Wells Fargo’s “yourFirstMortgage” requires a minimum of 3 percent downpayment for fixed-rate mortgages. The company will consider FICO scores significantly lower than other similar high-LTV programs, to as low as 620, along with debt-to-income ratios up to 45 percent. Factoring in nontraditional uses of credit such as rent, utility bill payments and tuition is...
Mortgage servicers appeared to have received some protections in November when amendments to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act were signed into law. However, the rule proposed by the Federal Communications Commission to implement the amendments contravenes the law, according to one FCC commissioner. The TCPA allows for one errant call to a cell phone number that hasn’t provided consent before liabilities under the law are triggered. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 amended...
Ten trade organizations and community groups this week sent a letter to FHFA Director Mel Watt imploring him to suspend the quarterly GSE dividend paid to the Treasury Department...
Fannie Mae’s Robert Schaefer said there is a “high probability” the mortgage giant will be part of an MI transaction later this year that addresses the “pain points” the GSE sees in the deeper MI concept.
In 1Q, TMS/Endeavor table-funded roughly $1.8 billion in loans, ranking 13th nationwide in that category, according to figures compiled by Inside Mortgage Finance.
Maybe it’s just a matter of semantics. But mortgage lending trade group officials, industry attorneys and compliance professionals seem to be sending mixed signals as to whether the CFPB is now examining lenders for compliance with the controversial integrated disclosure rule, TRID. Rod Alba, senior vice president of mortgage markets, financial management and public policy for the American Bankers Association, told Inside the CFPB that his organization is not hearing that the bureau has started TRID compliance reviews. “Although our members report that examiners are inquiring about TRID implementations, and may be looking at one or another disclosure packet, they are generally assuring that the bank is engaged in active TRID implementation and trouble-shooting,” Alba said. “The banks we heard ...
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