The list of reasons to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is growing and taxpayer risk is increasing the longer the current housing finance system lingers in uncertainty, according to speakers at a Capitol Hill briefing on government-sponsored enterprise reform sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Fowler Williams, president and CEO of Crescent Mortgage, said that without the secondary mortgage market outlet, smaller institutions like his would not be able to make 30-year fixed-rate mortgages available in rural and small towns. Ethan Handelman, vice president for policy and advocacy at the National Housing Conference, said...

Some of the most well-known names in mortgage lending and servicing continue to deal with a variety of regulatory crackdowns and judicial disputes, some of which stem from the 2008 mortgage market collapse. In Massachusetts, HSBC has agreed to pay $4.1 million to resolve allegations that it violated state consumer protection laws by receiving commissions and other kickbacks from insurer Assurant Inc. relating to force-placed insurance policies that it procured for struggling homeowners in the state. Under the terms of the settlement, HSBC will provide...

Following up on limited guidance the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued in January on the disclosure of construction-to-permanent loans under the TRID integrated disclosure rule, CFPB officials this week participated in a webinar and provided some specific answers to a number of detailed questions they have received from the industry on the topic. A number of industry participants inquired, first of all, as to the kinds of options available to a lender for disclosing construction loans. Lenders have several possible ways to disclose construction loans under the integrated disclosure rule, according to Nick Hluchyj, senior counsel in the bureau’s office of regulations. “Regulation Z and Appendix D have...

At the March 2 HFSC mark-up, Rep. Stivers said H.R. 2121 will make sure that loan officers are able to move between jobs with a minimal amount of disruption.

“It’s clear from this survey and our discussions with bankers that TRID compliance remains a significant concern,” said ABA's Bob Davis.

While industry participants continue to call for formal guidance from the CFPB regarding TRID defects, some predict that further help is unlikely at this time…

So far, only one of the two has released a position paper on housing issues (Hillary) while the other (Donald) should know quite a bit about housing, having constructed many condos and multifamily units in his day…

The rating service noted that originations of bank-statement loans tend to be non-qualified mortgages for self-employed borrowers.

At the ABS Vegas conference the deal agent concept was touted by Monique Rollins, deputy assistant secretary at the Treasury Department, as a significant structural reform for the non-agency MBS market.

Freddie and Fannie both posted earnings north of $2 billion for the fourth quarter. But Freddie posted a net loss of $475 million in the third quarter of last year after booking a stunning $4.17 billion charge on its derivatives.