The consent orders recently agreed to between federal regulators and large bank servicers will help Ocwen Financial, according to officials at one of the largest servicers not subject to the enforcement action. “We think these orders enhance our ability to source new business as existing servicers seek to either...

One of the emerging compliance priorities for mortgage lenders will be to synchronize as much as possible their adoption of separate rules for “qualified mortgages” and “qualified residential mortgages” developed by federal regulators following the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Adding to the challenge is...

The Department of Housing and Urban Development clearly spelled out that lenders must be discrete in their use of the FHA “Approved Lending Institution” insignia and defined other specific regulations relating to logo use in a letter to lenders this week. Improper use of HUD or FHA logos can result...

The outgoing president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City turned some heads this week when he declared that the nation’s largest banks and recipients of federal bailout funds should be re-branded as government-sponsored enterprises and their lending activities should be curtailed accordingly. Thomas Hoenig reportedly told...

Implementing a broad range of procedural changes and picking through two years’ worth of foreclosure activity are expected to impose a significant expense on mortgage servicers that agreed to consent orders with federal regulators this week, but industry experts say the threat of penalties and remedial costs appears...[Includes one graph]

Federally regulated banks and credit unions favor Republican-backed legislation that would install a commission, instead of a single director, to call the shots at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The majority of witnesses at a recent hearing called by the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit expressed their support for...

A conflict of interest exists if an employee of a federal credit union disapproves member loans and then refers them to a mortgage banker that pays for such referrals, according to the National Credit Union Administration. Not only would there be a potential violation of the NCUA’s lending policy but the referral arrangements may also violate...

Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council. Revised Interagency Exam Procedures for Regulation Z (TILA). Notwithstanding court petitions seeking to stop the implementation of a new loan originator compensation rule, the Federal Reserve Board announced revised examination procedures that will ensure...

The potential shutdown of the federal government at the end of this week could have sudden and detrimental effects on FHA borrowers and lenders, although the situation was still very much in flux as Friday’s midnight deadline rapidly approached. “This is the worst time to introduce this uncertainty into...

Congress explicitly exempted FHA and Department of Veterans Affairs loans from the definition of “qualified residential mortgage” in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. While those government loans will not be subject to the risk-retention requirements for mortgage securitizations, the proposed QRM safe harbor for... [Includes one graph]