NTFN Inc., a direct-endorsement lender in the Dallas-Ft.Worth area, may have to indemnify FHA for losses incurred allegedly due to sloppy underwriting. Results of an audit performed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development inspector general found that 23 loans out of the 3,046 FHA loans originated by NTFN from July 2012 through June 2014 were seriously delinquent in the first year. FHA is considering whether to require indemnification. Despite its low FHA origination volume, NTFN was targeted for a compliance audit because its loan default rate was the second highest in its principal area of business during the audit period. HUD auditors attributed the subpar underwriting to the lender’s poor due diligence, failure to perform early payment default and quality control reviews and to not having an adequate quality control system. The unpaid principal balance of the ...

Whistleblowers that bring a False Claim Act claim against an FHA lender based on previous publicly disclosed information have no standing, according to a recent federal district court ruling. Judge Jack Zouhary of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio dismissed an FCA lawsuit against U.S. Bank because the whistleblower had neither direct nor independent knowledge of the bank’s alleged false claims – two basic requirements for standing in a whistleblower suit. The Advocates for Basic Legal Equality (ABLE), an Ohio-based legal aid group, filed an FCA lawsuit against U.S. Bank for allegedly disregarding and violating FHA regulations. The group accused the bank of filing false claims and collecting payments without evaluating loss mitigation alternatives before foreclosing on properties. According to ABLE, it had consulted with “many people,” whose mortgage loans were ...

New entrants in the Ginnie Mae issuer community expand access to credit at lower cost, deepen the market for Ginnie mortgage servicing rights and help address the agency’s “too-big-to-fail” issue, said the agency’s top executive. “Our top concern is that issuers have the operational and financial strength to meet issuer/servicer obligations,” Tozer said during the recent secondary market conference sponsored by the Mortgage Bankers Association. The flood of new nonbank issuers into the program has been well documented. While they have diluted the heavy concentration of business in the hands of a few megabanks, many have complex financial structures that are less tested in the marketplace, he said. The pipeline of issuer applicants has dropped dramatically, the Ginnie executive reported. To get approved, an applicant has to show where the cash will come from to ...

A dramatic disconnect has surfaced between different segments of the mortgage industry when it comes to being prepared to comply with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s pending integrated-disclosure rule. Professionals in the land title insurance side of the business are far more confident about their readiness than are depository institutions, recent surveys reveal. A survey conducted in April by the American Land Title Association found that 92 percent of respondents indicated their company will be prepared to implement the new loan estimate and closing disclosures and to comply with the CFPB’s regulation. That number isn’t as good as it seems, though. A much smaller 62.6 percent said they are on schedule for implementation. Another 29.4 percent conceded they are behind ...

If one of the sponsors of the Dodd-Frank Act supports giving mortgage lenders an enforcement break when the CFPB’s integrated disclosure rule kicks in later this year, you know something serious is afoot. Such is indeed the case. Rep. Brad Sherman, D-CA, one of the original backers of Dodd-Frank, has crossed the partisan aisle in the House Financial Services Committee to join Rep. Steve Pearce, R-NM, in introducing H.R. 2213. Their bill would grant lenders a temporary safe harbor from enforcement of the rule integrating the required mortgage disclosures under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. More specifically, H.R. 2213 would protect lenders from private lawsuits and regulatory enforcement actions through Dec. 31, 2015, ...

CFPB Director Richard Cordray continues to appear steadfast in his refusal to accommodate the mortgage industry by providing some sort of soft enforcement period for the new integrated disclosure rule, which is set to kick in Aug. 1, 2015. In a recent letter to Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-MO, one of the members of Congress who has been pressing the director for some kind of an enforcement grace period, Cordray was too discreet to come right out and say “no” to members of Congress. Instead, he told the congressman that the bureau shares his desire for “a smooth and successful implementation of the integrated disclosure rule, and we continue to work closely with all stakeholders to support that goal.” Cordray then ...

CFPB Director Richard Cordray tried to reassure attendees at the National Association of Realtors’ trade expo last week that the impact of the bureau’s pending integrated disclosure rule isn’t going to be as dramatic as many fear – particularly the concern that the three-day disclosure requirement is going to delay loan closings. “The timing of the closing date is not going to change based on any problems you discover with the home on the final walk-through, even matters that may change some of the sales terms or require seller’s credits,” Cordray said. On the contrary, the bureau “listened carefully to your concerns” and limited the reasons for closing delays to only three narrow sets of circumstances. They are: any increases to ...

The Mortgage Bankers Association continues to forward to the CFPB questions and requests for clarifications on a number of issues related to the bureau’s integrated disclosure rule that have yet to be adequately addressed, such as changes to the Closing Disclosure (CD) after scheduled closing. “There are limited options under the rule, in the event a lender has provided a closing disclosure and closing is delayed for unforeseen circumstances outside the lender’s and/or the borrower’s control,” said the MBA in correspondence to the bureau. Similarly, there may be borrower and seller changes to the purchase terms. “Under the current rule and commentary, the lender apparently has no ability to provide a revised Loan Estimate (LE) or CD and re-compute the ...

Most of the mortgage industry cannot reliably confirm whether it will be ready to fully comply with the CFPB’s pending integrated disclosure rule, according to a new member survey by the American Bankers Association. Based on approximately 800 responses from bankers nationwide, “Our survey reveals that an overwhelming 74 percent of banks are using a vendor or consultants to assist with TRID implementation,” Bob Davis, head of mortgage markets at the ABA, said in a letter to CFPB Director Richard Cordray. Community banks in particular are highly dependent on the ability of vendors to deliver technology-related services that are critical to bank compliance efforts, according to Davis. “Interestingly, though, bankers from large institutions were over-represented in the survey, which implies ...

Contrary to other segments of the mortgage industry, a huge majority of title professionals will be ready to play ball when the CFPB’s TILA/RESPA integrated disclosure rule goes live Aug. 1, 2015, according to a survey conducted by the American Land Title Association. “Ninety-two percent of our survey respondents indicated their company will be prepared to implement the new forms and comply with the CFPB’s regulation,” said Michelle Korsmo, ALTA’s chief executive officer. “The land title insurance industry has been a leader in preparing the real estate industry for the new disclosures and that is reflected in the preparedness of our members.” However, perhaps not so surprisingly, collaboration with lenders and real estate agents, and potential closing delays top the ...