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Inside the CFPB

September 22, 2008

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Further Expansion of FHASecure Sought

The Department of Housing and Urban Development is weighing an industry recommendation to allow delinquent fixed-rate mortgages into the FHASecure program to get more distressed borrowers qualified for government rescue. In a letter last week to HUD Secretary Steve Preston, the Mortgage Bankers Association unveiled a list of recommendations for expanding the FHASecure... Read More

Seller-Funded DAP, RBP Bill to House Floor

Bipartisan legislation allowing limited seller-funded downpayment assistance for FHA programs and deployment of a new risk-based premium pricing program may soon come up for a vote on the House floor. Last week, the House Financial Services Committee reported out a revised version of H.R. 6994, the FHA Seller-Financed Downpayment Reform and Risk-Based Pricing Authorization Act of... Read More

OMB Urged to Drop RESPA Rule; HUD Rapped for Refusing to Testify

House lawmakers last week urged the Office of Management and Budget to reject and return a revised Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act proposal that federal housing regulators submitted for final review last month. In a joint letter to OMB Director Jim Nussle, Reps. Ruben Hinijosa, D-TX, and Judy Biggert, R-IL, recommended that the agency return the RESPA reform proposal to HUD with... Read More

Inadequate Reporting Results in Hazy Higher-Priced Loan Data

Black and Hispanic borrowers are more likely to obtain higher-priced loans and denied more often for conventional mortgages compared to white borrowers, according to a Federal Reserve Board analysis of 2007 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data. Racial and ethnicity gaps remain for higher-priced home-purchase loans and refinancings regardless of the period considered... [Includes one chart] Read More

OCC Chief Calls for Fair Lending Vigilance, Unveils ‘HMDA Plus’

U.S. Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan called for more focus on fair lending, as mortgage lending undergoes major changes, to prevent discrimination and unfair lending practices from creeping back into the market. In recent remarks at a fair lending conference sponsored by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in New Orleans, Dugan urged lenders and fellow regulators not to let... Read More

Bear Stearns, EMC Agree to Settle Servicing Charges

Wall Street firm Bear Stearns and its subsidiary, EMC Mortgage Corp., have agreed to a $28 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over unlawful servicing of mostly subprime and Alt A mortgage loans. The allegedly illegal servicing and debt collection practices occurred before Bear Stearn’s collapse and its subsequent takeover by... Read More

Secondary Market Reform, Early Disclosures Top Industry Priorities

An aggressive overhaul of the mortgage capital market, harmonization of early loan disclosures, and implementation of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act will be the focus of mortgage bankers’ lobbying efforts through next year. The current environment presents an opportunity for a bold “do over” for the mortgage industry, to... Read More

State Roundup

Massachusetts. Regulations to carry out the Mortgage Lender Community Investment provision of the state’s licensing law for certain mortgage servicers and brokers became effective Sept. 5. The regulations require the evaluation of mortgage lenders to ensure... Read More

Federal Roundup

Federal Housing Finance Agency: GSE Takeover. The FHFA has placed two of its charges, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, under... FRB/OCC/OTS/FDIC: FASB Proposals. Federal thrift and banking regulators are consulting with their financial institutions... Department of Housing and Urban Development: Loan Moratorium for Storm Victims. HUD has announced a 90-day moratorium on... Read More

Worth Noting …

House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank, D-MA, last week introduced legislation extending the... On Sept. 15, Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite introduced H.R. 6465, the Veterans’ Construction and Extensions Act... The American Enterprise Institute will have its fifth annual conference, “Preventing, Detecting and... The Consumer Bankers Association is having its annual Fair Lending Conference Nov. 5-7, at... Read More

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