In January 2025 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued Mortgagee Letter 2025-06 revising servicing and claims requirements and loss mitigation options for FHA insured mortgage loans effective...more
4/23/2025
/ Borrowers ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Federal Housing Administration (FHA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HUD ,
Loss Mitigation ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgagee Letters ,
Mortgages ,
New Regulations ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements
The CFPB is rescinding its existing enforcement and supervision priority documents, according to a memo sent to bureau staff by CFPB Chief Legal Officer Mark Paoletta....more
4/18/2025
/ Banks ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mortgages ,
Non-Bank Lenders ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Student Loans ,
Supervisory Guidance ,
Trump Administration
Legislation to prohibit so-called “trigger leads” in the homebuying process once again has been reintroduced in the House and Senate....more
4/16/2025
/ Borrowers ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Reporting Agencies ,
Credit Reports ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Lead Generators ,
Lenders ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Regulatory Agenda
The CFPB has announced that Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) Modified Loan Application Register (LAR) data for 2024 are now available on the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council’s (FFIEC) HMDA Platform for...more
4/8/2025
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Data Collection ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
FFIEC ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HMDA ,
Loan Applications ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements
In the waning hours of the first Trump Administration the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that effective January 19, 2021 individuals who are classified under the “Deferred Action for...more
4/1/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
DACA ,
Federal Housing Administration (FHA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Foreign Nationals ,
HUD ,
Immigration ,
Mortgages ,
Non-Resident Aliens ,
Real Estate Market ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Trump Administration
Saying that the bureau under the Biden Administration abused its power, the CFPB is seeking to reverse its settlement with Townstone Financial....more
3/28/2025
/ Abuse of Power ,
Biden Administration ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
ECOA ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mortgage Loan Originators ,
Mortgages ,
Redlining ,
Regulation B ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Settlement ,
Small Business ,
Statutory Violations ,
Trump Administration ,
Vacated
Led by the California Mortgage Bankers Association, five lenders have made commitments to provide mortgage relief for the victims of the California wildfires....more
1/23/2025
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
California ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Foreclosure ,
Loans ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Real Estate Market ,
Relief Measures ,
Wildfires
The CFPB recently issued a final rule increasing the asset exemption threshold for the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) requirement to maintain an escrow account for a higher-priced mortgage loan (HPML)....more
12/24/2024
/ Asset Management ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Economic Growth Regulatory Relief and Consumer Protection Act ,
Escrow Accounts ,
Exemptions ,
Final Rules ,
High-Priced Mortgage Loans (HPML) ,
Loans ,
Mortgages ,
Regulation Z ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
As previously reported, this summer the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) filed a housing discrimination charge under the Fair Housing Act against an appraisal company, individual appraiser, appraisal...more
12/18/2024
/ Appraisal ,
Appraisers ,
Declaratory Judgments ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
Disparate Impact ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Housing Market ,
HUD ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Race Discrimination ,
Statutory Violations ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has extended from January 1, 2025 until July 1, 2025, the compliance date for certain provisions of the department’s rule entitled “Modernization of Engagement with...more
The CFPB has issued a final rule regarding various annual adjustments it is required to make under provisions of Regulation Z under the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) that implement the CARD Act, Home Ownership and Equity...more
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently proposed rules to modify the requirements for the reporting of VA guaranteed mortgage loans, and the rules regarding when the VA would assert a defense for a partial or...more
12/2/2024
/ Borrowers ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Fees ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Guaranty Claims ,
Loans ,
Mortgages ,
Proposed Rules ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Veterans ,
Veterans Administration
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced the 2025 loan limits for FHA insured forward mortgage loans and FHA insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs). The announcements were made...more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently announced the conforming loan limits for residential mortgage loans acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2025. Fannie Mae addresses the limits in Lender Letter...more
Following lengthy litigation, the CFPB is attempting to close the books on its case against Townstone Financial alleging discriminatory lending practices and redlining African American neighborhoods in Chicago....more
11/7/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
ECOA ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Redlining ,
Settlement
This summer, the CFPB issued its long-awaited proposed rule amending the mortgage servicing rules under Regulation X, with a focus on loss mitigation procedures, foreclosure protections, and language access. These changes...more
The CFPB, Fed, and OCC have announced that they are increasing exemption thresholds that are subject to annual inflation adjustments. Effective January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2025, these exemption thresholds are...more
10/18/2024
/ Appraisal ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Exemptions ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Loans ,
Mortgages ,
OCC ,
Regulation M ,
Regulation Z ,
Threshold Requirements
The Justice Department announced that Citadel Federal Credit Union has agreed to pay more than $6.5 million to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of redlining majority-Black and Hispanic...more
10/14/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
ECOA ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equal Access to Credit ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Loans ,
Mortgages ,
Race Discrimination ,
Redlining ,
Statutory Violations
Saying that reverse redlining is a form of discrimination, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas has refused to dismiss a discrimination case alleging that Texas developer Colony Ridge specifically...more
10/8/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discriminatory Lending Practices ,
ECOA ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Mortgages ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Redlining ,
Regulation B ,
Reverse Discrimination
The CFPB recently announced that the Filing Instruction Guide (FIG) for the submission of Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data collected in 2025 is now available. The FIG, issued by the Federal Financial Institutions...more
In Circular 26-24-19, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) sets forth documentation requirements for fees and charges that may be imposed on veterans in connection with VA-guaranteed home loans, other than the VA funding...more
As interest rates drop, the CFPB is exploring ways to streamline mortgage rules to make the refinancing process easier and closing costs less expensive, Director Rohit Chopra said at a housing conference sponsored by the...more
9/25/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Federal Housing Administration (FHA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Homeowner's Insurance ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgages ,
Refinancing
In a surprising quick turn of events, on remand from SCOTUS, the 9th Circuit, on August 23, 2024, issued its unanimous unpublished panel opinion in Kivett v. Flagstar Bank, FSB (Kivett II) in which it essentially re-affirmed...more
8/28/2024
/ Amicus Briefs ,
Bank of America ,
Cantero v Bank of America NA ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Escrow Accounts ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Flagstar Bank NA v Kivett ,
Mortgages ,
National Bank Act ,
OCC ,
Preemption ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
SCOTUS
In connection with its guaranteed home loan program, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced in Circular 26-24-17 [Link: https://benefits.va.gov/HOMELOANS/documents/circulars/26-24-17.pdf] requirements when a party...more
As previously reported, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in connection with single-family residential mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), and Fannie Mae and Freddie...more
8/8/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Fannie Mae ,
Federal Housing Administration (FHA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Freddie Mac ,
HECM ,
HUD ,
Loans ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgagee Letters ,
Mortgages