CREF Policy Update June 30, 2022

Mike Flood mflood@mba.org; Bill Killmer bkillmer@mba.org.

Commercial and multifamily developments and activities from MBA relevant to your business and our industry.

Last week Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell made his semi-annual report on monetary policy and the current state of the economy via testimony before the House Financial Services and Senate Banking Committees. Also last week, House appropriators held a subcommittee markup of their initial draft Fiscal Year 2023 HUD funding bill and a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee held a markup that included consideration of data privacy legislation.

Sign MBA’s Home for All Pledge: Join the 260+ MBA member companies that have signed MBA’s Home for All Pledge, representing a commitment to promoting affordable rental housing; minority homeownership; and company diversity, equity, and inclusion. One senior executive (e.g., CEO, COO, President, Head of Lending, SVP) is encouraged to sign this online form on behalf of your organization.

Fed Chair Powell Testifies Before Congress 

Last Wednesday and Thursday, Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell testified before the House Financial Services and Senate Banking Committees. As expected, Powell answered several questions related to inflation, supply chains, tough LIBOR legacy contracts, and the state of the housing market. In response to questions from Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) and Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA), Powell said the Fed has not decided when to sell off its holdings of mortgage-backed securities (MBS), but remains committed to a transition (over time) resulting in a balance sheet that predominantly includes U.S. Treasury instruments. He affirmed the Fed is willing to sell off its MBS holdings at a loss and that “these losses are not a [key] monetary policy consideration.”

• Why it matters: The Fed is implementing a much more aggressive approach at combatting inflation through a series of anticipated interest rate hikes.
• What’s next: The Fed will continue to use its monetary policy levers in an effort to instigate a “soft landing” for the economy, focusing on taming inflation without too much disruption to the labor market.

For more information, please contact Borden Hoskins at (202) 557-2712, Tallman Johnson at (202) 557 2866, Alden Knowlton at (202) 557-2741, or Ethan Saxon at (202) 557 2913.

House T-HUD Subcommittee Advances HUD Funding Legislation during Markup

Last week the House Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (T-HUD) Subcommittee considered the text of its initial appropriations draft bill, which includes robust funding for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for Fiscal Year 2023. Last month, MBA sent a letter to the chairs and ranking members of the full House Appropriations Committee and T-HUD Subcommittee, highlighting MBA’s views on the real estate finance industry’s priorities within the bill, including providing HUD with the funding and encouragement necessary to address the extended processing delays in the pipeline for multifamily and healthcare financing at the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). MBA also encouraged Congress to maintain a statutory prohibition on the use of Ginnie Mae securitizations by state housing finance agencies (in concert with HUD’s risk sharing programs).

• Why it matters: Importantly, the initial House T-HUD proposal does not include language to enable the use of Ginnie Mae securitizations. Additionally, the proposal contained substantial funding for FHA cybersecurity and IT upgrades, FHA multifamily credit subsidy, and Ginnie Mae administrative expenses.
• What’s next: This markup is an initial step toward eventual House and Senate negotiations on final FY23 HUD funding levels (as part of a broad, omnibus spending package to fund all federal agencies). The full House Appropriations Committee will consider this bill next week, with a planned vote in the House on all 12 appropriations bills before August recess. With Congress unlikely to reach agreement to move all 12 appropriations bills before September 30, 2021, legislators will almost certainly need to pass a “stop-gap” Continuing Resolution to keep the government operating beyond October 1, 2021.

For more information, please contact Borden Hoskins at (202) 557-2712 or Alden Knowlton at (202) 557-2741.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Advances Data Privacy and Remote Online Notarization Legislation   

Last Thursday, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce held a markup that included consideration of data privacy legislation known as the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA). The ADPPA creates a new data privacy and security regime which could apply to financial institutions not in compliance with the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA). MBA joined a broad coalition that sent a letter to committee members outlining industry concerns with the current iteration of the ADPPA.

• Why it matters: The data privacy bill was advanced by the Subcommittee without opposition.
• What’s next: The ADPPA is slated for a second markup before the full Energy & Commerce Committee in the coming weeks. Other House and Senate committees will potentially come forward with competing data privacy proposals. MBA will continue to advocate for our members’ interests throughout this process.

For more information, please contact Alden Knowlton at (202) 557-2741 or Borden Hoskins at (202) 557-2712.

MBA Selects Philadelphia as its Third CONVERGENCE City 
MBA announced that Philadelphia has been selected as the site for its next CONVERGENCE initiative, a place-based partnership focused on narrowing the racial homeownership gap. CONVERGENCE Philadelphia will launch in early 2023, joining CONVERGENCE initiatives in Memphis, Tennessee, and Columbus, Ohio.

• Why it matters: CONVERGENCE Philadelphia will be led by MBA and three cornerstone partners: Finance of America, Radian, and Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. The multiyear commitment will involve key community and industry stakeholders working together to identify and address homeownership barriers for people and communities of color.
• What’s next: To learn more about CONVERGENCE, click here.

For more information, please contact Steve O’Connor at (202) 557-2867.

State Trackers

• State eviction moratorium and legislative activity tracker available here and here.

For more information, please contact William Kooper at (202) 557-2737 or Grant Carlson at (202) 557-2765.

Register for VOICES: Courageous Conversations with Men of Color

MBA is pleased to extend its award-winning webinar series, Voices: Courageous Conversations with Women of Color, to include a new conversation focusing on the male experience. Hear from a dynamic and diverse lineup of male industry leaders on their personal journeys throughout their careers. This timely conversation will inspire and inform while giving voice to the challenges and lessons learned.

There will be two sessions highlighted in this series:

• June 21: Courageous Conversations with Men of Color
• July 19: Courageous Conversations with Men as Allies

What’s next: This virtual series is complimentary for MBA Members. Learn more here.

For more information, please contact the DEI team. 

Upcoming MBA Education Webinars on Critical Industry Issues

MBA Education continues to deliver timely programming that covers the spectrum of challenges, obstacles and solutions pertaining to our industry. Below, please see a list of upcoming webinars – which are complimentary to MBA members:

• CONVERGENCE: Understanding and Serving Today’s Buyer – June 23
• Leveling Up Your Social Media Strategy with Paid Advertising – June 28
• How to Navigate Lower Margins and a Tighter Market Through Effective Leadership and Embracing Technology – June 28
• Equity Entry Point: Shifting Today’s Mortgage Opportunities from Purchase to Equity – June 30
• Effective Internal Audit Function: Beyond the Basics – July 11
• Latest on AML Regulations and Impact of Economic Sanctions – July 12
• Tech Stack Optimization: Analyzing Efficiencies in the Current Economic Landscape – July 19

MBA members can register for any of the above events and view recent webinar recordings. For more information, please contact David Upbin at (202) 557-2931.