MBA 2016 Residential Issue Priorities
More than 500 mortgage professionals came to Washington this month to meet with lawmakers about issues critical to the real estate finance industry.
Attendees heard from HUD Secretary Julian Castro and members of the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee. The MBA Legislative Team provided attendees with a list of MBA’s 2016 Residential Issue Priorities.
“MBA is committed to working with policymakers to strengthen the housing finance system, to deliver fair, sustainable and responsible financing to meet the ever-changing needs of homeowners,” said MBA Senior Vice President of Legislative and Political Affairs Bill Killmer.
A summary of these priorities appears below.
H.R. 2121/SAFE Act Amendments
H.R. 2121, the SAFE Transitional Licensing Act, provides for a 120-day “transitional authority to originate” period for bank Mortgage Loan Originators moving to a non-bank lender, or MLOs already working for a non-bank lender seeking licensure in another state.
In March, H.R. 2121 passed the House Financial Services Committee by a 56-0 vote and now awaits action on the House Floor. In the Senate, language to create a transitional MLO license was included in S.1484, a comprehensive regulatory relief package that passed the Senate Banking Committee in 2015.
MBA strongly supports passage of H.R. 2121 and urges adoption of the House bill as well as companion legislation in the Senate.
GSE Reform
More than seven years after being placed into conservatorship, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac continue to play a central role in the housing market, despite earnings volatility and being less than two years from having capital to absorb potential losses.
In March, MBA convened a Task Force to address outstanding questions surrounding GSE reform; it will issue its recommendations later this year.
MBA continues to urge Congress to move forward on “thoughtful, comprehensive” GSE reform legislation that focuses on certain core principles:
–An explicit federal guarantee for mortgage-backed securities to promote liquidity and stability;
–Protection for taxpayers through deep credit enhancement that puts private capital in a first-loss position, backed by a federal insurance fund in the event of catastrophic losses;
–A single, highly liquid security delivered through a common securitization platform that provides an efficient means of hedging interest rate risk;
–Preservation of key GSE infrastructure by transferring them to any new or reconstituted entities created by GSE reform; and
–Equitable, transparent and direct access to secondary market programs for lenders of all sizes and business models.
CFPB Enforcement
Enforcement actions by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continue to present significant challenges to the residential mortgage market. Without clear “rules of the road” guidance, CFPB consent orders and enforcement actions create uncertainty in the market and undue costs for consumers.
MBA urges the CFPB to adopt a clear framework for issuance of rules, policies and supervisory guidance.
Regulatory Relief
MBA supports legislation that would provide a temporary transitional authority to originate for Mortgage Loan Originators so they can continue to work when they transition from one type of financial institution to another, per H.R. 2121 and S. 1484.
Specifically, MBA supports the following measures:
–Legislation that would undo a harmful Federal Housing Finance Agency rule that limits access to the Federal Home Loan Bank System and allow mortgage real estate investment trusts to remain in the system (H.R. 3808 and S. 1484);
–Expanding the “safe harbor” afforded to Qualified Mortgage loans so that more borrowers gain access to these products.
Government-Insured Lending
MBA supports providing FHA and Ginnie Mae with funding to update technology systems and to retain and recruit talented staff. MBA said such funding should come through the regular appropriations process and not through fees on lenders that would be passed on to the very borrowers are designed to serve.
For more on MBA issue priorities, visit https://www.mba.org/issues/all-issues-list.
