Category: Top National News

National Mortgage News, Oct. 1, 2018–Elina Tarkazikis (subscription)The Mortgage Bankers Association and nearly a dozen trade groups said that after more than five years under the LO Comp rule, changes to the order should be among the CFPB’s top priorities in its review of the mortgage rules, according to a letter sent to acting CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney.

National Mortgage Professional, Oct. 1, 2018–Phil HallH.R. 6737, The Protect Affordable Mortgages for Veterans Act of 2018, would allow recently executed loans refinanced by the Department of Veterans Affairs home loans to maintain their eligibility for pooling in Ginnie Mae securities. Mortgage Bankers Association President and CEO Robert Broeksmit, CMB, says the trade group supports the bill.

Wall Street Journal, Oct. 1, 2018–Yuka Hayashi (subscription)Eric Blankenstein, the top enforcement official at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday expressed regret for “poor conduct” regarding past racial remarks he made on a blog more than a decade ago, saying he was “absolutely committed to carrying out the bureau’s fair lending mandate.”

HousingWire, Oct. 1, 2018–Jessica Guerin”We were trying to understand why, in a still relatively low interest rate market where house prices have returned in most major markets including in many of these states where reverse mortgages were, why were we still hemorrhaging money,” FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery said. “We thought this was a contributing factor that required further due diligence.”

Bloomberg, Oct. 1, 2018–Claire BostonFund managers that took a chance on beaten-down mortgage bonds sometime after Lehman Brothers collapsed have seen their money swell as the housing market has recovered. Home loans for even troubled consumers have turned out to be more solid than many investors had feared: borrowers that weathered the downturn are diligently paying their obligations and defaults at this stage are infrequent.

American Banker, Sept. 28, 2018–Neil Haggerty (subscription)Nearly 30 House Republicans are calling on the Federal Reserve Board to use new authority to relieve all banks with less than $250 billion of assets from enhanced supervision that was established after the crisis.

HousingWire, Sept. 28, 2018–Ben LaneOcwen Financial’s $360 million acquisition of PHH Corp. is set to close within the next two weeks after the companies received approvals from all relevant regulatory agencies and governmental entities, the companies announced Friday morning.

National Mortgage News, Sept. 28, 2018–Neil Haggerty (subscription)The protracted and hyperpartisan confirmation process for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh has complicated the Senate’s efforts to advance financial regulatory nominees before the midterm elections. Trump administration picks for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, National Credit Union Administration and Ginnie Mae are still in limbo.

American Banker, Sept. 30, 2018–Kate Berry, Rachel Witkowski (subscription)Kirsten Donoghue, the CFPB’s assistant director of enforcement, became the second senior leader at the agency to question the fitness of Eric Blankenstein, her boss as policy director of supervision, enforcement and fair lending, after his past writings were uncovered that used a racial slur for African Americans and suggested most hate crimes were “hoaxes.”

Mortgage Daily, Oct. 1, 2018Ongoing losses in the FHA reverse mortgage program have led to a new policy that will require a second appraisal on some transactions.