Category: Top National News

Scotsman Guide, Nov. 3, 2017–Victor WhitmanThe Mortgage Bankers Association expressed reservations about how the House GOP plan addresses the mortgage-interest deduction and other housing incentives. House Republicans rolled out a sweeping bill in the House Ways and Means Committee on Thursday.

Mortgage News Daily, Nov. 3, 2017–Jann SwansonMBA President and CEO David Stevens said calls to simply recapitalize the GSEs and allow them to operate without structural changes are misguided. Such plans could be reversed by future FHFA directors and “likely embolden those who seek private profit at the expense of sound public policy.”

Bloomberg, Nov. 3, 2017–Alex LeondisWhite House Economic Adviser Gary Cohn said “The ability to deduct interest is a component that allows you to buy a bigger house, not what drives you to buy a house.”

HousingWire, Nov. 3, 2017–Ben LaneFour Equifax executives were not aware of the massive data breach at the credit reporting agency when they sold off more than $1.5 million in company stock before the breach became public knowledge, the company said Friday.

New York Times, Nov. 4, 2017–Mary Williams WalshThe government-run National Flood Insurance Program is, for now, virtually the only source of flood insurance for more than five million households in the United States. This hurricane season, as tens of thousands of Americans seek compensation for storm-inflicted water damage, they face a problem: The flood insurance program is broke and broken.

Bloomberg, Nov. 6, 2017–Laura LitvanSenate tax writers are planning on keeping the mortgage interest deduction limit at $1 million, unlike the House legislation released last week that set a cap of $500,000 for new home sales.

Mortgage Daily, Nov. 6, 2017Residential endorsements jumped to the highest level in seven months at FHA, while commercial real estate activity was the highest in at least four years. Delinquency worsened, however.

National Mortgage News, Nov. 6, 2017–Bonnie Sinnock (subscription)Users were having trouble accessing Freddie Mac’s selling system Monday afternoon, according to an alert issued by the government-sponsored enterprise.

National Mortgage Professional, Oct. 24, 2017–Phil HallFederal Housing Finance Agency Director Mel Watt used his appearance at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Annual Convention to defended his agency’s decision to include a new language preference question in the upcoming Uniform Residential Loan Application.

HousingWire, Oct. 24, 2017–Brena SwansonAs conservations have slowly shifted from almost a joke to more of a serious possibility under the new administration, several experts at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s 2017 annual convention and expo weighed in on the probability reform and what lies ahead for reform.