HousingWire, July 6, 2017–Ben LaneSeveral of the largest trade organizations in banking want to meet with Attorney General Jeff Sessions to discuss how the Trump administration’s approach to fair lending laws and if the current administration plans to enforce those laws any differently than the previous administration did.
Category: Top National News
‘If Not Now, When?’ Fed’s Powell on GSE Reform
National Mortgage News, July 6, 2017–John Heltman, Kate Berry (subscription)Federal Reserve Gov. Jerome Powell, who heads the agency’s supervisory committee, called on lawmakers Thursday to move more quickly in crafting legislation to reform the government-sponsored enterprises, saying that “we’re almost at a now-or-never moment here.”
HEL Performance Defies Overall Bank Deterioration
Mortgage Daily, July 6, 2017Delinquency of at least 30 days on consumer credit assets that are owned by banks fell to 1.56 percent as of the first quarter.
Monthly Bankruptcies by Consumers Decline
Mortgage Daily, July 6, 2017Compared to a month earlier, the number of consumers who resorted to bankruptcy last month was down by 4 percent.
U.S. Fed Buys $3.7 Billion of Mortgage Bonds, Sells None
Reuters, July 6, 2017The Federal Reserve bought $3.683 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities in the week from Jun. 29 to Jul. 5, compared with $5.107 billion purchased the previous week, the New York Federal Reserve Bank said on Thursday.
CFPB Finalizes TRID Updates
National Mortgage Professional, July 7, 2017–Phil HallThe Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized updates to the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure rule, also known as the “Know Before You Owe” rule, with amendments that the agency said were “intended to formalize guidance in the rule, and provide greater clarity and certainty.”
CFPB Cracks Down on ‘Credit Repair’ Companies
Washington Post, July 7, 2017–Kenneth R. HarneyTwo new legal settlements from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau–involving more than $2 million in penalties against credit repair companies–offer mortgage applicants sobering reminders about what to avoid if you feel you need help with your credit.
Safeguards Against another Subprime Crisis Changed How Banks Do Business
Washington Examiner, July 10, 2017–Joseph LawlerThe situation facing banks today is one of the many far-reaching repercussions of the 2008 financial crisis, which the government’s investigators concluded was in part kicked off by a decline in lending standards. (MBA mention)
Fight over CFPB Arbitration Rule May Just Be Starting
American Banker, July 10, 2017–Kate Berry, Ian McKendry (subscription)With the ink barely dry on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final arbitration rule Monday, defenders and critics of the rule were already girding for a congressional fight over its ultimate fate.
The Big Downgrade That Fueled the Subprime Crash
Bloomberg, July 10, 2017–Adam Tempkin, Claire BostonToday in the housing market, stringent regulations have kept loans to borrowers with weak credit in check. Subprime originations are a shadow of their pre-crisis levels, data from Equifax show. And the American Dream of homeownership? That’s been hovering at a more than 50-year low.