Residential Real Estate, Administrative Law, Civil Remedies

GSEs: Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgages

by Jonathan Foxx on 5/7/2013

Yesterday, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced that it is directing Fannie Mae ("Fannie") and Freddie Mac ("Freddie") to limit their future mortgage acquisitions to loans that meet the requirements for a...more

FHA: Mortgagee Review Board - Administrative Actions

by Jonathan Foxx on 4/30/2013

Periodically, we review with you the types of administrative actions taken by HUD's Mortgagee Review Board (MRB). The review of the MRB's published administrative actions should be considered a teaching moment for all FHA...more

Waiting for the CFPB

by Jonathan Foxx on 4/23/2013

My sources tell me that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) will soon announce substantial monetary penalties and other administrative actions against a large nonbank. I guess it is inevitable that when such an...more

CFPB's Gang of Seven (Final Rules)

by Jonathan Foxx on 1/24/2013

This has been a busy month for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Since the advent of the New Year, the CFPB has issued seven Final Rules that impact residential mortgage loan originations. The finale was...more

Is the Fed's Settlement with Mortgage Servicers Good for the Market?

by Donald Rea | Saul Ewing LLP on 1/17/2013

On January 7, 2013, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and the U.S. Federal Reserve Board announced an $8.5 Billion settlement with 10 of the nation's top residential loan servicers ending independent...more

Federal Reserve Announces Another Major Cash Settlement with Mortgage Servicers: $8.5 Billion to be Paid in Cash, Used to Help...

by Rosa Eckstein Schechter on 1/15/2013

In a joint press release issued by the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, news this past week is that 10 mortgage servicers around the country have entered into a settlement agreement with the...more

CFPB's Final Rule: Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgages

by Jonathan Foxx on 1/10/2013

Yesterday, I provided an outline of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's (CFPB's) Regulatory Agenda for 2013. As if on cue, the CFPB has accommodated us today with the first of its forthcoming issuances. This pertains...more

FDIC Obtains Jury Verdict And Settlement In Separate Actions In California District Court Against Former Bank Officers And...

by BuckleySandler LLP on 1/7/2013

On December 7, the FDIC, as receiver of a failed bank, obtained a jury verdict in its favor in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against a group of former bank officers. FDIC v. Van Dellen, No....more

Cook County property owners can cut property tax bills by filing a protest in 2013

by David Bass | Thompson Coburn LLP on 1/7/2013

Each year, the Cook County Assessor reassesses one-third of the nearly 1.8 million parcels in Cook County. For 2013, the 13 townships located in the north and northwest sections of Cook County will be reassessed starting in...more

Fannie Mae Updates Maximum Allowable Attorney Fees, Provides Standard Short Sale FAQs

by BuckleySandler LLP on 12/18/2012

On December 13, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2012-26 to update the maximum allowable foreclosure attorney fees for mortgage loans, participation pool mortgage loans, and MBS mortgage loans serviced under...more

2/3 Of DOJ’s Nearly $5 Billion Recovery Under False Claims Act Derived From Whistleblower Suits in 2012

by Sigal Mandelker, Massiel Pedreira | Proskauer - Whistleblowing & Retaliation on 12/11/2012

On December 4, the Justice Department announced a record-breaking recovery of $4.9 billion in settlements and judgments in civil cases brought under the False Claims Act (FCA) for the fiscal year ending September 20, 2012....more

National Mortgage Settlement Monitor Issues Progress Report

by BuckleySandler LLP on 11/27/2012

On November 19, Joseph Smith, Jr., the Monitor of the national mortgage settlement, released a report on the consumer relief activities of the five banks that are parties to the settlement. Between March 1, 2012 and September...more

Bank Argues Government’s False Claims Act Case Violates National Servicing Settlement

by BuckleySandler LLP on 11/15/2012

On November 1, one of the five banks that entered into a comprehensive mortgage servicing settlement earlier this year with the federal government and 49 state attorneys general invoked that agreement in defense of claims...more

Florida Attorney General Announces Plan to Distribute $300,000,000 in Foreclosure Settlement Proceeds: News Release of the Week

by Rosa Eckstein Schechter on 11/13/2012

A few weeks ago, we discussed the fight between Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Florida Legislature over $334,000,000 that came to Florida as part of its settlement deal with the five Big Banks in the national...more

Wells Fargo: Department of Justice Not Playing Fair

by Bilzin Sumberg Mortgage Repurchase Group on 11/9/2012

Wells Fargo has recently cried foul, claiming that the Department of Justice’s latest lawsuit against it in the Southern District of New York violates the terms of a settlement agreement Wells had previously reached with the...more

FHFA Action Against Countrywide Deemed Timely

by Orrick - Structured Finance Group on 11/7/2012

On October 18, Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer of the Central District of California denied Countrywide’s motion to dismiss an action brought by the Federal Housing Finance Authority seeking relief in connection with purchases by...more

U.S. Sues Bank of America for Alleged Mortgage Fraud Against GSEs

by Orrick - Structured Finance Group on 11/7/2012

On October 24, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York filed suit against Bank of America and Countrywide seeking damages for over $1 billion in alleged losses suffered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac....more

Illinois Appellate Court Decides Two FOIA Cases on Fees that Public Body Can Charge and Justification for Attorneys’ Fees

by Franczek Radelet P.C. on 11/1/2012

In two recent decisions, the Illinois Appellate Court clarified the fees that a public body can charge for copying records pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and the circumstances justifying the...more

Federal Government Sues Bank of America for Fraud: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Want Actuals and Exemplary Damages From Countrywide...

by Rosa Eckstein Schechter on 10/29/2012

The federal government has sued the second-biggest bank in the country, Bank of America Corp., in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for fraud. That's right: fraud, which brings with it the...more

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Residential Real Estate › Administrative Law › Civil Remedies