Redlining Isn’t What it Used To Be
A Deep Dive into HUD's New Guidance on AI-Driven Targeted Advertising — The Consumer Finance Podcast
The Latest on HUD's Disparate Impact Rule - The Consumer Finance Podcast
AGG's CARES Act Webinar
RAD Conversions for MOD Rehab/MOD Rehab SRO Projects
On September 17, the DOJ and HUD announced a settlement with a New Jersey-based bank to resolve “redlining” lending discrimination allegations. The DOJ’s complaint claimed that from 2018 through at least 2022, the bank failed...more
Co-op and condo boards have a legal obligation to provide reasonable accommodations to residents with disabilities. Residents often request permission to live with their so-called emotional support or therapy animals (“ESAs”)...more
Welcome to the July edition of Akin Intelligence. This month, United States agencies released several key pieces of artificial intelligence (AI) guidance, including patent eligibility guidance from the United States Patent...more
For nearly 40 years and in more than 18,000 judicial opinions, federal courts have used the Chevron doctrine to defer to an agency's reasonable interpretation of an ambiguous statute. On June 28, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court...more
We do not often highlight specific projects on this blog, but with the anniversary of 9/11 approaching, it seemed fitting to recognize two development projects in the area that will support our veterans....more
On August 2, the FHA finalized a rule allowing mortgagees to communicate with borrowers in default remotely, rather than in-person which was previously required, citing positive feedback after waivers of the in-person...more
In a recent podcast, Len and Dean discuss the June 10 article "Manufacturing Fair Lending" from National Mortgage Professional, which delves into the "Modern Theory of Redlining" introduced by bank regulators after AG...more
As previously reported, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in connection with single-family residential mortgage loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), and Fannie Mae and Freddie...more
Over the past month, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has enacted and proposed several changes to its Defect Taxonomy. The Defect Taxonomy is contained in Appendix 8 to FHA Handbook 4000.1. The Defect Taxonomy was...more
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently charged multiple entities with housing discrimination based on an asserted biased appraisal and denial of a mortgage refinance loan application based on the...more
On July 15, HUD released a charge of discrimination on behalf of a complainant against several respondents, including a mortgage lender and its agent (an appraisal management company), for allegedly discriminating against the...more
The Second Department recently held in Trento 67, LLC v. OneWest Bank, N.A., et. al that the FHA COVID-19 moratorium constituted a stay of foreclosures for federally-backed mortgages, and thus tolled the statute of...more
On July 9, HUD released Mortgagee Letter 2024-13 which revised Section 203(k) of the Rehabilitation Mortgage Insurance Program and specifically updated the 203(k) Consultant Requirements and Fees among other changes. The FHA...more
Ending 40 years of judicial deference to administrative agencies’ interpretations of ambiguous statutes governing them, the Supreme Court of the United States finally pulled the plug on this experiment that it, just five...more
The Fair Housing Act Applies to Residential Real Estate Appraisals - The Fair Housing Act (FHA) was passed in 1968 to prohibit housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, and national origin. Since then, the...more
On July 17, HUD announced a rule to regulate the sale of seriously delinquent mortgage loans insured by FHA. According to HUD, the proposed rule would increase the availability of affordable homes and enhance the stability of...more
A group of 18 Democratic AGs filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in support of the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Discriminatory Effects Rule against a challenge by...more
To keep you informed of recent activities, below are several of the most significant federal and state events that have influenced the Consumer Financial Services industry over the past week...more
Recently, HUD issued Mortgagee Letter 2024-12, updating its regulations to redefine Government-Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) as separate from other governmental institutions with respect to FHA requirements for specific loan...more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it has entered into an historic Conciliation Agreement (Agreement) with The Appraisal Foundation (TAF), an organization responsible for setting...more
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) recently finalized enhancements to its 203(k) rehabilitation mortgage loan program in Mortgagee Letter 2024-13. This action follows the FHA proposing enhancements to the program last...more
On May 23, 2024, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) issued requirements, effective immediately, for all FHA-approved mortgagees to report certain cyber incidents to HUD within 12 hours of detection....more
In a consent order with a reverse mortgage servicer on June 18, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) made the argument that failing to effectively service loans is abusive. The groundwork for this line of...more
As detailed in our previous Legal Alert, six conservation groups filed a petition with the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) on March 5, 2024 to request the implementation of legal protections for five...more
The CFPB entered into consent orders with a Home Equity Conversion Mortgage ("HECM," also known as a "reverse mortgage") servicing contractor, its subcontractor, and two of its subcontractor's subsidiaries. The U.S....more