Members of the US Senate Banking Committee recently introduced a bill to create the Fair Access Financial Services Act of 2020, which is aimed to make any practice of discrimination by a financial institution on the grounds...more
11/3/2020
/ Fair Access to Credit ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Act ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Legislative Agendas ,
National Origin Discrimination ,
Race Discrimination ,
Religious Discrimination ,
Senate Banking Committee ,
Sex Discrimination
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a final rule on October 27 that determines when a national bank or federal savings association (bank) makes a loan and is the “true lender” in the context of a...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) on October 20 issued a final rule to extend the government-sponsored enterprises patch (GSE Patch), i.e., the “temporary qualified mortgage” exemption within the...more
10/22/2020
/ Ability-to-Repay ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Fannie Mae ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Freddie Mac ,
GSE ,
Mortgages ,
Qualified Mortgage Rule ,
Regulation Z
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued a policy statement on October 5 establishing a process to allow for early termination of consent orders. The policy statement is applicable on October 8, 2020....more
Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act amended the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) to require financial institutions to compile, maintain, and submit to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) certain data...more
9/17/2020
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Data Collection ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
ECOA ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
HMDA ,
Minority-Owned Businesses ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Section 1071 ,
Small Business ,
Women-Owned Businesses
California’s governor is expected to sign into law soon a bill creating a state consumer financial protection agency, the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI), which some have called California’s...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued a proposed rule on August 18 to create a new category of seasoned qualified mortgages (Seasoned QMs) that, if finalized as written, would carry significant...more
8/21/2020
/ Ability-to-Repay ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
GSE ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Qualified Mortgage Rule ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
As negotiations for a further comprehensive stimulus package drag on in Congress, US President Donald Trump on August 8 signed two executive actions—a combination of a memorandum and an executive order—that purportedly extend...more
8/11/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Executive Orders ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Moratorium ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Relief Measures ,
Social Security ,
Student Loans ,
Tax Deferral ,
Trump Administration ,
Unemployment Benefits
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) on behalf of its members issued a statement on August 3 setting forth prudent risk management and consumer protection principles for financial institutions as...more
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a proposed rule on July 20 that would determine when a national bank or federal savings association (bank) makes a loan and is the “true lender” in the context of a...more
In a series of recent interviews (including with the American Bankers Association and a podcast with the ABA Banking Journal), Acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks discussed the Office of the Comptroller’s (OCC’s)...more
For decades, the Federal Trade Commission has invoked Section 13(b) of the Federal Trade Commission Act to file suit in federal court in pursuit of both injunctive relief and equitable monetary relief....more
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued a final rule on June 25 that reaffirms the enforceability of the interest rate terms of loans made by state-chartered banks and insured branches of foreign banks...more
The US Supreme Court on June 29 ruled in Seila Law v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) structure unconstitutionally insulates the agency from presidential oversight...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued an interim final rule (IFR) on June 23, 2020 that temporarily permits mortgage servicers to offer to borrowers impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on June 22 issued two proposed rules with significant implications for the mortgage marketplace....more
6/30/2020
/ Ability-to-Repay ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Fannie Mae ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Freddie Mac ,
GSE ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Qualified Mortgage Rule ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
On June 18, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued a procedural rule to launch a new pilot advisory opinion (AO) program to publicly address regulatory uncertainty in the Bureau’s existing...more
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a final rule on May 29 clarifying that when a national bank or national savings association sells, assigns, or otherwise transfers a loan, interest permissible before...more
As the Small Business Administration grafts preexisting eligibility rules atop the Paycheck Protection Program, courts step in to expand access. ...more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced on May 14 that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the GSEs) are extending their moratorium on foreclosures and evictions until at least June 30, 2020. ...more
Federal and state regulators and Congress continue to release new guidance and requirements to assist mortgage borrowers facing economic hardships resulting from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. ...more
5/13/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Fannie Mae ,
FHFA ,
Financial Distress ,
Forbearance Agreements ,
Freddie Mac ,
GSE ,
Housing Market ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Mortgages ,
Relief Measures
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a settled action on April 22 with Canadian company RevenueWire (the Company) and its CEO to resolve allegations that the Company assisted and facilitated two tech-support scams...more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced on April 21 that servicers’ obligation to advance scheduled monthly payments for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) backed single-family mortgage loans in...more
In response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, California Governor Gavin Newsom has issued two executive orders that place temporary restraints on the ability of landlords to evict residential tenants, authorize local...more
Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued Executive Order GA-14 on March 31, directing every person in Texas to minimize social gatherings and in-person contact with people who do not live in the same household except where necessary...more