Weekly Brief: BoA Sued; SCOTUS Shortlists; Fund Fights Argentina
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
Welcome to the latest edition of the Spectrum, covering hot-topic issues in the structured finance markets in the U.S. and UK. This edition features the new UK securitization regime, eHELOCs, and climate risk disclosures....more
On June 20, FHFA conditionally approved a limited pilot program for Freddie Mac to begin purchasing certain single-family closed-end second mortgages. This decision came after implementing a new approval process for products...more
June 25, 2024- The Federal Reserve Board published a working paper entitled, “Sexual Orientation and Financial Well-Being in the United States.” June 25, 2024- Federal Reserve Board Governor Lisa D. Cook gave a speech...more
With Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and others embracing attorney opinion letters (AOLs) as an alternative to title insurance for residential mortgages, Bradley’s Title Insurance Claims & Title Defect Curative Practice Group took a...more
June 17, 2024 - The U.S. Department of the Treasury today announced that the United States has provided formal notice to the Russian Federation to confirm the suspension of the operation of Paragraph 4 of Article 1 and...more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), through the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), recently issued Mortgagee Letter 2024-07 addressing reconsideration of value (ROV) policies in connection with...more
May 1, 2024 - The U.S. House Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy held a hearing entitled, “Merger Policies of the Federal Banking Agencies.” The Committee heard...more
The CFPB published a blog discussing a few key takeaways from a series of public hearings addressing appraisal bias....more
On March 12, the FHFA published a final rule in the Federal Register titled “Exception to Restrictions on Private Transfer Fee Covenants (PFTCs) for Loans Meeting Certain Duty to Serve Shared Equity Loan Program...more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently issued a press release announcing a 2023 update to its Equity Action Plan. The Equity Action Plan is part of HUD’s efforts to implement President Biden’s...more
January 23, 2024- The U.S. House Committee on Small Business announced its February hearing schedule. January 23, 2024- The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, in coordination with Australia...more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently published another FHFA Insights blog post addressing the underutilization of appraisal time adjustments by appraisers that is a companion to an FHFA Insights blog post that...more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently published a FHFA Insights blog post that cites the underutilization of appraisal time adjustments by appraisers....more
On January 1, Freddie Mac is launching a pilot program intended to improve the quality of performing loans for sellers. This pilot program, titled “Fee-Based Repurchase Alternative for Performing Loans,” is the fourth...more
December 14, 2023 - FSOC Issues Annual Report- The Financial Stability Oversight Council released its 2023 annual report reviewing financial market developments, describing potential emerging threats to U.S. financial...more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced the 2024 loan limits for FHA insured forward mortgage loans and FHA insured Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs). The announcements were made...more
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) recently announced the conforming loan limits for residential mortgage loans acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2024. Fannie Mae addresses the limits in Lender Letter 2023-09....more
On October 30, 2023, President Biden issued a wide-ranging Executive Order designed to protect Americans from potential risks associated with artificial intelligence (AI) systems. The Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and...more
September 25, 2023- The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Research Department published a working paper entitled, "Lease Expirations and CRE Property Performance." September 25, 2023- FINRA published an election notice...more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently announced in Mortgagee Letter 2023.13 that lenders must use the Supplemental Consumer Information Form (SCIF) of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in connection...more
June 21, 2023- The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a nomination hearing on the following nominations: •The Honorable Philip Nathan Jefferson, of North Carolina, to be Vice Chairman of the...more
Pursuant to section 1473(q) of the Dodd-Frank Act, a group of federal agencies have proposed a quality control rule for automated valuation models (AVMs). The agencies are the Comptroller of the Currency, Consumer Financial...more
Stemming from the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) 2019 validation and approval of credit score models final rule, the FHFA announced in October 2022 that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored...more
On May 22, Freddie Mac announced new capabilities allowing lenders to use a borrower’s digital paystub data when assessing income paid through direct deposit. Lenders will be able to access the enhancements to Freddie’s...more