News By Edition

Over 400 mortgage loan originators (LOs) have been slapped with a fine and three-month suspension in the culmination of a multi-state investigation led by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.

It was alleged these LOs falsely claimed they completed a continuing education requirement they did not in fact attend, despite receiving credit. A course provider located in Carlsbad, Calif. has been accused of signing off on this requirement without providing the educational course or materials.

Read on for more details.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is asking for public input on junk fees.

These are the fees some financial institutions charge on the backend of their products, such as hotels or concert halls having resort or service fees in addition to the cost of their reservations/tickets. The increasing use of these types of fees is costing households billions of dollars a year.

Read on for more details. 

An Atlanta real estate agent was sentenced to two years, six months in prison after pleading guilty to participating in a mortgage-fraud scheme.

The conspiracy netted more than $21 million in fraudulent mortgage loans, many insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The case was investigated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of the Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General.

Read on for more details. 

Freddie Mac’s quarterly forecast predicts the single-family housing market will remain stable in 2022, despite anticipated mortgage rate increases.

Those rising mortgage rates will lead to moderation in buying demand, which should somewhat slow house price growth, the company’s Chief Economist Sam Khater said. However, a shortage of entry-level homes should keep the market competitive.

Read on for more details.

ReverseVision, a national provider of home equity conversion mortgage and private reverse mortgage sales and origination technology, has hired a director of business development.

The 35-year veteran will build on the company’s footprint in the reverse mortgage space by educating lenders on the opportunities reverse mortgages offer.

Read on for more details. 

Fidelity Investments has launched Safir, a regulatory technology business.

The new offering provides human augmentation tools to help financial institutions facilitate the creation, review, and approval of public communications to mitigate brand, reputational, and regulatory risk.

Read on for more details. 

Ginnie Mae will be introducing blockchain and distributed ledger technology to its processes.

The company’s innovation lab is leading the effort and joined with the U.S. Federal Housing Blockchain Network.

Read on for more details.

President Joe Biden has nominated three individuals to fill empty seats on the Federal Reserve Board.

One has been confirmed to the board before and would serve as the vice chair for supervision, and the other two would be governors. They join two others who have been nominated for the board: Jerome Powell, the chair who has been nominated for a second term, and Lael Brainard, who was nominated to serve as vice chair of the board.

For more details on the new nominees, read on.

A LexisNexis study found current market conditions with its rapidly changing dynamics are giving fraudsters more opportunities to strike.

Small and mid-sized businesses are particularly vulnerable to attacks, especially those that operate heavily through digital channels. Fraud losses as a percentage of revenue have increased an average of 28.6 percent year-over-year.

Read on for more details. 

Milo, a financial technology company, is offering the first crypto mortgage in the U.S.

The offering makes it easy for crypto investors to use digital assets to purchase real estate, the company stated in a release.

Read on for more details.

Encore Bank, a private boutique bank specializing in commercial clients, has partnered with ZSuite Technologies.

The bank says the partnership will grow its business and better serve a larger customer base.

Read on for more details.

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Loan Monitoring Survey showed the volume of loans in forbearance decreased in December.

The organization estimated 705,000 homeowners are currently in forbearance.

Read on for more details. 

In a statement addressing the Transatlantic Finance Forum’s Executive Roundtable discussion on crypto-assets and regulation, acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu highlighted the risks of crypto and why regulating the crypto market would be better for investors and for issuers alike.

The popularity of cryptocurrency has increased dramatically in the past five years, despite regulatory and legal uncertainty and instability caused by scams, hacks, and other disruptive events, Hsu said.

Read on for more details.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has settled a lawsuit regarding a 2019 task force the bureau chartered to provide recommendations to improve consumer financial laws and regulations.

The suit alleged the task force did not comply with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, a law meant to ensure there is adequate transparency into agency advisory committees.

Read on for more details.

Freddie Mac Multifamily hit the 2021 volume cap established for the company by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

“Freddie Mac Multifamily had an outstanding year, exceeding all our mission-driven benchmarks and providing liquidity throughout the multifamily markets in 2021,” Freddie Mac Senior Vice President for Production and Sales Richard Martinez said.

Read on for more details.

Cloud-banking company nCino has acquired SimpleNexus in a deal worth approximately 12.76 million shares of nCino’s common stock, plus cash consideration of about $270 million “on a cash-free, debt-free basis excluding transaction expenses.”

Officials from both companies stated the deal will transform the financial services industry.

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MISMO awarded key volunteers for their noteworthy standards-related industry contributions at its 2022 winter summit.

“We are grateful for our entire community and especially commend this group of volunteer contributors for going above and beyond,” MISMO President Seth Appleton said.

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The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. promoted two agency veterans to serve as the deputy to the chairman for external affairs and director of the division of administration.

The new deputy to the chairman also is the director of the agency’s Office of Minority and Women Inclusion and will continue to serve in this role in addition to her new responsibilities.

Read on for more details.

In analyzing data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, Zillow found a widening mortgage approval gap between Black and white applicants.

While overall denial rates have decreased, Black applicants are increasingly more likely than white applicants to be denied a mortgage. The most cited reason for denial: credit history.

For more details on the analysis, read on.

The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs heard testimony from Sandra Thompson, the current acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, during her confirmation hearing to install her as the agency’s permanent leader.

Thompson is a career public servant and is the first African American woman to be nominated for the position.

Read on for more details. 

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s 2022 Commercial Real Estate Finance Outlook Survey showed commercial and multifamily originators expect another strong year of borrowing and lending.

“After a strong market bounce-back in 2021, top mortgage bankers expect the momentum to continue in 2022 – with borrowing and lending increasing for every major capital source,” MBA Vice President Commercial Real Estate Research Jamie Woodwell said.

Read on for more details.

According to Black Knight, Inc.’s December 2021 Originations Market Monitor Report, origination activity was down for the fourth consecutive month.

The decrease is largely attributed to rising interest rates and a seasonal slowdown in home purchases.

Read on for more details. 

Promontory MortgagePath has promoted its director of backend engineering to managing director of product and engineering.

The new managing director assisted with the development of Borrower Wallet, the company’s proprietary point-of-sale technology.

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Freddie Mac Multifamily has appointed two vice presidents of production and sales.

Richard Martinez, Freddie Mac Multifamily senior vice president of production and sales, said both candidates are “exceptionally strong leaders who bring unique talents and extensive experience in the multifamily business.”

Read on for more details.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chair Jelena McWilliams notified President Joe Biden she will be resigning effective Feb. 4, 2022.

In response to her announcement, Consumer Bankers Association President and CEO Richard Hunt urged the agency to refrain from instituting any new rules until a replacement board member representing the minority party is seated.

For more details on her resignation, read on. 

In the Office of the Comptroller’s annual report to Congress, the agency highlighted the actions it has taken in 2021 on a myriad of issues, including inequality in banking, increasing homeownership and affordable housing, and expanding access to capital for minority-owned and small businesses.

“We remain committed to ensuring that OCC supervised banks operate in a safe and sound manner, meet the credit needs of their communities, treat all customers fairly, and comply with applicable laws and regulations,” acting Comptroller Michael Hsu said.

Read on for more details.

Rocket Companies has made a series of leadership changes and promotions across several of its businesses, including Rocket Central, Rocket Mortgage, and Amrock.

The changes are meant to increase connectivity throughout Rocket’s platform and further “the company’s trajectory of success.”

Read on for more details.

Freddie Mac has expanded its single-family green bond framework under its single-family green bond program.

The program supports Freddie Mac’s commitment to promote environmentally sustainable single-family housing.

Read on for more details.

MISMO announced its board of directors for 2022.

These members represent different aspects of the residential and commercial real estate finance industry.

Read on for more details.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has issued targeted increases to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s upfront fees for certain high-balance loans and second-home loans.

The new fees go into effect April 1, 2022.

Read on for more details.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Justice issued two joint letters today reminding mortgage servicers and landlords of their obligations under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and additional requirements under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

“The illegal foreclosures of military families in the last crisis was one of the financial industry’s worst failures,” CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said. “The CFPB will be closely watching mortgage servicers and will hold them accountable for illegal tactics perpetrated against military families.”

Read on for more details. 

The Federal Trade Commission gave final approval to a settlement with Ascension Data & Analytics, LLC, a mortgage industry data analytics firm.

The complaint alleged the company violated the Gramm-Leach Bliley Act’s Safeguards Rule, requiring financial institutions to develop, implement, and maintain a comprehensive information security program and ensure third-party vendors are capable of implementing and maintaining appropriate safeguards for customer information.

Read on for more details.

The Independent Community Bankers of America wrote a letter to the leaders of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the Federal Reserve System, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency requesting the agencies extend the temporary asset threshold relief measures issued during the pandemic.

The relief, the organization said, was to expire on Dec. 31, 2021, despite community bank deposits failing to return to pre-COVID-19 levels.

Read on for more details. 

In an effort to help lenders better serve Spanish-speaking borrowers, SimpleNexus has launched Nexus Bilingual.

The new product makes the loan process more accessible to prospective homebuyers who prefer to communicate in Spanish.

Read on for more details.

HomeBinder, a centralized home management platform, announced a strategic partnership with Own Up, a technology service empowering borrowers to make smarter home financing decisions.

The two will be working together to provide a customizable and personalized experience for homeowners.

Read on for more details.

The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Open Doors Foundation welcomed three new members to its board of directors.

The three bring knowledge and expertise from the mortgage and medical fields.

Read on for more details.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is seeking feedback on its drafted principles meant to address climate-related financial risk management for large banks with more than $100 billion in total consolidated assets.

Any feedback from the OCC’s regulated entities will be used to inform future guidance with respect to this issue. Comments will be received through Feb. 14, 2022.

Read on for more details.

According to Fannie Mae’s Economic and Strategic Research group, its forecast for full-year 2021 economic growth was revised upward.

However, its prediction for 2022 real gross domestic product growth decreased, partly because of concerns about accelerating inflation in the coming year. The forecast also is calling for multiple interest rate increases.

Read on for more details.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency has finalized 2022-2024 single-family and 2022 multifamily housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises).

The goals ensure the Enterprises responsibly promote equitable access to affordable housing, reaching low- and moderate- income families, minority communities, and other underserved populations. The most recent benchmarks include two new subgoals for single-family purchases.

Read on fore more details.

The Mortgage Bankers Association Builder Application Survey showed applications for new home purchases decreased in November 2021 both year-over-year and month-over-month.

Additionally, the average loan amount increased to an all-time high.

Read on for more details.

Lender Price, a mortgage technology company, and Blend, a cloud banking platform provider, have partnered to offer an “enhanced digital experience” for financial services firms and consumers.

The integration provides custom pricing questions to help match consumers with the appropriate loan program and rate.

Read on for more details. 

The National Credit Union Administration board has extended the temporary regulatory relief put in place for credit unions because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The temporary final rule was originally issued by the board in April 2020.

Read on for more details. 

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a final rule rescinding the June 2020 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA).

The OCC announced in May 2021 it was going to reconsider the rule that was meant to modernize the agency’s regulation. Both the Consumer Bankers Association and the Independent Community Bankers of America supported this decision, encouraging an interagency approach to updating the CRA.

Read on for more details.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released an analysis on the use of alternative data for mortgage lending.

“To help determine a borrower’s creditworthiness, mortgage lenders can use consumer information not contained in a traditional credit report, such as a borrower’s rent payments,” the agency stated. “But available data indicate that few mortgage loans have been underwritten with alternative data.”

For more details on the GAO’s findings, read on.

The day after a group of senators wrote a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra asking the agency to look into buy now, pay later products, the bureau announced an inquiry into the companies making such offerings.

“Buy now, pay later is the new version of the old layaway plan, but with modern, faster twists where the consumer gets the product immediately but gets the debt immediately too,” Chopra said.

Read on for more details.

DocMagic has launched eDecision, a solution to expand the level of analysis applied to e-eligibility determination for eClosings.

The company said the new product offers a clear-cut, highly accurate decision for users, informing them of how far they can take a digital closing based on the unique attributes of the loan transaction.

Read on for more details.

Evolve Mortgage Services has acquired Brooks Systems LLC, the culmination of a 20-year working relationship.

Evolve’s core offerings have used Brooks Math Engine and other regulatory products as part of the company’s investment in outsourced mortgage solutions and eMortgage technology solutions.

Read on for more details.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency released its annual report on single-family guarantee fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The report compares 2020 statistics with 2019.

Read on for more details.