Mortgage

The Senate Banking Committee voted to advance the Trump administration’s nominees to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Housing Finance Agency. While the votes revealed a Senate largely split along party lines, the financial services industry expressed support for both candidates. Read on »

Rocket Companies and Redfin have agreed to an acquisition agreement valued at $1.75 billion. The two digital lending platform is aiming to offer a more efficient, streamlined experience for borrowers through its new strategic partnership with one of the country’s most recognizable online real estate brokerages. Read on »

Financial services providers and trade advocates have been watching the frenzy of activity among federal regulators and in Congress with great interest and have been actively pushing for changes aimed at benefiting their businesses. Learn about these policy stances and more in this roundup. Read on »

The House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance convened its inaugural session of the 119th Congress on March 4, focusing on the pressing issue of housing affordability and supply in the United States. Read on »

The Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization (MISMO) announced a series of notices seeking stakeholder feedback about new specifications and enhancements to its tools designed to benefit real estate finance professionals via the Mortgage Bankers Association website. Each of the new developments aims to help improve operational efficiency and other aspects of the real estate transaction and affords interested stakeholders a 30-day or 60-day period to provide feedback on the individual developments. Read on »

Bank7 acquired a fellow Oklahoma-based lender as part of a strategic move intended to enhance the bank’s mortgage division and its ability to deliver a comprehensive suite of financial solutions for customers across its growing service areas. Read on »

Bill Pulte emphasized his family’s successful legacy in the mortgage industry during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Development. The Trump administration’s pick to run the Federal Housing Finance Agency fielded questions about his plans for achieving his top priority, if confirmed – “to strengthen and safeguard the housing finance system.” Read on »

With the decision to terminate a 2021 interim final rule implementing key provisions of the Fair Housing Act, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is following a similar policy path taken during the first Trump administration. HUD Secretary Scott Turner announced the agency will attempt to cut “costly red tape” by stopping enforcement of the 2021 Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule, calling it a “zoning tax” imposed on localities. Read on »

A Massachusetts state regulator filed suit against a Boston-based home equity investment company for violating consumer protection laws designed to safeguard consumers against illegal and predatory mortgage practices. Read on »

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) voluntarily dismissed a lawsuit it filed against Vanderbilt Mortgage & Finance, Inc., a subsidy of Berkshire Hathaway, in December, accusing the company of predatory lending practices that set families up for financial failure.

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