News By Edition

Since 1977, the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) has ensured that banks continue to meet the needs of the communities they are meant to serve by promoting lending in lower-income areas. With only one major update in the mid-1990s, the banking regulators have introduced a proposal to update the CRA to better reflect the changes in the banking and lending industries in the past 30 years.

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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen provided testimony to the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs regarding the Financial Stability Oversight Committee (FSOC). She spoke about cryptocurrency, Russian sanctions, access to healthcare, the post-pandemic economy and cybersecurity.

Republicans on the committee were critical of what they considered the FSOC’s pursuit of a political agenda instead of focusing on “real risks” to the economy.

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For the first time, the National Settlement Services Summit (NS3) will feature collaborative workshops to help those in the title industry develop plans to attract talented employees, prevent wire fraud, improve their marketing strategy and increase diversity in their offices. The 18^th annual NS3 is being held June 1-3 at the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate in Orlando, Fla. The Collaborative Workshops track will take place Thursday, June 2.

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The Federal Reserve issued its semi-annual Financial Stability Report which is designed to provide a report on the Fed’s current assessment of the resilience of the U.S. financial system. The report looks at valuation pressures, household and business borrowing, leverage within the financial sector and funding risks as the broad categories for this assessment.

The current report expresses growing uncertainty in U.S. and global financial systems as pandemic outlooks remain uncertain and the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues.

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Stablecoins, a variety of cryptocurrency anchored to or backed by a real-world asset to maintain its value, are believed to be a significant part of the long-term future of cryptocurrency usage.

However, one stablecoin, TerraUSD, which was anchored to the value of the U.S. dollar, recently saw a near-total loss in value which has put the longevity and legitimacy of stablecoins into question.

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The Senate voted to confirm Jerome Powell for a second term as chair of the Federal Reserve. Powell, who was first nominated by President Donald Trump in 2018, has been Fed’s acting chair since his first term expired in February.

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The seven-month long 2-2 split on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ended following the Senate’s 51-50 confirmation of Alvero Bedoya to the commission. The partisan vote gives the FTC a Democrat majority which will allow for Chair Lina Khan to begin enacting more of the administration’s agenda.

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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has issued its annual report on the bureau’s fair lending activities for 2021. The report highlights enforcement actions, amicus briefs, rulemaking procedures, and outreach and engagement activities.

The CFPB has also issued an advisory opinion on the scope and timeframe in which fair lending laws apply.

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The Federal Housing Administration issued a mortgagee letter which added a 30-day buyer preference for certain home sales. The objective of this addition is to increase supply and access to affordable housing and homeownership for low- and moderate- income homebuyers.

The change also creates a preference for Housing and Urban Development approved nonprofits and governmental entities as part of the post-foreclosure sales period.

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Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu stated that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has joined the Department of Justice (DOJ) and other financial regulators in plans to change bank merger rules.

The DOJ’s Antitrust Division, along with the Federal Trade Commission, began soliciting public comment on the topic earlier this year.

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The Fifth Circuit heard appeals from the trade groups challenging a 2017 CFPB rule on payday and high-rate installment loans. The trade groups are arguing the CFPB did not have the authority to enact the rule.

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As the Federal Reserve continues its aggressive rate increases to fight decades-high inflation, concerns of an impending recession also continue to grow.

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The Senate has confirmed Lisa Cook, President Joe Biden’s nominee to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. Cook will become the first Black woman to join the Fed board.

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The financial world has been inundated with new technology. Mobile banking, digital wallets, cryptocurrencies, blockchain. These are all phrases that were meaningless five to 10 years ago but are now the latest in the ever-changing world of fintech.

ICE Mortgage Technology Senior Vice President of Product Strategy Stephanie Durflinger spoke with Dodd Frank Update on utilizing technology to solve problems and help customers throughout the mortgage process.

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI) has released a report on the efforts of the SEC and regulated entities to further diversity, equity and inclusion goals.

The voluntary assessment from regulated entities showed high levels of internal initiative to foster diverse and inclusive policies and practices.

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After two years of record sale price increases for homes, the average asking price of a homeowner has begun to decline.

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Redwood Trust has announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Riverbend Funding and its subsidiaries in an all-cash transaction.

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In its quarterly filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, U.S. Bancorp acknowledged that it was in continued conversations with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regarding potential enforcement action against the bank.

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The Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee voted to raise interest rates by 0.5 percentage points following the committee’s May 3-4 meeting. The increased interest rates are expected to trigger an increase in mortgage rates which have already passed 5 percent, the highest level in over a decade.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell also addressed concerns over the nature of future interest rates.

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The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Subcommittee on Financial Institutions held hearings to discuss and garner testimony from expert witnesses on overdraft and nonsufficient funds fees.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau previously announced its intentions to address what it perceived as harmful “junk fees.”

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Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu addressed the topic of advancing fair access to quality and sustainable credit at the Black Homeownership Collaborative’s fair housing month forum.

Hsu discussed different programs and initiatives, as well as proposed regulatory changes, that will help increase access to credit and homeownership.

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The Consumer Bankers Association (CBA) has named a new president and CEO to succeed Richard Hunt, who has served the CBA since 2009.

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NYSE-owner Intercontinental Exchange has reached an agreement to acquire Black Knight. The transaction values Black Knight at $85 per share, or $13.1 billion.

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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has joined the New York Attorney General’s Office in suing MoneyGram for alleged repeated violations of federal law.

CFPB Director Rohit Chopra had previously announced plans to apply stricter focus and scrutiny to perceived “repeat offenders,” of which he classifies MoneyGram.

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Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the House Financial Services Committee during the CFPB’s semi-annual update report to Congress.

Chopra highlighted many of the actions the CFPB has taken over the last six months and provided plans for the bureau going forward.

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The industry is constantly dealing with a variety of compliance issues, from RESPA compliance and state regulations to ways to securely transfer funds. During the National Settlement Services Summit (NS3), June 1-3 at the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate in Orlando, Fla., attendees will hear from speakers on these topics and more.

Last month, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon warned a recession was “absolutely” possible in 2022 or 2023. Now Fannie Mae has issued a prediction that a ‘modest’ recession is likely to occur in 2023.

Community bankers have also expressed concerns the Federal Reserve will be unable to avert a recession.

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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has announced its intention to utilize a thus far little used provision of the Dodd-Frank Act which allows for the “supervisory examination” of nonbank financial companies which may pose risks to consumers. The CFPB said it intends to use this authority to apply greater supervision to fintechs.

The CFPB also has issued new procedural rules to make these examinations more transparent.

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United Wholesale Mortgage CEO and President Mat Ishbia publicly criticized Rocket’s plans to lay off 8 percent of its workforce.

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Recent data from Black Knight’s Data and Analytics division’s Mortgage Monitor Report  showed home prices and interest rates are reaching all-time highs, causing sharp declines in home affordability.

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Mortgage interest rates have reached their highest levels in a decade and home prices have seen unprecedented surges over the past year. This has led to a sudden and sharp decline in mortgage refinancing applications.

In recent weeks Wells Fargo and Rocket, two of the largest mortgage originators in the U.S., have both confirmed plans to reduce the size of their mortgage-related labor force; and they are not the only ones.

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Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has announced the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is likely to consider and enact a one-half percentage point increase to short-term interest rates during the committee’s May meeting.

St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard is also calling for greater increases to short-term interest rates to reach 3.5 percent by the end of 2022. Cleveland Federal Reserve President Loretta Mester has expressed a desire to take a more methodical approach.

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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently issued a report on “banking deserts” in rural areas. The purpose of the report is to address the challenges faced by Americans in rural communities that often lack access to online banking and are more reliant on physical bank branches.

The report also highlighted the issues surrounding debt and obtaining credit for members of rural communities.

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Down Payment Resource, a nationwide data base for U.S. homebuyer assistance programs, released its first-quarter 2022 Homeownership Program Index. The index found a net increase in the number of homebuyer assistance programs from fourth quarter 2021 to first quarter 2022.

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A recent study from Zillow and Rover found that most dog-owners would be willing to move if they believed it would be better for their pet(s).

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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) submitted its annual Fair Debt Collection Practices Act report for 2021 to Congress. The report highlighted CFPB actions in 2021 to address consumer complaints and debt collection practices affecting small businesses.

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The recent Global Financial Stability Report from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) found the rise of fintech firms in the lending sector has led to traditional finance lenders taking higher risks in their lending activity.

The IMF report examined some of the reasons for this higher-risk behavior, and policy changes that can help reduce the behavior and the risk.

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At the 2022 National Settlement Services Summit (NS3), taking place June 1-3 in Orlando, Fla., several sessions will examine the cutting edge of innovations in the title space, including with cryptocurrency, remote online notarization (RON) and cybersecurity.

 Other sessions cover the latest in cash-offer programs, sales techniques and how to future-proof your business.

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In 2013, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) brought enforcement action against Ocwen Financial Corp. The enforcement action led to a settlement agreement between Ocwen and the CFPB during which time Ocwen mortgage’s practices were subjected to greater oversight and scrutiny.

Now the question before the court is whether the CFPB is precluded from bringing action against Ocwen for things done during, and prior to, the settlement agreement period.

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In the 2023 budget proposal submitted to Congress, the White House has indicated it is anticipating strong performance for the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) program.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has made legislative proposals to Congress relating to reverse mortgages to coincide with the White House budget.

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Mortgage Coach and ReverseVision announced plans to integrate services to produce a Reverse Total Cost Analysis service for comparing reverse and forward mortgages.

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In a recent statement from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the agency has continued its ongoing criticism of the practice of charging overdraft and nonsufficient fund (NSF) fees.

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