The Department of Housing and Development is seeking information about the impact that the frequent use of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) products may have on borrowers’ ability to meet housing-related expenses, including rent or...more
At the tail end of the Biden administration, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) published Mortgagee Letter 2025-06, which was tilted Updates to Servicing, Loss Mitigation, and Claims. The 251-page mortgagee letter...more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has issued Mortgagee Letter 2025-09, which updates the residency requirements for borrowers seeking Federal Housing Authority (FHA) insured financing....more
On March 26, HUD Secretary Scott Turner announced a policy change regarding FHA loans, declaring that the FHA has revised its residency requirements to remove access to FHA-insured mortgages for unauthorized immigrants by...more
On January 3, Fannie Mae updated its mortgage loan underwriting system, Desktop Underwriter (DU), to support changes made to FHA and VA loan limits. The update will take place during the weekend of January 20. ...more
On April 5, HUD announced disaster assistance for areas in Arkansas impacted by severe storms and tornadoes on March 31. The disaster assistance follows President Biden’s major disaster declaration on April 2. ...more
Just about every divorce case involves a house and its corresponding mortgage. In a small number of cases parties agree that dissolution of the marriage is also an opportune time to downsize the residence, but in most...more
As previously reported, in April 2020 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General (HUD OIG) issued a statement criticizing how mortgage servicer websites were providing information on the...more
Economic turmoil brought on by the coronavirus pandemic has created much concern about a potential rise in residential foreclosures. On August 5, 2020, Governor Jim Justice followed his presentation on school reopening...more
In Mortgagee Letter 2020-30 dated September 10, 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) provides guidance on the underwriting of applicants for FHA insured mortgage loans who were granted a previous...more
In Mortgagee Letter 2020-28 dated August 28, 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced the extension of FHA temporary guidance regarding employment verification and appraisals due to COVID-19. The...more
Two federal enterprises who purchase and securitize mortgages, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, along with three federal agencies who make, guarantee, and insure mortgage loans, the Department of Housing and Urban Development...more
On August 27, 2020, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced the extension of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac moratorium on single-family foreclosures from August 31, 2020, to December 31, 2020. The moratorium on...more
Companion bills were recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives (H.R. 6794) and the U.S. Senate (S. 4260) to create the Promoting Access to Credit for Homebuyers Act of 2020. The Act would require Fannie Mae and...more
As previously reported, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued Mortgagee Letter 2020-23, dated July 28, 2020, to update COVID-19 national emergency guidance for FHA loans....more
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued Mortgagee Letter 2020-23, dated July 28, 2020, to update COVID-19 national emergency guidance for FHA loans. The guidance addresses the verification of...more
On June 17, 2020, Governor Andrew Cuomo signed S8428/A10530 and S8243-C/A10351-B into law. Collectively, in relevant part, the legislation creates N.Y. Banking Law § 9-x, which relates to residential forbearances as a result...more
On March 18, President Trump ordered FHA to suspend foreclosures and evictions on FHA-insured loans until at least the end of April. Immediately afterword, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced that it was directing...more
In recent days, the federal government, the state of California, and many local governments have taken action to provide tenant and homeowner protections in response to the COVID-19 pandemic....more
Despite President Trump’s broad announcement yesterday that all evictions would be suspended by HUD, the Press Release and actual Order issued by HUD are much more limited. In short, HUD’s foreclosure and eviction suspension...more
On February 12, 2020, the House Financial Services Task Force on Artificial Intelligence will hold a hearing titled, “Equitable Algorithms: Examining Ways to Reduce AI Bias in Financial Services.”...more
Jessica Sanderson, Of Counsel at The Volkov Law Group rejoins us for her annual review of False Claims Act enforcement. 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), and it unwrapped a nice gift:...more
Have you considered purchasing a condominium unit but were scared off when someone warned you that obtaining a mortgage loan could be difficult? It seems like most real estate professionals have war stories about seemingly...more
In Mortgagee Letter 2019-11, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it is reducing the maximum loan-to-value ratio and combined maximum loan-to-value ratio on cash-out refinance mortgages...more
The CFPB and the federal banking agencies—the FDIC, Fed, and OCC— remain open during the government shutdown as their funding does not come from congressional appropriations. ...more