Fair Lending Shake-Ups: CFPB Vacates Townstone Settlement, FHFA Ends GSEs' Special Purpose Credit Programs — The Consumer Finance Podcast
The Latest on Junk Fees and New York's Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act — The Consumer Finance Podcast
The Latest on HUD's Disparate Impact Rule - The Consumer Finance Podcast
Title Insurance and Your Transaction
Law Brief®: Robert Wolf, Alexander Tiktin and Richard Schoenstein Discuss the Continuing Foreclosure/Eviction Moratorium
Credit Eco to Go Podcast - Not a Normal Mortgage Crisis: How the Mortgage Industry Weathered the Pandemic
Not a Normal Mortgage Crisis: How the Mortgage Industry Weathered the Pandemic
What Happened? On July 8, 2025, U.S. Federal Housing Agency (FHFA) announced that lenders will soon be able to use the VantageScore® 4.0 credit model or Classic FICO® via the tri-merge credit report requirement when they...more
On June 3, HUD published Mortgagee Letter (ML) 2025-14, “Updates to Modernization of Engagement with Borrowers in Default and Loss Mitigation,” which revised requirements for mortgagee interviews with FHA borrowers in default...more
On May 19, it was reported that the FHA’s Office of Single Family Housing (OSFH) archived nearly 600 inactive mortgagee letters after determining that their inclusion on OSFH’s website caused confusion among lenders seeking...more
Fannie Mae published its Preferred Equity Guide Update (25-06) and its Preferred Equity Checklist (Form 6441) in mid-April. Although unpublished iterations have been circulating for the past two years, lenders and law firms...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and state authorities have agreed to a consent order with a large national bank to resolve allegations that the bank engaged in a pattern or practice of lending discrimination by affecting...more
On January 11, 2024, an administrative law judge for the NLRB issued an opinion holding that the employment agreement used by a major mortgage lender for all of its approximately 6,000 employees violates the National Labor...more
The following newsletter provides a roundup summarizing enforcement actions, guidance, rulemakings, and other public statements taken by a federal and/or state financial services regulatory agency, specifically focusing on:...more
FDIC and OCC Issue Guidance on Authorize Positive, Settle Negative Overdraft Fee Risks. The FDIC and the OCC each have issued supervisory guidance on consumer compliance risk exposure related to the assessment of overdraft...more
On April 26, 2023, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion clarifying that a debt collector who brings or threatens to bring a foreclosure action to collect a time-barred mortgage debt may violate the Fair Debt Collection...more
On October 29, 2021 — just 32 days prior to the November 30, 2021 effective date — the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released new guidance regarding the debt validation notice requirements that are part of the...more
CFPB Amends Mortgage Rule to Protect Borrowers Affected by COVID-19 The CFPB issued a final rule to amend its Regulation X—which implements the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act—to assist home mortgage loan borrowers...more
In This Issue. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve) expanded access to its Paycheck Protection Program Liquidity Facility (PPPLF) to non-bank lenders and expanded the collateral eligible to...more
TRID Rescission Waiver Rule & ECOA Valuations FAQ - On April 29, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released additional information which Director Kathleen Kraninger said she hopes “will help consumers...more
With new guidance and model documents issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage industry is several steps closer to operating without LIBOR. The industry has been grappling with the eventual demise of LIBOR since...more
In This Issue. Federal financial regulators brought January to an impactful conclusion last week. On the morning of January 30, five federal financial regulators issued a proposed rule that would fundamentally modify the...more
Raise your hand if you are an independent mortgage banker, a residential mortgage real estate investment trust (“mREIT”) or a nonbank investor in residential mortgage loans that would like to be subject to additional federal...more
The CFPB recently issued the 2020 Filing Instructions Guide for Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data. The Guide applies to HMDA data collected in calendar year 2020 that must be reported to the government in 2021....more
Federal Banking Agencies Expand Eligibility to Use Streamlined Call Reports - The federal banking agencies have adopted a final rule to reduce regulatory reporting requirements for certain banks with total assets of less...more
On August 21, 2017, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued Bulletin 2017-28, providing risk management guidance to financial services lenders that want to establish community redevelopment programs that...more
On October 8, 2015, the CFPB issued compliance Bulletin 2015-05 cautioning against the use of marketing services agreements (MSAs), due to the “substantial legal and regulatory risk” of violating the Real Estate Settlement...more