Mortgage Law Blog, LLC

Mortgage Law Blog reminds readers that the Mortgage Bankers Association will hold its annual Regulatory Compliance Conference September 14 - 16, 2008. 

The conference will be held at the JW Marriott in Washington, DC.

The MBA’s website describes the conference as the “the premier forum for you to attain the most comprehensive, up-to-date information on significant regulatory and compliance issues facing the mortgage banking industry at the federal and state levels.”

The conference includes “an in-depth discussion of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, the most sweeping real estate finance and housing legislation in a generation. Attendees of this conference learn about the contents of this law, how its provisions will be implemented and what changes your business needs to make to comply with the new regulations.”

Speakers will cover a variety of topics, including:

• Home Owners Equity Protection Act/Truth in lending Act
• Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act
• Anti-predatory lending requirements
• Home Mortgage Disclosure Act/Fair lending
• Fair Credit Reporting Act/Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act
• Federal Housing Administration loans
• Mortgage fraud against lenders
• Servicing
• Secondary market issues

There will also be legislative and litigation updates. 

The final day will include a visit to Capitol Hill to meet with legislators.

To learn more, visit the conference website here.

Tags: Association Activities, Conferences & Events, Consumer Protection, Economic Stimulus, FACT Act, FCRA, FHA Insurance, Fair Lending, Foreclosure, Fraud, HUD & FHA, High Cost Loans, Industry Involvement, Legislation, Loan Servicing, Lobbying, Mortgage Banking - General, RESPA, Regulations, State Regulation, Unfair or Deceptive Acts by the Editor
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The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve has published the annual revisions to the fee amount for triggering High Cost Loan disclosures and requirements under the Truth in Lending Act. 

The FRB’s press release states:

The dollar amount of the fee-based trigger has been adjusted to $583 for 2009 based on the annual percentage change reflected in the Consumer Price Index that was in effect on June 1, 2008. 

The adjustment is effective January 1, 2009.   This adjustment does not affect the new rules adopted by the Board in July 2008 for “higher-priced mortgage loans.”  Coverage of mortgage loans under the July 2008 rules is determined using a different rate-based trigger.

The Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 restricts credit terms such as balloon payments and requires additional disclosures when total points and fees payable by the consumer exceed the fee-based trigger (initially set at $400 and adjusted annually) or 8 percent of the total loan amount, whichever is larger.

For a copy of the FRB’s press release, click here. 

Tags: Consumer Protection, Federal Reserve, High Cost Loans, Mortgage Banking - General, Regulations, Truth in Lending Act by the Editor
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Mortgage Law Blog reminds readers that the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance Conference is April 28 to May 1.

The conference, held this year in Carlsbad California, is one of the premier events for lawyers in the mortgage banking industry.

The MBA describes the conference as follows:

This year has brought an unparalleled array of new legislative, regulatory and litigation developments to the mortgage industry.  MBA’s Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance Conference 2008 at La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., will provide you with an in-depth understanding of all that is new and all that is anticipated so that you can meet the legal and regulatory challenges of today and tomorrow.

No other conference offers the mortgage industry as comprehensive a legal and regulatory program. At this conference — designed for managers, industry lawyers and compliance officers — industry experts present conference participants with the entire complement of legal and regulatory developments facing the industry, including:  

New Federal Anti-Predatory Lending Legislation 

New Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act (HOEPA) Regulations

New RESPA and TILA Reform Proposals

New State Laws

New Servicing and Loss Mitigation Standards

New Litigation Cases and Class Actions

New Secondary Market - GSE and Investor Requirements

New Initiatives to Protect Lenders Against Mortgage Fraud

New HMDA and Fair Lending Developments

New Data Security, ID Theft and Privacy Initiatives

New FCRA and FACTA Developments

New FLSA/Employment Law Cases

New Risk Mitigation Strategies

Legal Ethics

New issues in the legal, regulatory and compliance spheres

The conference is packed with excellent speakers and attendees from industry and government, including from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, state Attorneys General offices, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, numerous mortgage banking companies and others. 

For more information about the conference, please click here.

Mortgage Law Blog will not post during this period due to the Editor’s attendance at the conference.

Tags: Association Activities, Conferences & Events, Federal Bank Regulators, Fraud, HUD & FHA, High Cost Loans, Industry Involvement, Legislation, Litigation, Loan Modifications/Workouts, Loan Servicing, Loss Mitigation, Mortgage Banking - General, RESPA, Regulations, State Enforcement, State Regulation, Truth in Lending Act, Unfair or Deceptive Acts by the Editor
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As reported yesterday, the President has signed the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 (HR 5140). 

Among other things, the Act temporarily boosts the cap for loans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buy from $417,000 to as much as $729,750 (depending on the particular market).  Specifically, the Act raises the caps to the greater of (i) $417,000 (i.e., the current limit), or (ii) 125 percent of the “area median price” for a residence of applicable size, not to exceed $729,750. 

The Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development must publish the applicable “area median prices” within 30 days.

One side effect is that the increased caps also result in an increase in the numbers of loans covered by “high-cost” loan laws in a number of states, because some states exclude from coverage “jumbo” loans.  By raising the jumbo threshold, more loans become covered by these laws. 

High cost loan laws in California, Texas, New York and a number of other states are affected.  Loans not previously subject to these laws may now be covered, and should be scrutinized under a high-cost analysis.   

The cap increase is retroactive to July 1, 2007 and lasts until December 31, 2008.  Due to this retroactive application, one can imagine some regulators or plaintiffs’ lawyers asserting that loans already closed are retroactively subject to the state high cost loan laws.  Lenders have strong defenses in this regard, but must remain vigilant about such claims. 

Until HUD establishes the area median prices, however, lenders must decide whether to treat all loans up to the maximum cap as potentially covered.

Tags: Consumer Protection, Economic Stimulus, High Cost Loans, Legislation, Mortgage Banking - General, Regulations, State Enforcement by the Editor
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