Mortgages

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As previously reported, in March 2025 the CFPB and Townstone Financial (Townstone) filed a joint motion with a U.S. District Court seeking to reverse the November 2024 consent order between the parties that resolved CFPB allegations of redlining on the part of Townstone in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).… Continue Reading

The House Financial Services Committee has approved a bill that would restrict the use of “trigger leads” in the mortgage industry.

The committee approved H.R. 2808, the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act in a 46-0 vote. Companion legislation has been introduced in the Senate; no action has been taken on the legislation in that body.… Continue Reading

As Rich Andreano blogged on April 15, 2025, legislation to prohibit or restrict so-called “trigger leads” in the home-buying process has been reintroduced in the House and Senate. The legislation has broad industry and consumer group support.

While we await the outcome of the proposed bills, it is worth noting that a number of states have enacted laws that impose restrictions on the manner in which brokers or lenders are permitted to leverage trigger leads in connection with their mortgage activities. … Continue Reading

President Trump recently signed an Executive Order entitled “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy“ to eliminate the use of disparate impact liability. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) also has indicated that it intends to yet again reconsider its disparate impact rule under the Fair Housing Act.… Continue Reading

Recently, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued Mortgagee Letter 2025-13 to revise the exclusive listing period for certain parties in connection with HUD real estate owned (REO) properties, and eliminate the exclusive sales period for the same parties in connection with the FHA loan claims without conveyance of title (CWCOT) post foreclosure sales process.… Continue Reading

As previously reported, last year the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) launched a Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program, which VA characterized as a “last-resort tool” for VA home loan borrowers facing severe financial hardships. Pursuant to the program, VA purchases defaulted VA loans, modifies the loans, and then places them in the VA-owned portfolio as direct loans.… Continue Reading

In January 2025 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued Mortgagee Letter 2025-06 revising servicing and claims requirements and loss mitigation options for FHA insured mortgage loans effective February 2, 2026.  

HUD recently issued Mortgagee Letter  2025-12 further revising the requirements and options effective October 1, 2025.… Continue Reading

Legislation to prohibit so-called “trigger leads” in the homebuying process once again has been reintroduced in the House and Senate.

“Trigger leads” are controversial for both consumers and mortgage industry participants. When a mortgage lender orders a credit report on a consumer, the credit bureau providing the report may then alert various other mortgage lenders who have subscribed to a service of that fact, which is a good indication that the consumer is seeking a mortgage loan.… Continue Reading

The CFPB has announced that Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) Modified Loan Application Register (LAR) data for 2024 are now available on the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council’s (FFIEC) HMDA Platform for about 4,898 HMDA filers.

The data published contains loan-level information filed by financial institutions and modified to protect consumer privacy.… Continue Reading

Saying that the bureau under the Biden Administration abused its power, the CFPB is seeking to reverse its settlement with Townstone Financial.

“CFPB abused its power, used radical ‘equity’ arguments to tag Townstone as racist with zero evidence, and spent years persecuting and extorting them – all to further the goal of mandating DEI in lending via their regulation by enforcement tactics,” said CFPB Acting Director Russell Vought.… Continue Reading