The CFPB last week announced it wants public feedback on the resubmission of corrected mortgage lending data reported under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act. In October 2015, the CFPB finalized its HMDA rule that significantly expands the range of data will that be reported after becoming effective in 2018, with reporting beginning in 2019. “Given these changes, the current resubmission guidelines may need to be updated, and the bureau is seeking feedback on what modifications may be appropriate,” the agency said. Also, some industry stakeholders have asked whether the CFPB would adjust its mortgage lending data resubmission guidelines to reflect the expanded data that will be submitted under the new rules. The bureau’s request for information (RFI) lists a dozen ...

The CFPB’s new rulemaking related to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act sets the stage for a more comprehensive regulatory environment in which a single mortgage could be monitored as it moves between lenders, is packaged into a security, or is handed off from one servicer to another, according to a new report from the Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Research. For those who may have missed it, in October 2015, the CFPB revised the reporting requirements under HMDA to include a universal loan identifier (ULI) and the postal address of the property securing each mortgage loan. The revisions also require a legal entity identifier (LEI) for the reporting entity and loan originator and the inclusion of data fields to monitor ...

The Government Accountability Office heard a lot of industry talk about the negative effects of CFPB regulations on mortgage lending during its review of the impact of the Dodd-Frank Act, but found little data from regulators to support such claims so far, according to a new report issued by the government watchdog. “The results of surveys conducted by regulators, industry associations, and academics on the impact of the Dodd-Frank Act on small banks suggest that there have been moderate to minimal initial reductions in the availability of credit among those responding to the various surveys, and regulatory data to date have not confirmed a negative impact on mortgage lending,” said the GAO. Some community bank, credit union, and industry association ...

The CFPB is apparently disturbed by recent press accounts of possibly discriminatory lending practices by Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance, a lending arm for the mobile home builder Clayton Homes, both of which are part of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Company. “The allegations of discrimination and predatory practices raised by the reporting are obviously very concerning to the bureau,” said Sam Gilford, a spokesman for the CFPB. Bureau officials would not comment further. In recent weeks, The Seattle Times and BuzzFeed used data from the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act to claim that Vanderbilt Mortgage, a manufactured housing lender owned by Clayton, consistently originates loans with higher interest rates for minorities compared with interest rates on loans the company originates for white ...

Technical Corrections to the TRID Made With No Fanfare. Over the holidays, the CFPB quietly made what it characterized as “non-substantial” technical corrections to its integrated mortgage disclosures final rule under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (Regulation X) and the Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z). The November 2013 publication of the bureau’s TRID rule in the Federal Register resulted in “several unintended deletions of existing regulatory text from Reg. Z and the official interpretations (commentary) in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and, in one case, the omission of regulatory language in the TRID from the CFR,” said the CFPB. To correct the CFR, the bureau republished the deleted and omitted text, consistent with the agency’s intent in ...

Exams by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2015 uncovered a number of problems at rating services large and small, according to a report released by the SEC at the end of December. However, the firms weren’t identified by name because the exams aren’t public. The report is a laundry list of findings involving the 10 nationally recognized statistical rating organizations, six of which are involved in the MBS and ABS markets. The findings came from exams that focused on activities in 2014. Offending rating services generally were referred to solely based on their size, with Fitch Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s referred to as “larger” rating services and the other companies referred to as “smaller” rating services. The SEC said...

Radian Guaranty became the first among seven private mortgage insurers to declare compliance with the regulatory capital standards under the Private Mortgage Insurer Eligibility Requirements (PMIERs), while other MIs expressed confidence they will meet those same requirements. Radian met its PMIERs goals after receiving $325 million in cash and marketable securities from its parent Radian Group in exchange for a surplus note. In addition, the parent firm contributed $50 million to an exclusive affiliated reinsurer of Radian Guaranty. Radian Group expects...

FHA lenders funded $12.3 billion in new Home Equity Conversion Mortgage loans during the first nine months of 2015, up a hefty 22.2 percent from the same period in the prior year, according to Inside FHA/VA Lending’s analysis of agency data. Likewise, HECM endorsements increased 17.3 percent to $4.5 billion in the third quarter from $3.9 billion in the prior quarter. This was the highest HECM endorsements have been since the second quarter of 2013, when they totaled $4.1 billion. Purchase loans accounted for 85.8 percent of all HECM originations over the nine-month period. The majority of borrowers favored adjustable-rate HECMs over fixed-rate HECMs, which accounted for only 14.8 percent of HECM transactions. In addition, the initial principal amount at loan originations totaled $7.3 billion, up from $4.6 billion midway through 2015. The volume increase is attributable to program changes implemented ... [1 chart]

The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced its loan limits for 2016, which are the same as the loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac this year. Currently, the VA’s maximum guaranty amounts are indexed to the FHFA loan limits, which range from a base of $417,000 to a high-cost area limit of $625,500. The FHFA conforming loan limit will remain unchanged at $417,000 for single-family homes, effective Jan. 1, 2016, to Dec. 31, 2016. However, in 39 counties deemed “high cost,” the conforming loan limits will increase this year. VA loan limits are calculated based on the county median home values reported by FHA. The maximum guaranty amount for loans over $144,000 is 25 percent of the current VA county loan limit. Veterans with full entitlement available may borrow up to this limit and VA will guarantee 25 percent of the loan amount. In addition, the VA county limits ...