Links in “Fair Housing Act”

Last night the House passed the Mortgage Choice Act, which clarifies the definition of points and fees for the qualified mortgage test in order to make loans more available to low and moderate income credit union members. [4/15/15]

Greenbrier Village settles for $110,000 for violating the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against families with children.  [3/23/15]

A trade group tells Congress that regulatory overkill is hurting the very people it is meant to help by pushing would-be homeowners into the rental market and thereby driving rents up, raising the fees for low-dollar loans, and making it hard for people like teachers and doctors to obtain a mortgage for relocating to a new town. [3/19/15]

FHFA's inspector general reports that Fannie and Freddie, which the US government took over in 2008 and bailed out to the tune of $187.5 billion, may need additional funds due to decline profits and capital cushions. [3/19/15]

Stakeholders are waiting on the edge of their seats for the Supreme Court to announce their decision about whether disparate impact claims are allowed under the Fair Housing Act. The court recently heard arguments for and against this issue. [1/23/15]

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia removed support of HUD’s Disparate Impact Rule under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Although the ruling does not affect ECOA (Regulation B), it potentially weakens the use of the rule which allowed liability under FHA based on a practice’s discriminatory effect even if the practice was not motivated by a discriminatory intent. The ruling emphasizes that FHA "unambiguously prohibits only intentional discrimination." [11/5/14]

The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Twin Oaks Mobile Home Park for refusing to rent or sell homes to families with children. Justice has been served. [10/20/14]

U.S. Supreme Court may have its third opportunity to rule on the issue of whether disparate impact claims can be considered part of the Fair Housing Act. Two previous cases were settled before the court could rule. The case could also impact disparate impact claims under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. [10/3/14]

Federal Housing Administration's Patricia McClung will be leaving to join the CFPB to monitor the impact of rules and regs for lending and servicing that took effect earlier this year. [8/18/14]

JPMorgan's CEO Jamie Dimon suggested last week that regulatory pressure banks face to serve minority and low-income borrowers, combined with the stiff penalties they must pay if pools of such loans go bad, has JPM reconsidering its participation in FHA business. While it may just be a threat, the comment is seen as an effort to push regulators to address bankers' frustration. [7/21/14]