Links in “Mortgage Lending”

In addition to being among the regulations whose framers worked extra hard to come up with a pronounceable and relevant acronym (along with E-SIGN and the USA PATRIOT Act), the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing (SAFE) Act, is also among regulations with violations that can be readily avoided. AffirmX's Senior Analyst Coppelia Padgett has compiled a list of the five most common violations of the SAFE Act she's observed from her audits for financial institutions across the country. [7/9/14]

Citigroup—the third biggest bank by assets—is said to be approaching a $7 billion dollar settlement for allegedly deceiving investors about the quality of mortgage bonds before 2008's financial crisis. [7/9/14]

Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is issuing an interpretive rule to clarify that when a borrower dies, the name of the borrower’s heir generally may be added to the mortgage without triggering the Bureau’s Ability-to-Repay rule. [7/9/14]

SunTrust, a bank in Atlanta, is racking up the fines for "deficiencies in [its] administration of HAMP during the recession." [7/7/14]

Following last week's announcement of a settlement with a credit union for denying a mortgage because one of the applicants was on maternity leave, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development settles another claim with a California-based mortgage lender for denying or delaying mortgage loans to women because they were on maternity leave. Time to take another look at what your loan policy says about maternity leave? [7/2/14]

Mountain America Credit Union has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle a claim brought by HUD for allegations that the credit union had violated the Fair Housing Act. The claim began with a complaint by a married couple who claimed that their mortgage application had been denied because the wife was out on maternity leave. The credit union stated that its investigation showed that the credit union had never had engaged in any discriminatory practice, but both the credit union and HUD decided it was best to enter into a conciliation agreement. [6/27/14]

NCUA announced yesterday that it has developed a new webpage to assist credit unions with compliance to the new mortgage rules and other consumer lending regulations. The site provides consolidated information from NCUA, CFPB, FFIEC and other regulatory agencies and can be accessed here. [6/27/14]

New report finds that zombie properties, properties where the foreclosure process has stalled but the homeowner has vacated the property, have been declining, but won't go away. There were 141,406 zombie properties nationwide in Q2 2014, compared to 152,000 in Q1 2014. [6/26/14]

Credit unions and CUSOs in the fastest moving mortgage markets have had to think outside the box when it comes to their mortgage pre-approval programs. The limited supply of homes for sale has meant that potential buyers need flexibility in order to move quickly on the properties they like. Credit unions and CUSOs have responded with new twists, such as issuing multiple pre-approval letters for tiered amounts and extending the time periods for pre-approvals and interest rate locks. [6/24/14]

The Federal Housing Administration published a Mortgagee Letter reminding lenders to ensure borrowers are made aware of all options when applying for reverse mortgages. The letter specifically targets those participating in the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage Program, and reminds lenders of the responsibilities within that program. [6/20/14]