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RESPRO Coverage: RESPA in the courts – Part 1
Posted Date: Thursday, March 29, 2012
If you are trying to stay RESPA compliant while keeping track of changes and new regulations, you cannot simply rely on the regulating agency to provide you with all the pertinent information. Case law is also a crucial part of statutory interpretation. Currently, there are some important cases that those in the RESPA world must be aware of. In part one of this three-part report, RESPA News reviews one of the RESPA cases currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.
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Summit Early Bird pricing ends this week - Free Article
Posted Date: Thursday, March 29, 2012
Excitement is growing for the 2012 National Settlement Services and Compliance Summit, and October Research is pleased to announce that Early Bird prices remain open this week for all those registering for the Summit. But title and settlement services professionals wishing to benefit from this special Summit rate must do so by March 31.
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New mortgage forms draw big questions from agents
Posted Date: Thursday, March 29, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and its new mortgage disclosure forms were hot topic at the 2012 ALTA Business Strategies Conference. The panel speakers focused on a range of issues including specific questions about who completes the forms, how long the buyer has to review, and possible unintended consequences.
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CFPB requests comments on mortgage form testing
Posted Date: Thursday, March 29, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a notice in the Federal Register requesting public comment regarding the quantitative testing of the integrated mortgage loan disclosure forms. Read on to find out more.
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Consumer bureau takes on TILA right of rescission
Posted Date: Thursday, March 29, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed an amicus brief with the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that a consumer is not required to file a lawsuit against a lender within the Truth in Lending Act’s three-year time period as long as the consumer rescinded the loan within that timeframe. The 9th Circuit, in a similar case, held the opposite of what the bureau is arguing.
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Live from RESPRO: AfBA alternatives
Posted Date: Monday, March 26, 2012
RESPA News reports live from the RESPRO’s 2012 Annual Conference. Some of the hot topics this year are affiliated business arrangements, the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and RESPA lawsuits in the U.S. Supreme Court. In a series of in-depth articles, RESPA News will bring you the important issues covered during the RESPRO conference. In this article, find out what attorney Jeffrey Arouh said about alternatives to AfBAs.
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Court decides servicer may have violated RESPA
Posted Date: Monday, March 26, 2012
The borrower in a RESPA-related action claimed her servicer violated RESPA by failing to reply to her qualified written request, reporting unfavorable information about her account to credit bureaus and failing to cease collection efforts after it received her QWR. Read on to find out why the court denied the servicer’s motion to dismiss.
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CFPB launches consumer database
Posted Date: Monday, March 26, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau launched a new interactive database for consumers. The bureau is hoping consumers can use the online tool to find answers to financial questions. Read on to find out more.
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Court relies on Dodd-Frank QWR time limits
Posted Date: Monday, March 26, 2012
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act mandated shortened time limits for servicers to respond to borrowers’ qualified written requests. Although the Dodd-Frank Act was passed in July 2010, its new QWR provisions do not go into effect until the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau promulgates a rule implementing the amended time limits. If the CFPB does not implement a rule by January 2013, the new time limits will automatically go into effect. Nonetheless, a federal district court determined that the shortened time limits are already in effect and held a servicer to those standards.
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RESPA attorney says ‘required use’ bill goes too far
Posted Date: Thursday, March 22, 2012
A new Louisiana bill proposes a strict “required use” prohibition that exceeds that of RESPA’s current regulations. RESPA News spoke exclusively with some attorney experts about the proposed law, its relationship to RESPA and possible negative affects to the mortgage industry. Read on to find out more about the bill and why one attorney says it’s a “well-documented failure.”
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State ‘thing of value’ interpretation confuses title industry
Posted Date: Thursday, March 22, 2012
To put it simply, RESPA Section 8 prohibits a person from giving or accepting a thing of value in exchange for a referral. That seems fairly straight forward, right? Wrong. Ambiguous statutory language such as “thing of value” has left many industry members wondering whether employing certain marketing tactics would amount to a RESPA violation. State laws that mirror RESPA Section 8 run into the same problem. Those in the real estate industry are left questioning their practices, unsure if they are violating the law. Read on to find out issues one state is contending with on its quest to define and understand what constitutes a thing of value.
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Court finds servicer response lacking
Posted Date: Thursday, March 22, 2012
A federal district court denied a mortgage loan servicer’s motion to dismiss a RESPA claim, deciding that the question of whether the servicer adequately replied to the borrowers’ qualified written request should be left to a jury. Read on to find out why the servicer’s response was found lacking.
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Free title search services could mean trouble for agents, attorneys
Posted Date: Monday, March 19, 2012
Responding to inquiries concerning the practice of conducting title searches without charge if the transaction fails to close, a state regulator indicated that free work could be considered an illegal inducement. Read on to find out more about this issue.
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CFPB shares consumer complaint information with FTC
Posted Date: Monday, March 19, 2012
The CFPB is sharing consumer complaint information with the Federal Trade Commission in the hopes that more information can help increase the effectiveness of the FTC’s existing consumer complaint database.
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Buyer claimed contract contained ‘required use’ provision
Posted Date: Monday, March 19, 2012
The purchaser of a condominium unit argued that provisions in the sales contract violated RESPA Section 9 because he was required to use a particular title insurance company. Read on to get the facts of the case and find out what the court decided.
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Is this the end of private transfer fees?
Posted Date: Monday, March 19, 2012
The Federal Housing Finance Agency released a final rule regarding the sale of properties encumbered by certain types of private transfer fees. Read on to find out what the rule says and view industry comments.
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Association says new mortgage forms are too costly
Posted Date: Monday, March 19, 2012
A national association wrote a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, indicating that the new forms will be too expensive to implement and suggested changes that could bring costs down. Read on to find out what ideas the group offered.
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CFPB proposes rule protecting confidentiality
Posted Date: Friday, March 16, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a proposed rule that would codify protections for privileged information submitted to the bureau by financial institutions. Read on to find out why the bureau believes this will further protect consumers.
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District court takes a closer look at emotional distress
Posted Date: Friday, March 16, 2012
In a RESPA-related case, a federal district court reviewed claims that a mortgage loan servicer failed to respond to a qualified written request. The servicer filed a motion to dismiss arguing that the borrower’s claims of emotional distress did not qualify as actual damages. Read on to find out what the court decided.
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False HUD-1 lands title co. owner in hot water
Posted Date: Friday, March 16, 2012
A title company owner is seeing jail time and a hefty $4 million penalty after being charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. As part of the fraud, the owner made false representations on HUD-1 forms. Read on for more information.
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Cordray: Consumers should have ability to choose providers
Posted Date: Friday, March 16, 2012
During an interview at the Independent Community Bankers of America’s national convention in Nashville, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray highlighted some of the issues the bureau will be dealing with in the coming year.
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Want to make changes to RESPA? Get your comments in now
Posted Date: Friday, March 16, 2012
The mortgage industry contends with a variety of regulations, and frankly, there is a lot to keep track of. In addition those regulations can contradict each other, be repetitious, and in some instances, no longer useful. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is looking for solutions, and there is still time to get your comments in.
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Circuit court takes tough stance on TILA rescission time limit
Posted Date: Monday, March 12, 2012
A borrower alleged that her creditor failed to provide the correct rescission disclosures required under the Truth in Lending Act. She further claimed that because she sent a notice of rescission to her creditor within the three-year time period under TILA, her claim was viable even when filed outside of that time period. Read on to find out what the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided.
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CFPB takes on the SAFE Act
Posted Date: Monday, March 12, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a document outlining Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008 interagency examination procedures. Read on to find out the examination objectives.
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Servicer and court disagree about QWR
Posted Date: Monday, March 12, 2012
A mortgage loan borrower mailed her servicer a four-page qualified written request seeking a variety of loan documentation. The servicer filed a motion to dismiss, arguing the letter did not qualify as a QWR because it did not pertain to the servicing of the borrower's loan. The court disagreed, finding that the QWR did request loan servicing documentation. Read on to find out what information the QWR requested and what the court had to say.
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Mortgage Industry to CFPB: Stop the madness
Posted Date: Monday, March 12, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau published a notice in the Federal Register on Dec. 5, 2011, requesting suggestions from the public for streamlining the regulations the bureau inherited from other federal agencies. The comments the bureau received suggest clear, less complex regulations, and in some cases, merging RESPA and TILA regulations into one.
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Underwater borrowers continue to increase
Posted Date: Friday, March 9, 2012
A report from CoreLogic shows that even as the economy shows signs of turning around, the number of underwater homes continues to increase.
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CFPB takes on force-placed insurance
Posted Date: Friday, March 9, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to release significant rules this year, and a number of those rules are related to RESPA. One of the major regulations the bureau plans to release this year pertains to force-placed insurance. Read on to find out what the industry has to look forward to on the insurance side.
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Associations ask: Why disclosures and not escrow?
Posted Date: Friday, March 9, 2012
A group of associations sent a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, urging the bureau to focus on escrow rules while it drafts the mortgage disclosure rules. The groups also warned the CFPB not to underestimate the time it will take to draft the new regulations.
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Court flunks bid for class action
Posted Date: Friday, March 9, 2012
The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals shot down a request for class certification in a RESPA Section 8 lawsuit, finding that in most cases, Section 8 claims are unsuitable for class action treatment. Read on to find out the facts of the case and why attorney title agents should beware of double-dipping.
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National association claims AMCs violate RESPA
Posted Date: Tuesday, March 6, 2012
A national association is claiming that many AMCs are violating RESPA and are evading state income tax. Read on to find out the basis for the group's claims and why it says AMCs are costing consumers billions.
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Credit Unions suggest shortened disclosure waiting period
Posted Date: Tuesday, March 6, 2012
A national credit union association wrote a comment letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, suggesting that the Truth in Lending Act re-disclosure waiting period should be shortened. Read on to find out what the group had to say.
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State claims unearned fees to settlement agents is an issue
Posted Date: Tuesday, March 6, 2012
A letter released to the industry by a state division of banks indicated that lenders must monitor third-party service providers and ensure that consumers are not charged unearned fees. The division of banks indicated that duplicate fees assessed by settlement agents is a serious concern. Read on to find out more.
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HWC settles RESPA class action
Posted Date: Monday, March 5, 2012
A well-known home warranty company settled a class action lawsuit, alleging that the company paid kickbacks in violation of RESPA Section 8. Read on to find out more about the lawsuit and what the company had to say.
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Who would you like to advise the CFPB?
Posted Date: Friday, March 2, 2012
Do you know someone who you think would be a good advisor for the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau? Or maybe you think the CFPB could benefit from your personal expertise. If so, the bureau is currently taking nominations for its Consumer Advisory Board. Read on to find out more.
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Attorney may have prepared fraudulent HUD-1 forms
Posted Date: Friday, March 2, 2012
A Florida attorney was charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud. The criminal information indicated that the attorney may have prepared duplicate HUD-1 Settlement Forms, inflating the purchase price on the lender's HUD-1. If convicted, the attorney and other alleged co-conspirators could face up to 30 years in prison
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Servicer argues alleged RESPA violation was false
Posted Date: Friday, March 2, 2012
A mortgage loan servicer said that the borrower's RESPA claims against it should be dismissed, arguing that the borrowers failed to allege a valid RESPA violation and failed to show damages resulting from the violation. The court disagreed, finding the borrowers had a viable RESPA claim and actual damages. Read on to find out more about the case.
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CFPB considers extending zero tolerance, says rule might be late
Posted Date: Friday, March 2, 2012
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released documents indicating that it would like to extend the zero tolerance limitation when lenders estimate charges on the Good Faith Estimate. The bureau also said it may get the mortgage disclosure form rules out later than is required by statute. Read on to find out why.
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