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Ransomware attack leads to compliance concerns
Posted Date: Monday, July 19, 2021
A highly sophisticated ransomware attack of one of the title industry’s main cloud-hosting providers is likely to have an ongoing impact on title insurance companies and lenders. Industry experts at Franzen & Salzano, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr and Title Alliance, Ltd. have more details.
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Regulators update BSA/AML manual
Posted Date: Thursday, July 22, 2021
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has released updates to four sections of the Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering Examination Manual. The FFIEC said the updates offer more transparency into the examination process.
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The `model minority’ and the mortgage market
Posted Date: Monday, July 19, 2021
A widely held perception of Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) as a homogeneous group with high income and education levels has contributed to the `Model Minority’ myth. However, not all AAPI borrowers fare well in the mortgage market, according to a new Data Points report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
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GAO issues housing stability report
Posted Date: Monday, July 19, 2021
The nationwide foreclosure moratorium that provided mortgage borrowers with options to temporarily suspend payments during the COVID-19 pandemic is slated to end July 31, 2021. Meanwhile, a new Government Accountability Office report examined the extent to which mortgage forbearance may have contributed to housing stability during the pandemic.
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ABA analyzes FinCEN’s new AML priorities
Posted Date: Monday, July 19, 2021
The American Bankers Association (ABA) issued a members-only staff analysis of the government-wide policy priorities for anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism issued by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). The staff analysis also summarized the separate interagency statement FinCEN and the federal banking agencies issued simultaneously with the priorities.
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CFPB, FDIC team up against romance scams
Posted Date: Monday, July 19, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. have jointly released an enhanced version of the financial education curriculum, Money Smart for Older Adults. The enhanced version includes a new section to help people avoid “romance scams.”
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New CFPB toolkit gives pandemic relief options
Posted Date: Monday, July 19, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has launched a new digital toolkit for stakeholders interested in providing the latest information and resources to renters and mortgage borrowers who continue to struggle financially because of the coronavirus pandemic.
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CARES Act servicing requirements at issue in class action suit
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
A Maryland borrower filed a class action lawsuit accusing their servicer of violating RESPA and the CARES Act by engaging in deceptive mortgage practices related to COVID-19 forbearance agreements. The servicer argued the plaintiffs lack Article III standing to pursue their claims because their injuries were not caused by the alleged failure to send proper notices.
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Republican senators: Chopra must be disqualified from leading CFPB
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
A dispute between Republican senators and President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is heating up. All Republican members of the Senate Banking Committee are asking that Rohit Chopra be disqualified from being confirmed as director for failing to respond to a congressional request seeking information about an alleged purge of civil servants at the CFPB.
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CFPB issues $2.5 million penalty against fintech
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has ordered a fintech company to pay a $2.5 million civil penalty for allegedly enabling contractors and other merchants to take out loans on behalf of thousands of consumers who did not request or authorize them. The consent order also requires the company to refund or cancel millions of dollars in loans for customers harmed by its illegal conduct and implement new procedures to prevent future fraudulent loans.
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CFPB releases Spanish translation compliance aid
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has released a Spanish-language translation of certain model clauses available for use in early intervention written notices issued under the Mortgage Servicing Rules. The rules permit servicers to make required disclosures in a language other than English and translate disclosures into other languages, so long as an English version is available for the borrower upon request.
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Financial Action Task Force updates AML/CFT/CPF guidance
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 14, 2021
The Financial Action Task Force, an intergovernmental body that establishes international standards to combat money laundering, counter the financing of terrorism and combat weapons of mass destruction proliferation financing, has updated its statements concerning jurisdictions with strategic AML/CFT/CPF deficiencies. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced U.S. financial institutions should consider the FATF’s statements when reviewing their obligations and risk-based policies, procedures, and practices with respect to the jurisdictions identified by the FATF.
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Tennessee borrowers accuse servicer of ignoring QWRs, NOEs
Posted Date: Monday, July 12, 2021
A pair of Tennessee borrowers sued their servicer for allegedly proceeding with foreclosure after repeatedly requesting a proper accounting of fees incurred from missing 24 payments. The servicer argued the RESPA claim failed because the borrowers did not prove its responses were deficient.
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CFPB: `Shoddy’ customer service harming consumers
Posted Date: Monday, July 12, 2021
Ineffective company responses to pandemic issues have harmed consumers in the areas of housing, credit, economic income payments and student loans. That’s according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) latest complaint bulletin, which highlighted several concerns related to relief provided in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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FinCEN issues cybercrime guidance
Posted Date: Monday, July 12, 2021
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has issued the first government-wide priorities for anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) policy. FinCEN will propose implementing regulations in the coming months and warned lenders to start considering how they will incorporate the AML/CFT priorities into their risk-based programs.
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FHFA expands use of interest rate reduction
Posted Date: Monday, July 12, 2021
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has changed loan modification terms for COVID-19 impacted borrowers with mortgages backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac needing payment reduction for home retention. The updated terms are specifically for borrowers with permanent COVID-19 hardships and respond to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic.
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Financial regulators update IT examiner guidance
Posted Date: Monday, July 12, 2021
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) has issued a new booklet in the FFIEC Information Technology Examination Handbook series, titled “Architecture, Infrastructure, and Operations.”
The booklet provides expanded guidance to help financial institution examiners assess the risk profile and adequacy of an entity’s information technology architecture, infrastructure and operations.
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NAR recognized for fair housing ad campaigns
Posted Date: Monday, July 12, 2021
The National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) advertising campaign has taken home a multitude of award wins this year. NAR’s fair housing campaign work sought to share with the public the association's commitment against all forms of discrimination in housing and actions taken, including strengthening member accountability through its code of ethics, expanding training programs with unconscious bias and scenario simulations.
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Fair lending, mortgage servicing issues detailed in CFPB report
Posted Date: Thursday, July 8, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has published its Summer 2021 Supervisory Highlights detailing issues with fair lending and mortgage servicing. The report delved into legal violations identified by the bureau’s examinations in 2020 and highlighted prior CFPB supervisory findings that resulted in more than $124 million in consumer remediation and civil money penalties.
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DOJ, NAR settlement talks break down in antitrust case
Posted Date: Thursday, July 8, 2021
The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division has filed a notice of withdrawal of consent to a proposed settlement with the National Association of Realtors. Meanwhile, the trade association has responded to the government’s unusual action.
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FHFA seeks comments on fair lending policy statement
Posted Date: Thursday, July 8, 2021
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has issued a policy statement on fair lending. The agency also has issued new orders requiring the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) to submit quarterly reports with fair lending information and data to improve the agency’s fair lending supervision and monitoring capabilities.
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FinCEN to establish NAL process
Posted Date: Thursday, July 8, 2021
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network announced it will issue a rulemaking to begin issuing no-action letters (NALs). FinCEN assessed whether to issue NALs after getting inquiries about the application of anti-money laundering laws to specific conduct.
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HUD: Former inmates eligible for housing vouchers
Posted Date: Thursday, July 8, 2021
Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Marcia Fudge has clarified the steps the agency is taking to improve access to housing for those with criminal records who are at-risk of homelessness. Fudge stressed returning citizens exiting prisons or jails should be given consideration for the recently awarded 70,000 emergency housing vouchers funded by the American Rescue Plan.
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CFPB: Final rule gives mortgage servicers flexibility
Posted Date: Thursday, July 1, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently issued the 2021 Mortgage Servicing COVID-19 Final Rule, which amends certain Regulation X mortgage servicing early intervention and loss mitigation requirements. It also establishes procedural safeguards for mortgage servicers that help borrowers explore foreclosure alternatives, such as loan modifications or home sales.
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HUD proposes restoring discriminatory effects rule
Posted Date: Thursday, July 1, 2021
The Department of Housing and Urban Development will publish a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to rescind the department’s 2020 disparate impact rule and restore the 2013 discriminatory effects rule. The public will have 60 days to file comments on the NPRM, which will be published in the Federal Register.
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NAR: Pending home sales make `surprise’ comeback
Posted Date: Thursday, July 1, 2021
Pending home sales rebounded strongly in May, reaching the highest reading for the month of May since 2005, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist, explains why.
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CFPB, Georgia AG sue debt relief company
Posted Date: Thursday, July 1, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Georgia Attorney General have filed a joint lawsuit against a debt relief company and its owners and executives. The company is accused of deceiving consumers into hiring them to lower or eliminate credit-card debts and improve consumers’ credit scores.
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Supreme Court denies Realtors' request to vacate stay in nationwide eviction ban
Posted Date: Thursday, July 1, 2021
The Supreme Court has ruled that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention exceeded its statutory authority by issuing a nationwide eviction moratorium. However, in a 5-4 vote, the justices declined to vacate a district court’s stay of an order striking down a nationwide eviction moratorium.
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FHA announces more pandemic help for homeowners
Posted Date: Thursday, July 1, 2021
The Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced more measures to help homeowners struggling financially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The new assistance includes a new home retention option called the COVID-19 Advance Loan Modification.
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Biden announces FHA commissioner nominee, new role for Uejio
Posted Date: Monday, June 28, 2021
President Joe Biden has announced two key nominations within the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), including the next commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration. In addition, Biden has tapped acting Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Dave Uejio to become HUD’s next assistant secretary for Fair Housing and Opportunity.
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Washington judge halts foreclosure
Posted Date: Monday, June 28, 2021
In an unusual action, a federal judge has granted a borrower’s preliminary injunction request to stop foreclosure on his Duvall, Wash., home while his RESPA claims are pending. A state court previously found the borrower was entitled to equitable relief because the defendants “lulled” the borrower into believing a 2020 foreclosure auction had been postponed.
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Federal eviction, foreclosure moratoriam extended
Posted Date: Monday, June 28, 2021
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has extended the eviction and foreclosure moratoriam for another month. House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters said the next step is for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to finalize its rulemaking on mortgage servicing requirements.
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FTC sends refunds for mortgage-debt scheme
Posted Date: Monday, June 28, 2021
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is sending refunds to more than 100 people who lost money to a student loan and mortgage-debt relief operation. The commission sued the defendants in 2017, alleging the companies targeted distressed homeowners by making false promises of mortgage relief and foreclosure prevention.
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