Legislation

The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has once again been extended – this time for two weeks.

Congress acted Thursday to fund the government through Dec. 21, extending the NFIP through the same day in the process.

Read on for more details on the latest NFIP extension from National Association of Realtors (NAR) Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Shannon McGahn, who called the continuous short-term extensions unsustainable.

As Congress considers legislation which would officially exempt lawyers, law firms and employees from the definition of “debt collector” under the Dodd-Frank Act, the American Bar Association (ABA) is split in its support for the bill.

A group of consumer fellows from the Consumer Financial Services Committee of the ABA wrote to the president to criticize the association’s lobbying efforts to pass the bill.

Read on for details of the ABA dispute and of the legislation being considered.

The House Financial Services Committee recently reported a bill to change TILA/RESPA rules and TRID tolerances to the full House for its consideration.

H.R. 2570, the Mortgage Fairness Act, is designed to amend TILA to revise the definition of “points and fees” under a high-cost mortgage.

Read on for more details on the bill, which proponents deem necessary due to mortgage brokerage fee issues stemming from the final Qualified Mortgage (QM) rule.

The House Financial Services Committee has introduced legislation that would undo many of the Trump administration’s anti-consumer changes designed to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

Ranking member Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), recently announced H.R. 6972, the Consumers First Act, to reverse efforts by Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget, to do away with the bureau.

Read on for highlights of the bill, which accuses Mulvaney of being unlawfully appointed.

Do vulnerabilities in anti-money laundering laws present an increased risk of criminal activity in the luxury real estate market?

A pair of lawmakers is hoping to find out.

Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) recently wrote to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) asking it to further study the issue. Read on for details, including the potential for criminal activity in the real estate market.

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) is working to create uniform rules on ad licensing disclosures at the state level.

The MBA is asking state regulators to implement a uniform licensing disclosure protocol that directs consumers to the NMLS Consumer Access Website. If done nationally, reliance on such a protocol is expected to improve consumer disclosures regarding company licensing information.

Read on for details about the protocol, which Illinois already has adopted.

The Maryland General Assembly passed the Financial Consumer Protection Act of 2018 in May, which is expected to bridge the gap left from a less enforcement-oriented Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

Read on for more details about the act, which will alter the definition of “unfair or deceptive trade practice” to include “abusive” practices.

New Jersey recently amended multiple provisions of its Residential Mortgage Lending Act (RMLA), including those relating to mortgage loan originator licensing and sponsorship.

The changes also affect fees licensed lenders and brokers may charge, branch office supervision, secondary mortgage loans and continuing education requirements.

The amendments take effect Nov. 22. The bill passed the state assembly 76-0 and the state senate 38-0 before being signed by the governor.

The House Financial Services Committee recently advanced two bills slated to improve access to real estate settlement services and products.

Committee members voted 34-22 to send H.R. 2570, the Mortgage Fairness Act of 2017, to the full House after a July 24 markup session involving seven pieces of legislation. H.R. 2570 amends TILA to clarify that the points and fees relating to a mortgage loan do not include certain compensation amounts already taken into account in setting the interest rate on the loan.

Read on for Rep. Maxine Waters’ reaction to the committee’s votes on that bill and others up for further consideration.