News By Edition

New York settled a housing discrimination complaint that alleged three Long Island real estate brokerages steered prospective homebuyers of color away from white neighborhoods and subjected them to different requirements than white homebuyers.

The state Office of the Attorney General and the Department of State opened their investigation into Keller Williams Greater Nassau, Keller Williams Realty Elite and Laffey Real Estate after an investigative report by Newsday.

Read on for more details.

A Washington state resident claimed his mortgage holder failed to accurately record and report payments he made during his bankruptcy proceeding. 

He said that caused a deficiency in his mortgage account and contributed to his discharge attempt being dismissed. He sued the mortgage holder for breach of contract, RESPA violations and various other things. 

The mortgage holder filed a motion to dismiss.

The agencies allege the defendants, doing business through multiple entities located in the Los Angeles since 2018, deceived hundreds of homeowners nationwide into paying for fraudulent mortgage-modification services.

Read on for more details.

The National Fair Housing Alliance, numerous civil rights groups and consumer advocates are urging the House Financial Services Committee, the Senate Banking Committee, and the Biden administration to support appraisal-reform legislation.

The groups allege that the systemic failure of the nation’s property valuation system stifles wealth creation for too many people and communities and undermine the nation’s economy.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded nearly $9 million to provide tenant-based rental assistance and supportive services to an estimated 218 households where one or more members are living with HIV/AIDS.

HUD said the grants are a part of its mission to provide access to high-quality and culturally competent services, including housing and supportive services that are non-stigmatizing, non-discriminatory, inclusive and responsive to the needs of persons living with HIV/AIDS.

Read on to learn more.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its annual report on residential mortgage lending activity and trends for 2021. The report is based on data are submitted by thousands of the nation’s lending institutions under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act.

This latest report found a shift from refinance loans in 2020 to home purchase loans in 2021, with a greater share of home purchase loans going to Asian, Black, and Hispanic white borrowers relative to the share of home purchase loans for non-Hispanic white borrowers.

Read on to learn more.

She modified the loan associated with the first deed of trust and was allegedly told the loan linked with the second deed of trust had been written off. 

When the holders of the second loan began the default process after numerous years of receiving no payments, the woman sued.

The chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services introduced legislation aimed at rooting out discrimination in banking and closing the racial wealth and homeownership gap.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) called H.R. 8833 (Making Communities Stronger through the Community Reinvestment Act) a ‘transformative’ piece of legislation.

Read on to learn more.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau published a report it said offers insights on the Buy Now, Pay Later industry.

The report, Buy Now, Pay Later: Market trends and consumer impacts, found that industry has grown rapidly since the pandemic, but borrowers may receive uneven disclosures and protections.

Read on for more details.

The Federal Trade Commission announced it is sending payments totaling more than $415,000 to 3,508 consumers who financed a car or truck at a Tate’s Auto dealership after Jan. 1, 2013, and later had the vehicle repossessed.

Tate’s Auto, which operated dealerships in Arizona and New Mexico, allegedly deceived consumers about payment information and falsified information on consumers’ financing applications.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded 28 Tribal HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing renewal awards, totaling more than $9 million, to provide rental assistance and supportive services to Native American veterans experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

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Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, the lawsuit alleges the onsite manager of the property subjected a gay male tenant with a disability to unwelcome harassment, both verbally and through numerous text messages during his tenancy in 2020 and 2021.

Read on to learn more.

Along with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Ingram v. Waypoint Resource Group, LLC case.

Both agencies state that businesses providing information to credit reporting companies must comply with the law and investigate potential inaccuracies or errors as required.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) entered a voluntary compliance and conciliation agreement with Ka Hale A Ke Ola Homeless Centers, Inc. (KHAKO) in Wailuku, Hawaii.

HUD said the agreement resolving allegations KHAKO discriminated against a tenant with disabilities by failing to offer her reasonable accommodations and subjecting her to harassment and retaliation.

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In a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Republican members of the Senate Banking Committee accused the agency of pursuing a radical and highly politicized agenda which ignores statutory limits. 

The bureau's recent focus on banks and overdraft fees drew the ire of the Republicans.

Read on to learn more.

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council appointed Yolanda Ford to its State Liaison Committee (SLC).

Ford was designated by the National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors (NASCUS) to complete the remainder of the two-year term left vacant by the departure of Senior Deputy Commissioner Stephen Pleger. Ford’s partial term on the SLC will expire on March 31, 2023.

The defendants sought summary judgement on all claims.

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HUD alleges that Spring Creek Homeowners Association employed rules limiting the rights of residents with assistance animals, including requiring documentation typically provided to certain airlines.

Read on to learn more.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a report highlighting difficulties and experiences heard from caregivers about being pursued over friends’ or family members’ alleged debts from nursing home facilities.

The report found many facilities include clauses in admission contracts that require caregivers to be a “responsible party” for the resident’s costs of care or that otherwise subject the caregiver to financial liability should the admitted resident incur a debt.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced the availability of $40 million in grants through its Healthy Homes Production Grant Program (HHP) to fix older housing, preserve affordable housing and improve the health of children and families.

The HHP program is designed to help children and other vulnerable residents reach their full potential by preventing injuries and diseases, lowering healthcare costs and improving their overall quality of life.

Read on to learn more.

Several groups are urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to extend its comment period regarding Form FR 2572 and its Consumers and College Credit Card agreements.

The groups include the American Bankers Association, the Bank Policy Institute, the Consumer Bankers Association, the Credit Union National Association, the National Association of Federally-Insured Credit Unions and United States Chamber of Commerce.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the availability of $12.5 million through its Self-Help Homeownership Opportunity Program for eligible national and regional non-profit organizations and consortia with experience providing or facilitating self-help housing opportunities.

HUD said the funding opportunity aims to develop decent, safe and sanitary housing for low-income persons and families who would otherwise not have the opportunity to become homeowners.

Read on for more information.

Once their account went into default, the couple sued their mortgage holder and servicer for breach of contract, debt collection and RESPA violations.

Read on to learn more.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) penalized Credit Karma for deploying dark patterns to misrepresent that consumers were “pre-approved” for credit card offers, the agency announced.

The FTC alleged Credit Karma used claims that consumers were “pre-approved” and had “90 percent odds” to entice them to apply for offers that, in many instances, they ultimately did not qualify for.

Read on to learn more.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued the first in a series of reports focusing on the finances of consumers living in rural areas.

The bureau’s first report focuses on rural Appalachians, which it said tend to earn less than consumers in other rural areas and have higher rates of subprime credit.

Read on to learn more.

FMRs are an estimate of the amount of money that would cover gross rents (rent and utility expenses) on 40 percent of the rental housing units in an area.

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The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced it will conduct a comprehensive review of the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLBank) System beginning this fall.

The agency said FHLBanks have been a critical source of liquidity for their members for the past 90 years, especially during times of market stress, such as the Great Recession and the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read on for more information.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) charged the owner of an apartment complex in Shawnee, Kan., and its property manager with violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to allow a prospective tenant to live with an assistance animal.

HUD said the prospective tenant was a veteran with a mental health disability who lived with his assistance animal.

Read on to learn more details.

The complaint alleges Roomster and its owners have taken tens of millions of dollars from largely low-income and student prospective renters. 

Read on for more details.

U.S. house prices rose 17.7 percent from the second quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2022, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index. 

Nationally, the U.S. housing market has experienced positive annual appreciation each quarter since the start of 2012.

Read on for more details.

MISMO said the iLAD 2.2.0 dataset has achieved “Candidate Recommendation” status, which means it has been thoroughly reviewed by a wide range of organizations and industry participants and is available for use across the industry.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is making $15 million available to help older Americans age in place through home modifications.

The funding assists experienced nonprofit organizations, state and local governments and public housing authorities with programs that make safety and functional home modifications repairs and renovations for low-income elderly homeowners.

Read on to learn more.

The lawsuit alleged violations of the Fair Housing Act and sought damages, declarative and injunctive relief from the city of Encinitas and 13 other defendants.  

Read on to learn more.

An analysis by LendingTree found the purchase mortgage denial rate for Black homebuyers in each of the nation's 50 largest metropolitan areas was twice as high as non-Blacks.

LendingTree said the disparities were even wider in cities like Boston and Jacksonville, Fla.

Read on to learn more.

The New Jersey Division of Civil Rights (DCR) recently issued 30 Notices of Violation to housing providers for allegedly violating the state’s Fair Chance in Housing Act.

The DCR said the housing providers violated the act by asking questions on housing applications that are prohibited by the law, and by posting housing advertisements or maintaining housing policies that do not comply with the statute.

Read on to learn more.

Speaking in front of the 2022 National Association of Attorneys General Presidential Summit in Iowa, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said advances in technology should help the America economy and society advance.

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Pending home sales declined for the second consecutive month in July, and for the eighth time in the last nine months, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

NAR said three out of four major regions registered month-over-month decreases (The West had an increase in pending home sales).

Read on for more details from the report.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development  recently awarded $41.3 million in grants to support the services provided by housing counselors throughout the country.

The agency said the funding will continue to support vital housing counseling services performed by these agencies, including pre-purchase homebuyer counseling, foreclosure prevention counseling, rental eviction prevention counseling and disaster recovery counseling.

Read on for more details.

An Ohio homeowner sued her mortgage lender alleging RESPA violations in connection with the handling of her loan modification application. 

A district court judge granted summary judgment in favor of the lender. The homeowner appealed.

Read on for more details.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that a Texas company which manages 55 multi-family apartment properties in and around El Paso has agreed to pay $107,000 to resolve allegations it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

The company allegedly charged unlawful fees to servicemembers who terminated their residential leases early and by denying other servicemembers’ requests to terminate their leases.

Read on to learn more.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued letters demanding five companies and their officers, directors and employees cease and desist from making false and misleading statements about FDIC deposit insurance and take immediate corrective action to address these false or misleading statements.

According to the FDIC, each of these companies made false representations—including on their websites and social media accounts—stating or suggesting that certain crypto–related products are FDIC–insured or that stocks held in brokerage accounts are FDIC–insured.

Read on to learn more.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded $25 million to 181 public housing agencies (PHAs) experiencing or at risk of experiencing financial shortfalls.

While PHAs of various sizes may have been eligible to receive funding, HUD said it is concerned with the ability of small and very-small PHAs to generate resources to supplement their public housing program.

Read on to learn more.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced plans to establish an advisory committee on affordable, equitable and sustainable housing. 

The FHFA said the committee will provide advice and input regarding affordable, equitable and sustainable housing needs and any regulatory or policy changes that may be necessary or beneficial to address those matters.

Read on to learn more.