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News By Edition
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RESPA News Monthly Edition
RESPA News Monthly
January 2025
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Consumer law center discusses RESPA rights, force-placed insurance
Posted Date: Thursday, December 5, 2024
The National Consumer Law Center provided a close look into force-placed insurance, the risk for abuse associated with it, and what RESPA rights and considerations consumers should be aware of when they find their servicer implementing such policies.
“While homeowners are faced with an insurance affordability crisis, mortgage investors are asking servicers to be tougher in force-placing insurance when the homeowner’s coverage is not adequate,” the report stated.
Read on for more details.
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Chopra responds to cabinet appointee suggestion to ‘delete’ CFPB
Posted Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, formerly known as Twitter, and President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to co-lead a new federal agency, suggested on X the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) be eliminated.
CFPB Director Rohit Chopra responded.
Read on for more details.
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Despite DOJ concerns, court approves NAR settlement
Posted Date: Monday, December 2, 2024
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, Western Division, approved the settlement between the National Association of Realtors and the plaintiffs alleging antitrust violations against it and national brokers.
The approval came despite a late-game filing from the Justice Department stating concerns about a settlement provision requiring buyers and their brokers to enter into a written agreement before the buyers tour any home.
Read on for more details.
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DOJ files response to NAR appeal with Supreme Court
Posted Date: Monday, December 16, 2024
In a Dec. 10 filing with the U.S. Supreme Court, the Department of Justice contended it never told the National Association of Realtors that it was permanently closing its investigation into the organization.
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CFPB sues Rocket Homes, alleging kickback scheme
Posted Date: Monday, December 23, 2024
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued Rocket Homes, accusing it of providing incentives to real estate brokers and agents in exchange for steering homebuyers to Rocket Mortgage, LLC for loans. The CFPB also sued a real estate brokerage firm for its alleged role in the scheme.
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Nationstar attempts to dismiss RESPA claim, strike punitive damages
Posted Date: Monday, December 16, 2024
Nationstar Mortgage filed a motion to dismiss a borrower’s claims after it allegedly misapplied funds related to her partial claims mortgage and failed to respond to the borrower when she requested the error be fixed.
The borrower brought claims under RESPA, as well as other causes of action under contract law.
Read on for more details.
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CFPB director testifies before Senate banking committee
Posted Date: Monday, December 16, 2024
The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs heard testimony from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra in a hearing titled, “Consumer Protection: Protecting workers’ money and fighting for the dignity of work.”
Ranking Member Tim Scott (R-S.C.) used this opportunity to comment on Chopra’s resignation and question the bureau’s “midnight rulemaking.”
Read on for more details.
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HUD creates award honoring tribal communities
Posted Date: Monday, December 16, 2024
In an announcement about funds awarded through the Indian Community Development Block Grant program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development also introduced a new award to acknowledge the work of community building in tribal nations.
Read on for more details.
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Optimism about lower interest rates boost consumer sentiment
Posted Date: Monday, December 16, 2024
Consumers appear to be acclimating to the higher mortgage rate and home price environment, according to Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index. The index showed a sharp upward trend this year, in contrast to the sentiments observed a year ago.
Read on for more details.
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Next House Financial Services Committee chair named
Posted Date: Monday, December 16, 2024
The House Republican Steering Committee selected the Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion Subcommittee chair to lead the House Financial Services Committee as its next chairman.
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Bipartisan housing act surpasses 100 sponsors
Posted Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024
The Neighborhood Homes Investment Act, introduced in March, celebrated an increase in the number of cosponsors, including Sen. Tim Scott (R-N.C.), the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
If passed, the legislation would promote programs and actions to revitalize distressed urban, suburban, and rural neighborhoods in hopes to increase the number of affordable, move-in ready homes.
Read on for more details.
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RESPA in 2025 – Sterbcow, Horn discuss what to expect in the coming year
Posted Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024
Richard Horn of Garris Horn LLP and Marx Sterbcow of the Sterbcow Law Group provided a birds-eye view of the big issues facing the settlement service industries as we enter a new year.
SoftPro’s Leslie Wyatt moderated the discussion as Sterbcow and Horn covered the regulators’ focus on closing costs, affiliated business arrangements, and up-coming challenges facing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Read on for more details.
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New York passes ‘most pro-housing’ proposal in state history
Posted Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024
New York City Mayor Eric Adams and other city leaders celebrated the passing of what they called “the most pro-housing zoning proposal in New York City history.”
The City of Yes proposal, which the New York City Council voted in favor of this week, will enable the creation of 80,000 new homes over the next 15 years and invest $5 billion towards critical infrastructure updates and housing, with $1 billion committed toward housing capital.
Read on for more details.
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FHA revises cyber incident reporting requirements
Posted Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024
The Federal Housing Administration updated its requirements for cyber incident reporting in a mortgagee letter, intending to provide additional clarity and better align with requirements from other agencies.
Read on for more details.
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Bill aimed at trigger leads ‘removed’ from 2025 budget
Posted Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
An advocacy group announced a Senate amendment aimed at limiting the use of trigger leads is unlikely to pass this year, as it was removed from the 2025 budget plan Congress is considering.
Read on for more details.
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State, local housing initiatives may be more effective under new administration
Posted Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
As policymakers and housing advocates prepare for a second Trump administration, the Urban Institute (UI) highlighted the housing regulatory trends in local and state ballot measures.
“[P]resident-elect Trump’s first term in office featured roll backs of fair housing protections and other proposed restrictions, which would have made it harder for families to access federal housing supports,” UI stated. “If that trend continues in his second term, policymakers and advocates may wish to focus on strategies that can be enacted at the state and local levels.”
Read on for more details.
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DOJ, CFPB remind financial service providers of servicemember protections
Posted Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
The Justice Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) reminded financial services providers of the protections afforded to servicemembers, recent veterans, and their spouses.
The letter comes after CFPB reports indicated that servicemembers face hurdles in obtaining interest rate reductions they are eligible for under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.
Read on for more details.
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Housing inventory, mortgage rates experience slow recovery
Posted Date: Monday, December 9, 2024
Despite mortgage rates hitting two-year lows this fall, total home sales fell to their lowest level in 14 years, according to Freddie Mac’s Economic and Housing Research Group.
This slowdown has helped increase housing inventory, but not quite enough to offset the supply crunch that has plagued the market for some time.
Read on for more details.
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Rocket Mortgage alleges HUD ‘misused’ FHA in appraisal discrimination dispute
Posted Date: Thursday, December 5, 2024
Rocket Mortgage filed a complaint with the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, alleging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) “misuse[d]” the Fair Housing Act “to place [Rocket] in conflicting and irreconcilable positions with respect to appraisal independence in the mortgage loan origination process.”
The cover sheet for the complaint stated Rocket Mortgage was bringing its claim under the Administrative Procedures Act and requested declaratory and injunctive relief in relation to HUD’s policy.
Read on for more details.
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Mortgage performance wanes in wake of hurricanes
Posted Date: Thursday, December 5, 2024
Natural disasters can cause more than property damage – interruption in income and other expenses can impact a borrower’s ability to make their mortgage payments.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency looked into how events such as hurricanes impact mortgage performance across different borrower demographics.
Read on for more details.
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NCRC, HSBC Bank enter into community growth initiative
Posted Date: Thursday, December 5, 2024
HSBC Bank is including the National Community Reinvestment Coalition in its plans to promote responsible banking practices and financial equity across the U.S.
Over the next four years, the bank will invest $25 million in loan subsidies, community development grants, and philanthropic donations.
Read on for more details.
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Increase in pending home sales support optimistic forecast
Posted Date: Thursday, December 5, 2024
October’s pending home sales increased month-over-month, according to data from the National Association of Realtors. This made the third consecutive month that pending home sales increased.
The organization’s chief economist called the uptick in contract signings “encouraging.”
Read on for more details.
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HUD moves to dismiss APA, unjust enrichment claims over mortgage insurance premiums
Posted Date: Monday, December 2, 2024
A plaintiff attempted to bring a class action alleging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development deprived her of a refund of the mortgage insurance premiums paid to the Federal Housing Administration in relation to her home loan.
The claim was brought under the Administrative Procedures Act, asking the court to determine whether the failure to refund was a final agency action, or inaction, that could be addressed.
Read on for more details.
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Pennsylvania sued by DOJ over discriminatory codes
Posted Date: Monday, December 2, 2024
The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Pennsylvania, its Department of Labor and Industry, and its Department of Human Services over certain code requirements that deny or limit the availability of community-based housing for people with intellectual disabilities and autism.
The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief, including an order requiring the commonwealth to allow local governments to assess the need for automatic sprinklers in community homes based on the unique and specific needs and abilities of each home’s residents.
Read on for more details.
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Existing home sales see trend-breaking uptick
Posted Date: Monday, December 2, 2024
October’s existing home sales increased month-over-month and experienced the first year-over-year increase in more than three years, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said this could be an indication the “worst of the downturn” is over.
Read on for more details.
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FHA issues loan amounts for 2025
Posted Date: Monday, December 2, 2024
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Federal Housing Administration has detailed the new loan limits for its Single Family Title II forward and home equity conversion mortgage insurance programs, to go into effect for 2025.
Read on for more details.
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Financial regulators grilled by FSC
Posted Date: Monday, December 2, 2024
In a hearing before the House Financial Services Committee, Chairman Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) addressed leaders from the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Co., the National Credit Union Administration and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.
Read on for more details.
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