Daily Briefing Weekend Edition

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New Law May Help Brokers

By Lew Sichelman

SACRAMENTO, CA-The 2008 president of the National Association of Mortgage Brokers has been introduced as Marc Savage, Mitch Savitt and probably a few other names that can't be repeated here. Even his wife calls him Mitch when she wants to get his attention - or his goat.

But when the West Virginia loan broker took the stage at the California Association of Mortgage Brokers annual convention earlier this month to give his state of the industry address, it didn't matter what he was called. Everyone in the audience was all ears, hoping he would offer some words of encouragement.

Marc Savitt didn't disappoint. He complained about the negative press that has rained down on loan brokers, and he spoke about the onslaught of difficult laws and regulations that have popped up at the state and local level.

But when he discussed the new Housing Recovery and Economic Stimulus Act signed by President Bush in late July, he did so in positive terms.

"We didn't do so bad," Mr. Savitt told the Golden State's brokers, pointing out that the law satisfies two of the industry's most important goals: It does not require the disclosure of yield-spread premiums, and all originators, not just brokers, must participate in a national registry of lending industry professionals.

The NAMB president said there was some infighting among his members over the legislation, but in the end, they realized they belonged to a single family. "It's what we do as a unit that counts," he told the group's largest state affiliate.

Mr. Savitt also told the conference that although the battle over housing legislation is over, the brokers still face two important issues: The Department of Housing and Urban Development's proposal to overhaul the Real Estate Settlement and Procedures Act and the New York attorney general's plan to put an end to pressuring appraisers to change their valuations.

The NAMB leader applauded HUD "for trying to do what's right." But, he added, the government's attempt to simplify the lending process misses the mark.

"You can't go from a one-page good-faith estimate to a four-page GFE and call that simplification," he said. "It's too confusing because it carries too much information."

Mr. Savitt warned that once a new GFE is adopted, it will be out there for a long time. "We'd better get this thing right," he said. "Once it's out there, we won't be able to change it."