Compliance & Regulation

A statute long relegated to the environmental regulatory landscape is transforming the way consumer financial regulations are implemented.

The Federal Reserve Board this week released the last details of how two mortgage servicers—Citigroup Inc. and HSBC Finance Corp.—plan to fix problems in their home loan servicing and foreclosure processes.

A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission no-action letter issued in response to a Royal Bank of Canada request among other things opens the door for U.S. dollar-denominated covered bonds’ inclusion in indices investors use to track returns, according to Fitch.

The latest sale includes $1.6 billion of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) tied to home loans known as ‘Duke Funding High Grade I Ltd.’

The Supreme Court late this week ruled that federal regulators cannot use RESPA as a price-setting statute to deter lenders and other settlement service providers from charging excessive fees or even “unearned” or bogus fees for which no service is provided.

Fannie Mae hopes to banish banks from any involvement in the purchase of force-placed insurance under a plan to lower the cost of the product.

What if flat fee loan officer/mortgage banker compensation prevails?

Key senators signaled guarded optimism Thursday about the chances of finding a bipartisan compromise on mortgage refinancing legislation, though the bill still faces an uphill fight in the House.

The CFPB surprised many when its proposals announced earlier this month contained a provision to eliminate certain critical differences between brokers and creditors concerning the compensation of loan officers. This may not, however, be as significant for brokers as it may first appear.

With more effective outreach to municipalities and better internal processes, servicers can minimize their risks of code violations and stiff penalties, and build stronger relationships with code enforcement departments to protect the condition and value of properties in their portfolios.