Members of the House Financial Services and Judiciary committees have fashioned a narrowly tailored bill to allow bankruptcy judges to modify "predatory" mortgages, but congressional "experts" think it has virtually no chance of passing.Rep. Brad Miller, D-N.C., told a Mortgage Bankers Association conference that the bankruptcy bill (H.R. 3609) is drafted to help troubled subprime borrowers with adjustable-rate 2/28 loans. It would allow bankruptcy judges to waive prepayment penalties and spread the principal payments over 30 years. The interest rate could be set a "couple of points" above that of the prime mortgage to recognize that the borrower is riskier than a prime borrower. The congressman noted that Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., might support a similar bill on the Senate side, as opposed to a broader bill that Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., is drafting to repeal other parts of the 2005 bankruptcy bill, which took 10 years to pass. MBA senior vice president Steve O'Connor told the mortgage bankers that bankruptcy experts think the chances of congressional passage of H.R. 3609 are "close to zero."
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House Republicans overcame internal divisions to narrowly pass President Trump's tax and spending package Thursday afternoon. The measure would cut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's funding level, among other provisions.
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A labor shortage is costing the market tens of thousands of new homes per year, and tariff uncertainty is adding thousands of dollars in expenses per unit.
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The pace of revenue growth slowed toward the end of 2024, with the trend continuing into the first three months of this year, NAHB reported.
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Capital One closed the deal to buy the credit card provider in May and as part of the review process, decided to exit its home equity lending business.
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The 10 basis point decline in the 30-year fixed mortgage was the most since March and the first time rates are below 6.7% since April, Freddie Mac said.
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The firm, now going by Fairway Home Mortgage, said the change is a representation of plans to create a "connected ecosystem."
July 3