Law and regulation

Real Estate Settlement Procedure Act violations cited in a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau action suggest the technical compliance required rises in line with the aggressiveness of past or present marketing.

Now that Congress has rolled back steep increases in flood insurance premiums, lawmakers and housing interests are on the Federal Emergency Management Agency's case to avoid another bungle.

As regulations reshape the reverse mortgage, lenders hope to end up with a safer, more reputable product. Meantime, the changes are turning the economics of this business on its head.

One of the most difficult conversions for lenders to accomplish is turning a past customer into a future customer.

The head of a California mortgage lender who perpetrated a $5.3 million mortgage fraud scheme against Ally Financial will serve more than four years in prison.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau fined RealtySouth, Alabama’s largest real estate firm, $500,000 for allegedly steering consumers to an affiliated title services company.

Much has been made of how Basel III requirements have dulled banks' appetite for mortgage servicing rights, but a handful of institutions are buying within regulatory limits.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last week quietly issued over $70 million in fines to entities which have been through private settlements without specifying why. Here are some likely causes.

The congressional stalemate over how to restructure the housing finance system leaves several questions unanswered about other bank regulations currently in the pipeline.

Democratic allies are hoping that, once confirmed, Julian Castro will focus on increasing affordable housing and making mortgage credit more available to first-time homebuyers.

Valuation Partners, an appraisal management company in Sugar Land, Texas, said on Thursday that it has launched a unit to handle valuations of commercial properties.

Mortgage originators do not meet two of the eight required tests to qualify for tax purposes as statutory employees.

New York banking regulator Benjamin Lawsky said Wednesday his office will investigate claims that Ocwen Financial Corp. and other servicers require distressed borrowers to sign nondisclosure agreements in order to receive mortgage modifications.

Most of the loan pools are geographically diverse, but a pool concentrated in the Southwest is expected to appeal to bidders that want to turn nonperforming loans into single-family rental properties.

Bank buyers and sellers should pay attention to the Fed's recent approval of Cullen/Frost's acquisition of WNB Bancshares. Cullen/Frost had to agree to improve its fair lending and other functions, underscoring the importance of buyers who work well in resolving compliance and other problems with regulators.

White papers don’t always get much respect in our industry, probably because so many are just veiled brochures, pitching products and services.

Recently raised regulatory concerns about the massive transfer of mortgage servicing rights from banks to nonbanks are fueling industry hopes that policymakers may be open to addressing the issue.

A task force of state and federal authorities set up in 2012 to probe the mortgage-bond sales that fueled the financial crisis has "more than a dozen ongoing investigations."

A mortgage originator gives his take on whether the gift card giveaway violates RESPA's anti-kickback provision.

A joint effort by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to develop new technology for issuing mortgage-backed securities needs cost controls and a schedule, the auditor of the Federal Housing Finance Agency said.