On August 31, 2021, a new final rule amending Regulation X’s mortgage servicing rules for borrowers experiencing hardship due to COVID-19 will take effect. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) hopes that these provisions will prevent a new foreclosure crisis when the majority of existing foreclosure moratoria implemented by state and federal governments expire over the course of this summer. A mastery of these new provisions will be essential knowledge for lenders, loan servicers, and their counsel in the coming months and years ahead.
Here are five major ...
On September 4, 2020, the CDC issued a broad order temporarily halting evictions nationwide, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as its basis. 85 Fed. Reg. 55,292 (Sept. 4, 2020). The CDC determined that such a moratorium was necessary to encourage isolation and social distancing for individuals who might become homeless or forced to move in with a larger group upon eviction. Initially, the moratorium was set to expire on December 31, 2020, but has since been extended, currently set to expire on June 30, 2021. However, after a recent ruling from the United States District Court for the ...
On April 29, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an interpretive rule allowing certain consumers to modify to waive certain waiting periods required under the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). Per the CFPB, this interpretive rule is intended to ease the way for consumers with urgent financial needs to obtain access to mortgage credit more quickly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ordinarily, the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure (TRID) Rule imposes certain disclosure requirements and waiting periods ...
The United States District Court for the District of Maryland recently held that the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”), does not provide a private right of action for those aggrieved by an alleged violation. See Profiles, Inc. v. Bank of America Corp., 2020 WL 1849710 (D. Md., Apr. 13, 2020). The CARES Act amended the Small Business Act (“SBA”) to create the Payroll Protection Program (“PPP”). The PPP authorized participating lenders to make small business loans to adversely affected firms during the ongoing pandemic. See Pub. L. No ...
On April 14, 2020, the Consumer Financial Bureau (CFPB), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB) issued an interagency statement advising financial institutions of existing flexibilities and exceptions that may be useful during the COVID-19 pandemic with respect to real estate evaluations and appraisals.
- Physical Property Inspections
Currently, exterior and interior property inspections are not required by the appraisal ...
On April 1, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB") released a policy statement providing guidance on credit reporting companies' and furnishers' responsibilities during COVID-19. The CFPB's policy statement encourages lenders to voluntarily provide relief and to accurately report any relief to credit bureaus. The policy statement further indicates furnishers should comply with the CARES Act, which, with certain exceptions, requires lenders to report accounts as current if consumers have sought relief from their lenders due to the pandemic, or, if an ...
On April 2, 2020, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida entered Executive Order 20-94, requiring a 45-day suspension of “any statute providing for a mortgage foreclosure cause of action under Florida law.” The Executive Order also requires a 45-day suspension of statutes providing for a cause of action for residential eviction.
Presumably, the Governor ordered the suspension of any statute providing for foreclosure and eviction causes of action in light of § 252.36(5)(a), Florida Statutes, which allows the Governor to suspend any “regulatory ...
On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act” or the “Act”) was passed in an effort to provide financial stability and relief in response to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. Amongst other types of aid, the CARES Act provides immediate relief to obligors of certain student loans. See Pub. L. No. 116-136 § 3513 (March 27, 2020). That relief, however, applies only to federal student loans which now include the vast majority of the nation’s student loan debt. But, there remain millions of other commercially-held and private student ...
Among a myriad of disruptions to the economy caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, mortgage lenders and servicers are working to adapt to new moratoriums and regulations affecting residential mortgage loans.
First, pursuant to a March 18, 2020 order by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”) signed into law by President Trump, servicers of federally-backed mortgage loans are prohibited from initiating any judicial or non-judicial foreclosure process, moving for the entry of a foreclosure judgment or an order ...
On Friday, March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), an emergency spending bill providing $2 trillion in relief to individuals and businesses who have or will suffer negative economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Credit Reporting
The CARES Act amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act by creating new reporting rules in those instances where a furnisher makes an “accommodation,” which is defined as “an agreement to defer one or more payments, make a partial payment, forbear any delinquent amounts ...