Tag Archives: mortgage

Letters to Congress: Letter in Opposition to HR 3564

AFR submitted this letter in opposition to H.R. 3564, which would make mortgages more expensive for many middle-class American families. H.R. 3564 would rescind the FHFA’s more equitable mortgage pricing framework and instead require the FHFA to increase fees for many first-time home buyers and those who do not have a 20% down payment.

News Release: OCC Should Follow CFPB Lead in Drawing Tough Line on Repeat Offenders

The nation’s big-bank regulator, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, should help broaden and extend a crackdown on financial institutions that repeatedly violate the law – notably Wells Fargo – with all the tools at its disposal. Comptroller Michael Hsu is speaking on the problem of “too big to manage” today. The speech comes about a month after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered Wells to pay $3.7 billion over widespread mismanagement of auto loans, mortgages, and deposit accounts, and promised to work with other federal regulators to find durable solutions to its constant violations of the law.

sign for the CFPB outside a building

Joint Press Release: Advocates Push for Increased Enforcement and Later Rule Sunset to Prevent Improper Foreclosures as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Issues Final Servicing Rule

Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) released its final rule under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) related to helping homeowners impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The rule contains important consumer protections to help stave off unnecessary foreclosures, but the time period for the rule’s foreclosure protections should be extended and the Bureau should vigorously enforce it to ensure homeowners receive the intended protections. 

Letters to Regulators: Letter Asking for Restored Supervisory and Enforcement Tools in Mortgage Servicing Rules

AFREF, NCLC, NFHA and NHLP sent a letter to the CFPB, FRB, FDIC, OCC, NCUA and CSBS asking the agencies to update the April 3, 2020 Joint Statement on Supervisory and Enforcement Practices Regarding the Mortgage Servicing Rules in Response to the COVID-19 Emergency and the CARES Act to restore key supervisory and enforcement tools to incentivize servicers to properly handle applications for loss mitigation assistance and require servicers to send loss mitigation notices to borrowers, which are especially critical as forbearances come to an end in the coming months.

a house behind bushes

Letters to Congress: Letter in Support of the Improving Language Access in Mortgage Servicing Act of 2021

The Americans for Financial Reform (AFR) Language Access Task Force and partner organizations sent a letter to the House Financial Services Committee in support for HR 3009, the Improving Language Access in Mortgage Servicing Act of 2021. LEP borrowers face many challenges that impede their full participation in the consumer marketplace, including, specifically, their ability to obtain and preserve ownership of a home. The Improving Language Access in Mortgage Servicing Act will make important strides in improving access to the mortgage market and increasing awareness of the availability of assistance for homeowners who are struggling to keep up with their mortgage payments, which is especially critical during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Letters to Regulators: Letter to the CFPB Urging for Critical Improvements to a Proposed COVID Loss Mitigation Rule

AFREF and 41 organizations sent comments in response to the CFPB’s proposed COVID loss mitigation rule urging the Bureau to make critical improvements to help avoid unnecessary foreclosures and to facilitate streamlined solutions for borrowers facing COVID-19 hardships that will make it possible for them to keep their homes and provide them with the stability they need to recover and rebuild.