Looks like OMB completed its review of HUD’s proposed RESPA rule changes on Nov. 7, so HUD's got a shot at making that Nov. 20 deadline for making changes stick.There are reports that HUD pulled the requirement for a closing script from the final rule.
"Real estate marketing agreements look a lot like captive reinsurance agreements which looked a lot like sham affiliated business arrangements." --Erin Toll, director of the Colorado Division of Real Estate, speaking at a RESPRO seminar in New Orleans. more...
"There’s almost universal agreement on the new RESPA rules that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development could issue as soon as next week—everyone hates them."
So says Mariwyn Evans, writing for NAR's Realtor Magazine. Well, of course it's a little more complicated than that. more...
The Bush administration is looking at making as many as 90 regulatory changes before the president leaves office, The Washington Post reports.
HUD's proposed RESPA rule is one of nine regulatory changes considered economically significant (with an impact that exceeds $100 million a year) and therefore subject to 60-day Congressional review. more...
HUD, industry have answers? Meetings on final RESPA rule took place Wednesday and Thursday.
Do you suppose this is the first time in history a White House press secretary has ever uttered the word "RESPA?"
From Inman News opinion piece:
White House Press Secretary Dana Perino, asked by a reporter Wednesday if the Bush administration's "deregulatory approach" helped create the housing and financial market meltdown, deflected blame to Congress. more...
North Carolina Democrat Mel Watt has scheduled a hearing on HUD's proposed RESPA rule for Tuesday Sept. 16 to "examine the impacts of HUD’s proposed RESPA reforms on consumers and other stakeholders in the mortgage settlement process" (see press release below).
Watt chairs the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, which is under the umbrella of Barney Frank's Financial Services Committee. more...
Here's the link to Radical. http://radicaltitletalk.blogspot.com
At this point, I'm practically speechless. I'm all for snazzy marketing and I think their web site is GREAT, but don't mislead the consumer! This is exactly what is wrong with on-line title quotes. So much of the cost consumers might pay is NOT in the title premium. We so need standardization in pricing comparison. I'm anxious to see what form the GFE will take in the latest RESPA proposal.
In a lenghty post on her ActiveRain blog, Brentwood, Tenn.-based Countrywide Home Loans originator Donna Mitchell warns consumers and real estate pros about "preferred" lenders. The post touches on many other pitfalls HUD says it's trying to address in its RESPA reform proposal). A few highlights: more...
Terry Ross, a "Certified Mortgage Planning Specialist" in Tomball, Texas, wants readers of his Active Rain blog to know he's "finally found" a credit repair company that not only "guarantees results" but will pay referring realtors and loan officers $50. more...
California regulators say they're going to start enforcing existing law on AfBAs, limiting title insurers to generating no more than 50 percent of their business through joint ventures. An analysis by the Department of Insurance estimates tightened regulations could cost the industry $732 million in after tax income (profits) and force "one or more domestic insurers" and "several underwritten title companies" out of business. See story.
HUD is too politically motivated to serve Bankers and Mortgage Bankers at the expense of the consumer. It was HUD that certified in the November 2, 1992 that the YSP disclosure "...would not have anti-competitive discriminatory aspects of the rule with regard to small entities nor are there any unusual procedures that would need to be complied with by small entities." more...
Reps. Ruben Hinojosa Judy Biggert are teaming up again and asking colleagues to sign a letter to HUD Secretary Steve Preston insisting that HUD basically throw out its entire proposed RESPA rule change and start over, working with the Federal Reserve, on new disclosure forms (and, implicitly, drop packaging incentives altogether). more...
"Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman." -- Louis Brandeis.
That quote helps HUD researcher Mark Shroder kick off a paper analyzing RESPA "as a regulatory strategy relying on federally mandated information disclosure."
In other words, if you arm the consumer with enough information, can you encourage companies to behave without spending a ton on enforcement? more...
Here's an interesting referral fee chart posted by a commercial loan broker that came my way via a Google alert. Writing on his ActiveRain blog, Charles Hennebeul of American Cash Solutions Inc. more...
With the June 12 deadline for comments looming, ALTA is reminding members to get their two cents in. Only 1,500 comments have been filed so far -- compared to 40,000 in 2002 -- and the group says "We need to have a much better response if we hope to affect the final rule."
HUD's touting a study that suggests complex loans (with features like yield-spread premiums, discount points and seller contributions to closing costs) carry higher costs, saying it justifies the simplified disclosures proposed under RESPA.
Study found some interesting variations in price according to education, race, region that suggest "lenders and mortgage brokers make their most favorable offers to borrowers that they consider knowledgeable about competing alternatives." more...
Here they are:
May 19, 2008
Regulations Division
Office of General Counsel
Department of Housing and Urban Development
451 Seventh St., SW., Room 10276
Washington, D.C. 20410-0001
Re: Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA):
Proposed Rule to Simplify and Improve the Process of Obtaining Mortgages and Reduce Consumer Settlement Costs, 08-01015 [FR-5180-P-01; RIN2502-AI61]
To Our Friends at HUD: more...
Looking at who signed the Hinojosa/Biggert letter, it's interesting to see the breakdown of 84 Democrats to 64 Republicans (and also that the total number of signatures -- 148-- falls short of the 226 gathered in 2004).
I suppose Republicans are a little reluctant to go against what is, after all, a Bush administration initiative. But then again, that was the case in 2004, as well. more...
It was probably no surprise to most members of this group that trade associations representing realtors, lenders, title insurers and builders would want to push the timeline for RESPA reform back by 60 days -- or perhaps into oblivion (see previous discussion). more...
It's official -- industry groups are asking HUD to double the public comment period to 120 days. Representatives Ruben Hinojosa, D-Texas, and Judy Biggert, R-Ill., who led the charge in 2004, are circulating a "dear colleague" letter to build support for extending the public comment period. See Inman Blog.
Here's the text of the Hinojosa/Biggert letter:
Dear Colleague: more...
Be interested to hear the group's thoughts on whether RESPA reform will spawn Web sites that allow consumers (and real estate and mortgage pros) to shop for settlement services.
See today's story on Fairclosingcosts.com's plan to launch next month.
Under the proposed GFE rule, a loan originator may relieve themselves of the burden of third party fee quote accuracy by NOT giving the consumer the name of providers. The loan originator can suggest that the consumer shop for those services themselves. In this case, the loan originator must still provide a quote for these third party services, however, there is no tolerance burden for accuracy. more...
Why are you writing your comments in this forum? The forum for submitting comments to HUD is Regulations.gov . HUD does not read comments in this forum. Submit your comments to HUD at: (Click here) .
This topic was originally submitted as a comment by Kathy Glor on April 2, 2008 - 1:15pm.
Greetings to all, more...
Note: this topic was originally submitted as a comment on another post by Diane Cipa on April 2, 2008 - 7:17am.
I have a question for real estate agents.
The GFE has no place for buyer paid commissions, brokerage/administrative fees, etc.
I know these fees are disclosed to the consumer in buyer agency agreements, but how do you suggest we get them into a GFE summary so the buyer is reasonably prepared for cash to close?
Even before HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson announced his departure (see Inman News story), K&L Gates attorneys Phillip Schulman and Holly Spencer were expressing their doubts that HUD will be able to see the latest RESPA rule changes through. more...
HUD wants to introduce tolerance standards that would lock in some of the estimated charges presented to borrowers before they reach the closing table, such as loan origination fees. Increases of more than 10 percent would be prohibited on other charges, including settlement services like title insurance when borrowers use services that are selected or identified for them to use (see page 3 of the proposed Good Faith Estimate). more...
To reduce the record-keeping burden for settlement services providers, HUD would allow average cost pricing for services like credit reports and courier services. more...
HUD proposes to allow loan originators and third-party settlement service providers to negotiate volume-based discounts, as long as savings are passed on to borrowers.
Sue Johnson, executive director of the Real Estate Services Providers Council Inc. (RESPRO) — a trade group representing affiliated businesses — says HUD would also ban companies from offering incentives for purchases of affiliated services, unless they are offered as part of a package of services, and the overall price for the package is less than if the services were purchased individually. more...
