InfoBytes Blog
Filter
Subscribe to our InfoBytes Blog weekly newsletter and other publications for news affecting the financial services industry.
Fannie Mae Guidance Implements FinCEN AML Rules
On June 20, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-11, which reminds servicers that under a recent FinCEN rule, Fannie Mae is considered a financial institution subject to BSA requirements. The announcement advises servicers subject to the AML provisions of the BSA that they are obligated to be in compliance with the BSA, and to report to Fannie Mae: (i) all instances of noncompliance, compliance failures, or sanctions related to BSA/AML requirements; (ii) suspicious activity related to Fannie Mae loans or business activities; and (iii) changes in ownership interest. Servicers may implement these requirements immediately, but are required to do so no later than August 25, 2014.
Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Announce Targeted Modification Program
Recently, Fannie Mae (Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-12) and Freddie Mac (Bulletin 2014-11) introduced a temporary modification option targeted to borrowers located in Detroit, Michigan as part of the FHFA-directed Neighborhood Stabilization Initiative. The announcements provide the borrower, property, and mortgage eligibility requirements, borrower documentation requirements, and other program details. The announcements also establish requirements for servicers to process the new modification options, which servicers must implement for all evaluations conducted on or after September 1, 2014.
Fannie Mae Updates Unemployment Forbearance Policies
On June 4, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-10, which updates policies related to unemployment forbearance. The announcement states that, effective immediately, a servicer may approve a borrower for the initial unemployment forbearance program provided that (i) the borrower’s mortgage payment is in imminent default or the mortgage loan delinquency is less than or equal to 12 months as of the evaluation date; and (ii) all other applicable eligibility requirements are met. In addition servicers are authorized to approve a compliant unemployment forbearance extension without approval from Fannie Mae. If the loan does not meet the eligibility requirements and the servicer believes, based on the borrower’s circumstances, that unemployment forbearance is appropriate, the servicer must submit a recommendation for approval. The initial unemployment forbearance period that may be offered is the lesser of six months or upon notification from the borrower of employment.
Fannie Mae Announces Servicemember Policy Changes, Other Servicing Policy Updates
On May 21, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-08, which announced that the extended stay of foreclosure and other legal proceedings that is set to expire at the end of this year will continue indefinitely for eligible servicemembers, and that servicers can no longer obtain written servicemember consent or petition the court to continue or commence foreclosure proceedings. Fannie Mae also announced that, effective September 1, 2014, for loans originally purchased at a premium or discounted price that experienced negative amortization, Fannie Mae will limit both the purchase discount and the purchase premium to the amount of the original purchase discount or premium, and the price used to calculate the repurchase amount will be expressed as a percentage of par. Finally, Fannie Mae also (i) announced updated documents used to evaluate and apply for a full or partial release of a property securing a loan; and (ii) clarified that servicers must oversee all outsourcing and third-party vendors, and that both servicers and vendors must implement and maintain business continuity plans.
Fannie Mae Updates Delinquency Management, Default Prevention Policies
On May 16, Fannie Mae announced through Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-07, that for a borrower who submits a complete Borrower Response Package (BRP) or incomplete documentation 37 days or less prior to a foreclosure sale, the servicer (i) must explain its plans for evaluating the borrower for a workout option and suspending the foreclosure sale in the BRP acknowledgement notice, if applicable; and (ii) is encouraged to work with borrowers who submit incomplete documentation to obtain a complete BRP but is not required to send an Incomplete Information Notice. Fannie Mae is eliminating all Servicing Guide requirements related to a substantially complete BRP, and thus servicers need no longer postpone foreclosure due to the receipt of a substantially complete BRP. But when a borrower has been offered a workout based on a complete BRP, the servicer must not refer the loan to foreclosure or proceed with the motion for judgment or order of sale until the borrower’s time period for submitting the initial payment to accept the offer has expired without payment. The announcement also states that, where additional amounts have accrued and/or the due dates of the initial workout offer have changed because the borrower was awaiting the outcome of the appeal decision, the servicer must adjust the payment amount of the initial offer, use the same adjustment approach on all Fannie Mae loans, and reissue the initial offer to reflect adjusted dates or amounts. Finally, servicers are no longer required to refer a mortgage loan secured by a principal residence to foreclosure within 5 business days after the 121st day of delinquency.
Fannie Mae Reminds Servicers Of Lender-Placed Insurance Certification Requirements, Updates Servicing Transfer Policies
On May 9, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-06, which reminds servicers that no later than June 1, 2014 they must certify compliance with new requirements for acceptable lender-placed insurance costs and carriers under an interim process announced in SCV-2013-07. After that date servicers will complete the certification using a new form. The announcement also states that Fannie Mae is adding new definitions related to servicing transfers, and that effective August 1, 2014, Fannie Mae will require the transferor servicer or transferor subservicer to submit the Form 629 to Fannie Mae no earlier than 60 days prior to the proposed transfer date, and that the proposed transfer date must be the first business day of the month for which the transferee servicer will be responsible for reporting the loan-level detail activity to Fannie Mae.
Fannie Mae Updates Modification Policies
On March 28, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-05, which provides, as recently promised, updated guidance regarding standard and streamlined modification programs. The announcement informs servicers that, by July 1, 2014, for mortgage loans with a pre-modified mark-to-market loan-to-value ratio less than 80%, servicers must ensure that borrowers satisfy all eligibility requirements for a Fannie Mae standard or streamlined modification. The announcement details the specific steps servicers must take to calculate the terms of the trial period plan. It also provides information for servicers to use in determining the appropriate information to include in an evaluation notice or solicitation letter, and informs servicers that if a borrower is eligible for a trial period plan with more than one amortization term, the borrower may choose an amortization term but the trial period plan notice must inform the borrower that he or she will not be able to change the amortization term after the first payment is received. The announcement states that if a mortgage loan becomes 60 or more days delinquent within 12 months of the modification effective date, the servicer must not approve another modification. Finally, Fannie Mae states that if the first trial period plan payment submitted by a borrower does not correspond to an amortization term payment offered in the plan, the servicer must use the shortest amortization term provided in the plan that is covered by the borrower’s actual payment to determine the amortization term and monthly payment obligation.
Fannie Mae Updates Servicing Policies
On February 26, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcement SVC-2014-04, which states that a servicer must retain in the mortgage loan servicing file all supporting documentation for all expense reimbursement claims, in addition to other servicing and liquidation information. A servicer must document its compliance with all Fannie Mae policies and procedures, including but not limited to, timelines that are required in the Servicing Guide, and must maintain in the individual mortgage loan file all documents and system records that preserve Fannie Mae’s ownership interest in the individual mortgage loan. The Announcement also (i) clarifies that when Fannie Mae requests a mortgage loan servicing file for a quality control review, the servicer must include supporting documents for all expense reimbursement claims it has submitted or intends to submit to Fannie Mae; (ii) states that a servicer must submit the final Cash Disbursement Request (Form 571) within 30 days after completion of a loss mitigation alternative, filing a mortgage insurance claim for a property that will be conveyed to the insurer or guarantor, acquisition of a property by a third party at a foreclosure sale, or disposition of an acquired property; (iii) provides examples of information sufficient to support a servicer’s attorney expense reimbursement request; and (iv) clarifies that when a servicer transfers its contractual right to service some or all of its Fannie Mae single-family servicing to another Fannie Mae-approved servicer, any variance or waiver granted to a transferor servicer does not automatically transfer to the transferee servicer, and the transferor and transferee servicers must ensure that all existing special servicing obligations associated with the transferred mortgage loan are disclosed. Finally, in a separate notice, Fannie Mae announced that it may adjust the Fannie Mae Standard Modification Interest rate for Fannie Mae Standard or Streamlined Modifications on a monthly basis, beginning July 1, 2014.
Fannie Mae Issues Numerous Servicing Policy Updates
On January 24, Fannie Mae issued Servicing Guide Announcements SVC-2014-01 and SVC-2014-02, and on January 29 issued SVC-2014-03. Effective April 1, 2014, the first announcement revises Fannie Mae’s requirements for borrower notification of the interest rate adjustment for a mortgage loan that has been modified and is subject to step interest rate adjustments, including Fannie Mae HAMP modifications. SVC-2014-02 updates Fannie Mae policies regarding (i) refunding overcharges for special adjustable-rate mortgage loans; (ii) bankruptcy schedules of assets and liabilities; (iii) foreclosure prevention opportunities; and (iv) third-party sales proceeds. For example, effective May 1, 2014, when an adjustable-rate mortgage loan error is identified, servicers are no longer required to contact Fannie Mae to determine if foreclosure proceedings should be discontinued or stayed, regardless of the stage of delinquency, including cases where the loan has been referred for foreclosure and the application of any payment as a result of corrections reduces the delinquency. The servicer must establish its own procedures to ensure compliance with Fannie Mae’s requirements regarding the correction of adjustment errors for all mortgage loans serviced for Fannie Mae. Through SVC-2014-03, Fannie Mae increased the repayment plan incentive fee to $500 for each new and existing repayment plan that meets Fannie Mae’s criteria and that successfully brings a mortgage loan current. The increased repayment plan incentive amount will be effective for each repayment plan that meets Fannie Mae’s criteria and successfully brings the mortgage loan current on or after March 1, 2014. Fannie Mae is also adjusting servicer incentives on short sales and Mortgage Releases.
Fannie Mae Issues Numerous Servicing Guide Announcements
Over the past week, Fannie Mae has announced numerous servicing policy changes through a series of Servicing Guide Announcements. In SVC-2013-25, Fannie Mae updated allowable bankruptcy attorney and foreclosure attorney fees, as well as requirements for reimbursement of postage costs in connection with bankruptcies and foreclosures. SVC-2013-26 announced that servicers are no longer required to refer deed-in-lieu of foreclosure offers for Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) to Fannie Mae for approval. Through SVC-2013-27, Fannie Mae updated its requirements for lender-placed insurance, including by (i) requiring that lender-placed insurance premiums charged to the borrower or reimbursed by Fannie Mae must exclude any lender-placed insurance commissions or payments earned by the servicer, broker, or any affiliated entity; (ii) requiring that a servicer’s carrier for a lender-placed insurance policy for a Fannie Mae mortgage loan must not be an affiliated entity of the servicer, which includes any captive insurance or reinsurance arrangements with an affiliated entity; and (iii) adding a new lender-placed insurance compliance certification. In SVC-2013-28, Fannie Mae expanded its standard and streamlined modification programs to include loans with a pre-modified mark-to-market loan-to-value ratio less than 80 percent. The announcement details steps servicers must take in order to determine the terms of a modified mortgage loan and ensure satisfaction of eligibility requirements. The announcement also establishes evaluation notice, solicitation letter, and trial period plan requirements for certain modifications. Finally, Fannie Mae issued SVC-2013-29 to announce that (i) all mortgage loans a master servicer transfers from one subservicer to another, from the master servicer to a subservicer, or from the subservicer to the master servicer, must obtain Fannie Mae’s prior written consent; and (ii) as part of the transfer of servicing review, Fannie Mae will evaluate the performance and capacity of any subservicer the transferee servicer elects to utilize.