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Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Implement New G-Fee Schedule
On December 16, Fannie Mae issued Selling Guide Announcement SEL-2013-09 and Freddie Mac issued Bulletin 2013-26 to implement new guarantee fees (g-fees) for 2014, as recently mandated by the FHFA. The announcements provide updated up-front g-fee grids, which the FHFA claims are needed to better align pricing with the credit risk characteristics of the borrower.
Georgia Amends Mortgage Loan Origination, Licensing Regulations
Recently, Georgia amended certain regulations related to mortgage loan originations, originators, and brokers. Effective November 29, 2013, borrowers are required to pay to the Department of Banking a $10 per loan fee if a loan is secured by a deed to secure debt, security deed, mortgage, security instrument, deed of trust, modification of a security deed, or other form or modification of a security interest. Further, any person who acts as the collecting agent at a closing of a mortgage loan transaction is liable for payment of the $10 fee, and the remittance of any such fees after the date on which they are due will subject the person to a late payment fee of $100 for each due date missed. The filing of a fee statement after the date on which it is due, even if no $10 fees were collected by the collecting agent during the applicable reporting period, will subject the person to a late filing fee of $100 for each due date missed. If the Department finds that a person has not, through negligence or otherwise, submitted $10 fees within six months of the due date, it may impose an additional $100 fine for failure to remit fees. Repeated failures to submit $10 fees may be grounds for revocation of license. In addition, the regulation amends the definition of "branch manager to require that an individual be a licensed mortgage loan originator to be approved as a branch manager, and requires an affidavit verifying the lawful presence of every natural person that submits an application for a license as a mortgage broker or mortgage lender or a registration on behalf of an individual or company. Among other things, the rules also require applicants, registrants, and licensed mortgage brokers and mortgage lenders to keep the information on the NMLSR current and to make amendments within 10 days of the events necessitating change and adds an administrative fine of $1,000 per occurrence for failing to timely update information on the NMLSR.
Special Alert: HUD Adopts Its Own QM Rule
On December 11, 2013, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) issued a final rule defining what constitutes a “qualified mortgage” (“QM”) for purposes of loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”). With limited clarifications and adjustments, the rule tracks the proposal issued by HUD in September. This final rule, which applies to all case numbers assigned on or after January 10, 2014, replaces the temporary QM definition for FHA loans established by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or “Bureau”) in its Ability-to-Repay/Qualified Mortgage Rule (“ATR/QM Rule”).
Loans that qualify as QMs provide lenders with some legal protection against borrower lawsuits under the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”) alleging the lender did not sufficiently consider the borrower’s ability to repay the loan. Under HUD’s final rule, most FHA loans will qualify for the QM safe harbor if they have Annual Percentage Rates (“APRs”) that are no more than 2.5 percentage points over the Average Prime Offer Rate (“APOR”) for a comparable transaction (as opposed 1.5 percentage points over APOR in the CFPB’s ATR/QM Rule).
Questions regarding the matters discussed in this Alert may be directed to any of our lawyers listed below, or to any other BuckleySandler attorney with whom you have consulted in the past.
- Jeffrey P. Naimon, (202) 349-8030
- Clinton R. Rockwell, (310) 424-3901
- John P. Kromer, (202) 349-8040
- Joseph M. Kolar, (202) 349-8020
- Jeremiah S. Buckley, (202) 349-8010
HUD Finalizes QM Rule, Manual Underwriting Standards
On December 11, HUD issued a final rule defining what constitutes a “qualified mortgage” (QM) for purposes of loans insured by the FHA. The final rule largely adopts HUD’s proposal, which was the subject of our October 2013 Special Alert. The final rule clarifies certain aspects of the HUD proposal. Among other things, it replaces provision in a CFPB’s QM rule that allows consumers to rebut the presumption of compliance based on residual income, with a provision that the consumer show that the creditor failed to underwrite consistent with HUD requirements. With the final rule, HUD also adopted new underwriting standards. The effective date for the underwriting standards will be set by a future Mortgagee Letter, but will be no earlier than March 11, 2014.
FHFA Increases Guarantee Fees
On December 9, the FHFA directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to raise guarantee fees (g-fees). Under the directive, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will increase the base g-fee (or ongoing g-fee) for all mortgages by 10 basis points, and will update the up-front g-fee grid to better align pricing with the credit risk characteristics of the borrower. In addition, the up-front 25 basis point adverse market fee that has been assessed on all mortgages purchased by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae since 2008 will be eliminated except in four states. As described in the FHFA’s State-Level Guarantee Fee Analysis, mortgages newly acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that are originated in states that have expected carrying costs more than two standard deviations above the national average, will be charged an additional upfront guarantee fee of 25 basis points. The affected states include New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Florida. The FHFA originally proposed charging fees on mortgages originated in all states over one standard deviation, which would have covered the four listed, plus Illinois. The new g-fees will apply to (i) all loans exchanged for mortgage-backed securities with settlements starting April 1, 2014, and (ii) all loans sold for cash with commitments starting March 1, 2014.
HUD Decreases FHA Maximum Loan Limits
On December 6, HUD announced new loan maximum limits for FHA-insured mortgages. As detailed in Mortgagee Letter 2013-43, effective for all FHA case numbers assigned on or after January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014, the current high-cost area “ceiling” of $729,750 will be reduced to $625,500. HUD stated that approximately 650 counties will have lower limits as a result of this change. Mortgages that meet the requirements for streamline refinance transactions without an appraisal are not subject to the new limits. Further, the Mortgagee Letter leaves the current standard loan limit for low cost areas unchanged at $271,050, and the maximum claim amount for FHA-insured reverse mortgages (HECMs) will remain $625,500.
FHFA Holds Conforming Loan Limits Steady, Announces Overhauled Mortgage Insurance Master Policy Requirements
On November 26, FHFA announced that 2014 maximum conforming loan limits will remain at $417,000, unchanged from 2013. On December 2, FHFA announced that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soon will provide guidance to lenders and servicers regarding specific effective dates for new requirements under the entities’ aligned, overhauled mortgage insurance master policies, which guidance will include changes related to loss mitigation, claims, assurance of coverage, and information sharing. FHFA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac anticipate that the master policies will go into effect in 2014, pending review and approval by state insurance regulators.
HUD Extends Renewal Period For Certain Lenders And Mortgagees
On November 27, HUD issued Mortgagee Letter 2013-42, granting an extension of time to Title I and II lenders and mortgagees with a December 31, 2013 fiscal year end to submit required materials and fees for annual recertification. The letter notes that FHA-approved lenders and mortgagees with a fiscal year end of December 31, 2013 or later must use the Lender Electronic Assessment Portal (LEAP) to complete the annual certification process. Given that LEAP recertification functionality will not be deployed until after March 31, 2014, lenders and mortgagees with a fiscal year end of December 31, 2013 will be unable to access LEAP within the required timeframe, and instead will have until 30 days after the deployment of LEAP functionality to complete their annual certification.
Special Alert: CFPB Finalizes Rule Combining TILA and RESPA Mortgage Disclosures
UPDATED OCTOBER 14, 2014: Updated to reflect amendments proposed by the CFPB on October 10, 2014.
On November 20, 2013, the CFPB finalized its long-awaited rule combining the mortgage disclosures consumers receive under the Truth in Lending Act (“TILA”) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”). For more than 30 years, the TILA and RESPA mortgage disclosures had been administered separately by, respectively, the Federal Reserve Board (“FRB”) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”). In 2010, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (“Dodd-Frank Act”) transferred authority over TILA and RESPA to the Bureau and directed the Bureau to create “rules and model disclosures that combine the disclosures required under [TILA] and sections 4 and 5 of [RESPA], into a single, integrated disclosure for mortgage loan transactions covered by those laws.” Congress did not, however, amend TILA and RESPA provisions governing timing, responsibility, and liability for the disclosures, leaving it to the Bureau to resolve the inconsistencies. The final rule generally applies to covered transactions for which the creditor or mortgage broker receives an application on or after August 1, 2015.
Click here to read our Special Alert. (Updated 10/15/14)
Questions regarding the matters discussed in this Alert may be directed to any of our lawyers listed below, or to any other BuckleySandler attorney with whom you have consulted in the past.
- Jeffrey P. Naimon, (202) 349-8030
- Clinton R. Rockwell, (310) 424-3901
- John P. Kromer, (202) 349-8040
- Joseph M. Kolar, (202) 349-8020
- Jeremiah S. Buckley, (202) 349-8010
Freddie Mac Withdraws Fraud Training Requirement, Updates Various Selling Requirements
On November 15, Freddie Mac issued Bulletin 2013-23, which withdraws recently announced fraud training requirements and describes various changes to other requirements. Citing the need to assess industry feedback, Fannie Mae withdrew Bulletin 2013-18, which required, among other things, that seller/servicers provide third-party vendors retained to perform functions relating to origination and servicing of mortgages with training on fraud prevention, detection, and reporting. In addition, Bulletin 2013-23 (i) updates payment history verification requirements for manually underwritten mortgages; (ii) announces that previously announced eligibility requirements applicable to higher-priced mortgage loans (HPMLs) are applicable to higher-priced covered transactions (as defined in the CFPB ability to repay/qualified mortgage rule) and not solely to HPMLs; (iii) updates certain requirements for Freddie Mac Relief Refinance Mortgages; (iv) updates requirements for verifying tax information for borrowers with income derived from sources in Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands; and (v) clarifies signature requirements for security instruments.