Search Results: Mortgage

Awaiting Appellate Precedent on Whether Recent New York Foreclosure Limits Are Constitutional

Over a year after becoming law, New York’s Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act, L. 2022, ch. 821 (eff. Dec. 30, 2022) (FAPA) continues to divide trial courts regarding the constitutionality of the law’s retroactive application.  Appellate level guidance remains wanting. FAPA amended certain New York rules related to the time limits…

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CFPB and DOJ Sue Land Developer Over Allegations of Discriminatory Lending

​On December 20, 2023, the CFPB announced that, along with the DOJ, it had filed suit against a Texas-based developer and lender for operating an allegedly illegal land sales scheme that targeted Hispanic borrowers. ​The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, alleges that the lender sells…

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CFPB Files Complaint Against Mortgage Originator For Allegedly Inaccurate HMDA Reporting

On October 10, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it filed a complaint​ against a residential mortgage loan originator and servicer alleging that the company violated the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), its implementing Regulation C, the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA), and a recent 2019 consent order​. The company allegedly reported HMDA…

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CFPB Takes Enforcement Action Against Mortgage Lender and Real Estate Brokerage for RESPA Violations

On August 17, 2023, the CFPB announced that it had taken enforcement action against a Florida-based mortgage lending and servicing corporation, as well as a New York-based real estate brokerage firm, issuing consent orders against the businesses for “exchanging things of value return for mortgage loan referrals”, in violation of Section 8(a)…

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New York Courts Split on the Constitutionality of the Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act

In the six months since New York’s governor signed the Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act, L. 2022, ch. 821 (eff. Dec. 30, 2022) (FAPA), a split has emerged about whether the law applies retroactively. FAPA strictly cabins the time limits for commencing mortgage foreclosures by amending five New York procedural rules…

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CFPB Enters Into $1 Million Consent Order with Nonbank Mortgage Lender

On February 27, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it had entered into a consent order​​ with a mortgage lender, resolving allegations that the lender engaged in “a series of repeat offenses,” including violating a 2015 order prohibiting the lender from engaging in allegedly deceptive advertising.  According to the CFPB, the lender sent advertisements to…

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Court Dismisses CFPB’s ECOA Action Alleging Discrimination Against Prospective Applicants Against Nonbank Lender

On February 3, 2023, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted Defendants Townstone Financial, Inc., a mortgage broker/lender, and Barry Sturner’s, Townstone’s owner, motion to dismiss the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB or Bureau) redlining complaint brought under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), ECOA’s…

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Massachusetts AG Settles with Mortgage Servicer for $975,000

​On December 22, 2022, the Massachusetts Attorney General (AG) announced ​a settlement ​with a South Carolina mortgage servicing company ​to resolve allegations that the company violated state mortgage servicing and debt collection laws. ​​​​ ​After an investigation, the AG alle​ged that the servicer did not take “reasonable steps” to help borrowers avoid foreclosures…

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CFPB Reaches $3.7 Billion Settlement With National Bank to Resolve Alleged UDAAP Violations

On December 20, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it had entered into a consent order with a large national bank to resolve alleged violations of the Consumer Financial Protection Act’s (CFPA) prohibition of unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts or practices, 12 U.S.C. §§ 5531 and 5536. According to the…

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CFPB Enters into $5.25 Million Consent Order with California Mortgage Servicer

On November 17, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it entered into a consent order with a California-based mortgage servicer concerning its purported failure to provide certain borrowers forbearances and protections from credit reporting, as required under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).  According to the CFPB, the servicer’s…

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DOJ Reaches $1.3 Million Settlement with Mortgage Lender for Allegedly Discriminatory Pricing Practices

On September 29, 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it reached a settlement with a Memphis-based bank to resolve alleged violations of the Fair Housing Act (FHA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601–3619, and Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), 15 U.S.C. §§ 1691–1691f, and its implementing Regulation B, 12 C.F.R. §…

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CFPB and DOJ Reach $24.4 Million Settlement with Mortgage Originator for Alleged Lending Discrimination

On July 27, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that they reached a settlement with a nonbank residential mortgage lender to resolve allegations of race-based lending discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601-3619; the Equal Credit Opportunity Act…

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HUD Reaches Settlement with Mortgage Originator for Alleged Lending Discrimination

​On June 2, 2022,​ the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it reached a settlement agreemen​t with a non-bank residential mortgage lender to resolve allegations of race-based lending discrimination in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA), 42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.  The settlement arose from a complaint filed ​with a fair…

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North Carolina AG Permanently Enjoins Debt Settlement Business

​On May 26, 2022, the North Carolina Attorney General (NC AG) announced that it obtained a default judgment against a California-based debt settlement business, and its proprietor.  The lawsuit, filed on June 25, 2021 in the North Carolina Superior Court for Wake County, alleged that the entity violated North Carolina’s Debt Adjusting Act, N.C. Gen. Stat….

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CFPB, Banking Agencies, and State Regulators Warn of Increased Scrutiny on Mortgage Servicers

The CFPB, federal banking agencies, and state regulators are returning to pre-pandemic norms with respect to enforcement and supervision of the mortgage servicing industry.  On November 10, 2021, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union…

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CFPB Releases Report Analyzing Consumer Complaint Data By Demographics

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued its first in-depth report analyzing consumer complaint submission patterns by demographic characteristics. The CFPB’s findings were based on nearly 1 million consumer complaints submitted to the CFPB between 2018 and 2020.  The CFPB’s report classified complaints by matching the relevant consumers to U.S….

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