The Federal Reserve Bank of New York recently did a study which found that, while mortgage loan originations increased through the second quarter of 2015, the increase is only for borrowers with credit scores above 660). See Liberty Street Economics, “Just Released: Releveraging the Consumer Credit Panel with Two New Charts,” August…
On August 31, 2015, the owner of a now-defunct New Jersey title company pleaded guilty to charges of second-degree theft and second-degree misconduct by a corporate official for failing to make required disposition of settlement funds. The investigation was spearheaded by the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes…
On August 10, 2015, HUD announced that it had reached settlement agreements with two regional mortgage companies over allegations that the companies failed to comply with HUD’s Fair Housing Act regulations. Both companies obtained approval from HUD to originate FHA-insured mortgage loans. According to HUD, one of the companies charged illegal…
On August 5, 2015, a bank revealed in an U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Justice (collectively, the “Government”) are currently investigating whether the bank complied with underwriting requirements on loans…
On June 1, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) entered into a consent order for civil penalties against a local Massachusetts bank concerning alleged violations of the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 and Part 339 of the FDIC Rules and Regulations. The FDIC alleged that the bank made loans secured…
On July 30, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it will mail checks totaling over $969,000 to consumers who lost money as part of a credit card interest rate reduction scam. In June 2013, the FTC brought suit in the Middle District of Florida against a payment processor and telemarketing company,…
On July 30, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it entered into a consent order with a national mortgage servicing company, resolving claims that the servicer engaged in unfair and deceptive practices in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act. The CFPB alleged that the servicer failed to honor modifications…
On July 29, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced that co-conspirators in a mortgage modification scam pled guilty to conspiracy and fraud. The defendants, through a mortgage modification company, collected fees from residential mortgage holders and promised consumers that the company would either secure them a mortgage modification…
On July 28, the Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) announced that it entered into consent orders with a mortgage payment processing company and servicer related to allegedly deceptive advertisements. The consent orders allege that the payment processer partnered with servicers to market and an provide electronic payment system that directly debited…
On July 28, the North Carolina Attorney General announced that it obtained a default judgment against a mortgage broker and its president in North Carolina Superior Court. The Attorney General brought claims against the defendants under the North Carolina Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act, N.C. Gen. Stat. § 75-1.1. The Attorney General alleged that the…
On July 13, 2015, Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen G. Kane announced a settlement with two Philadelphia-based mortgage loan modification companies following an investigation by the states’ Bureau of Consumer Protection. According to the Attorney General’s announcement, the Bureau initiated the investigation as a result of consumer complaints filed against the companies for,…
On July 14, 2015, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida announced that the owner of a Miami-area mortgage company, his business partner, and a senior mortgage underwriter each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution. As part of the owner’s plea, he will forfeit $8…
On June 18, the Federal Housing Administration provided lenders with a new Defect Taxonomy for Single Family Housing Loans, or Loan Quality Assessment Methodology. It has been working on the new taxonomy for almost a year, and the final product is very similar to what it presented for comment in September…
For the second time in recent weeks, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) delayed the launch of the new integrated disclosures for residential mortgage loans under the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). The launch date, now set for Saturday, October 3, was announced…
On June 23, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released its Supervisory Highlights report detailing the Bureau’s supervision efforts for the first four months of 2015. The report summarizes the most common “illegal practices” uncovered by the Bureau and identifies the areas where the Bureau has focused on in its…
Editor’s Note: This post was guest-authored by Joseph Yenouskas, a partner in Goodwin Procter’s Consumer Financial Services Litigation Group who focuses on general civil litigation in federal and state trial and appellate courts, with a particular emphasis on defending financial institutions and mortgage lenders in complex consumer class action lawsuits. The…
On June 17, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced that it terminated foreclosure-related consent orders with three national banks, entered into amended consent orders with six other national banks, and decided to escheat at the end of the fiscal year any uncashed payments made under the Independent Foreclosure Review Payment Agreement…
On June 5, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it entered a consent order with a state bank for alleged violations of the Loan Originator Compensation Rule under the Truth-in-Lending Act (TILA) and Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010. The CFPB alleged that the bank paid loan originators based…
On June 5, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it will mail over $467,000 to 2,653 consumers affected by a scheme whereby a law firm charged up-front fees for mortgage modification and other relief services that were never provided, in violation of Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission…
On June 4, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it had entered a consent order with a regional residential-mortgage lender over allegations that the lender paid bonuses and higher commissions to loan officers for steering consumers into mortgages with higher interest rates. The complaint, also filed on June 4, alleged that the company…