In a recent published opinion, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected a borrower’s claims for breach of contract, negligence, wrongful foreclosure, and violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (“DTPA”). The plaintiff was awarded legal possession of the property as part of a divorce proceeding. At origination, the
Mortgages Continue to Rank High in CFPB’s Monthly Complaint Report
On January 28, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its monthly consumer complaint report, highlighting consumer complaints about financial services such as debt settlement, check cashing, money orders, and credit repair. The CFPB began accepting complaints as soon as it opened its doors in July 2011. As of January 1, 2016, the CFPB
U.S. Government Sues Five Mortgage Lenders for False FHA Claims
On September 28, the U.S. government filed a lawsuit alleging that a purported charitable “counseling fund,” five mortgage lenders, and their principals defrauded the United States and various banks insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in actions that resulted in millions of dollars of mortgage losses as well as the payment of over $5.6
Senate Finance Committee Votes to Extend Mortgage Debt Forgiveness
The Senate Finance Committee voted 23-3 in favor of extending a package of business and individual tax provisions known as “tax extenders,” including one that will ensure that mortgage debt that has been forgiven by a lender will be excluded from the borrower’s personal income.
Under current law, taxpayers who have mortgage debt canceled or
CFPB Delays By Two Months the Effective Date of The “Know Before You Owe” Mortgage Disclosure Rule
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a final rule that delays the effective date of the Know Before You Owe mortgage disclosure rule to October 3, 2015. This news follows on the announcement by the CFPB on June 24 of its proposed amendment to the rule, also known as the TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure rule (“TRID”),
CFPB Releases “Your Home Loan Toolkit”
As part of its “Know Before You Owe” mortgage initiative, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released a guide to assist consumers through the process of shopping for a mortgage and buying a house. The Toolkit is designed to help consumers take advantage of the new Loan Estimate and Closing Disclosure forms that lenders are required
Supreme Court Clarifies Borrowers’ Right to Rescind Under TILA
In a major, unanimous decision on the Truth in Lending Act, the Supreme Court resolved a circuit split and clarified borrowers’ rescission rights under TILA, potentially making rescission of a loan transaction easier for borrowers. Under TILA, the time period governing the right to rescind a loan transaction depends on whether all required disclosures have
Eighth Circuit Rejects County Recorders’ Claims Against Lenders, Servicers, and MERS
Last Friday, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the dismissals of claims filed by county recorders in Iowa and Minnesota who claimed that the use of the Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS) unjustly deprived the counties of recording fees. In Plymouth County v. Merscorp, Inc., Plymouth County, on its own behalf and on behalf of all
Senate Extends Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act by One Year
Last week, the United States Senate passed an extension of the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act. Without the Act, any home mortgage forgiveness that results from a short sale would have counted as income for homeowners. In other words, homeowners that had short sales in 2014 will not have to pay taxes on the mortgage debt
No End in Sight Yet for Conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
At a recent hearing before the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, Melvin Watt, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, remarked that he did not see an immediate end to the federal government’s conservatorship of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. In 2008, both government-sponsored enterprises were placed into conservatorship by the federal government