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WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 18, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today took action against Republic Mortgage Insurance Corporation (RMIC), for allegedly paying illegal kickbacks to mortgage lenders in exchange for business. The CFPB filed a complaint and proposed consent order against RMIC to stop these practices, which have been prevalent for more than 10 years. The proposed order will require RMIC to pay a $100,000 penalty to the CFPB, and follows

Reston, Virginia, - November 18, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- MERSCORP Holdings, Inc. announced that the Superior Court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts dismissed three consolidated actions involving recording fee cases. Justice Janet L. Sanders dismissed lawsuits filed by Bristol County, Norfolk County and Plymouth County in Massachusetts, ruling in favor of MERSCORP Holdings, Inc., Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (MERS) and numerous other defendants.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 18, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- A former Florida-licensed real estate associate and mortgage broker was sentenced to serve 135 months in prison for his role in a $2.4 million mortgage fraud scheme

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 14, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals has announced that it has been invited by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on Tuesday, Nov. 5 to take part in a sit-down conference to discuss the role the mortgage broker plays in the recovery of the nation’s economic recovery. Representing NAMB at the meeting will be association President Don Frommeyer, CRMS, senior vice president of Amtrust Mortgage Funding in Carmel, Ind. Frommeyer will be joined by the leadership of other housing finance-related trade associations, including the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), National Association of Realtors (NAR), Real Estate Services Providers Council Inc. (RESPRO), and Impact Mortgage Management Advocacy & Advisory Group (IMMAAG), among others.

Atlanta, Georgia - November 13, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance (“Department”) entered into a Consent Order with Equity Loans, LLC, License Number 23300, located at 1150 Hammond Dr., Building E, Suite 650, Atlanta, Georgia 30328, to resolve allegations pertaining to violations of the Georgia Residential Mortgage Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 11, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Wounded Army Sergeant James Miller and his family received keys to a mortgage-free home in a surprise ceremony in Victorville, Calif., today, becoming the latest servicemember to receive a home donated by Bank of America through nonprofit organizations

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 8, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today announced a proposed consent order in its enforcement action against Castle & Cooke Mortgage, LLC, for allegedly steering consumers into costlier mortgages. The Bureau has asked a federal district court to approve a consent order that would provide more than $9 million in restitution for consumers and obtain $4 million in civil money penalties against Castle & Cooke and two of its officers for allegedly paying loan officers illegal bonuses.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 8, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) --Community Associations Institute (CAI) is expressing support for proposed federal rules that accomplish two important CAI goals: helping more homebuyers obtain safe mortgage financing and stimulating a housing market that has struggled since home prices began falling in late 2006. Both will provide more stability to community associations across the country.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 7, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- I’ve been asked a lot lately about the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act which is due to expire December 31, 2013. This act provides homeowners with cancellation of debt, huge tax relief.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 7, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) told Congress today that an effective housing finance reform plan must include a federal backstop to ensure that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages and reliable mortgage financing for multifamily housing remain readily available and affordable.

Reston, Virginia, - November 7, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- MERSCORP Holdings, Inc. today announced that United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina found in favor of Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, Inc. (“MERS”), JP Morgan Chase Bank, and other MERS® System members.

Wherever you may stand on the climate change debate (cue the angry comments!), it’s undeniable that Mother Nature has grown a bit unpredictable in exacting her revenge for hairspray and Styrofoam. Superstorms in New Jersey. Mudslides in Colorado. Cyclones in India. But while we may not know where the next natural disaster is going to hit, one House Republican is doing his best to encourage people to be prepared

WASHINGTON, D.C. - November 4, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Shanna L. Smith, President and CEO of the National Fair Housing Alliance, issued the following statement urging the Senate to hold an up or down vote for U.S. Representative Mel Watt to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency

Reston, Virginia - November 1, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- MERSCORP Holdings, Inc. today reported that a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit last month ruled in favor of MERSCORP Holdings, Inc. and its co-defendants, affirming a lower court’s decision dismissing the plaintiff’s claims of wrongful foreclosure. The Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas

WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 31, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- The non-partisan, independent Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reports the Protecting American Taxpayers and Homeowners Act (PATH Act) that the House Financial Services Committee passed in July will slash the federal budget deficit by $5.7 billion over the next 10 years

WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 30, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- As lawmakers debate how best to reform the secondary mortgage finance market, they must ensure that any new system retains access to safe, secure and affordable sources of mortgage capital for creditworthy consumers in all market conditions or risk a major disruption to the economy, warned the National Association of Realtors® today in testimony before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

Washington, DC - October 25, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- A $1.5 million grant from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation will help NeighborWorks America substantially increase its work to help NeighborWorks network members and nonprofit community development corporations around the U.S. build stronger and sustainable mortgage lending operations, expand affordable homeownership opportunities, enhance the availability of financial capability programs and strengthen community stabilization efforts. The grant is part of a $6.3 million overall commitment to affordable housing this year from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation

WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 23, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Richard Hunt, president and CEO of the Consumer Bankers Association, issued the following response after the Federal Reserve, CFPB, FDIC, OCC, and NCUA issued an interagency statement on fair lending compliance with the Ability-to-Repay/Qualified Mortgage (QM) rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 23, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- Five federal regulatory agencies today issued a statement to address industry questions about fair lending risks associated with offering only Qualified Mortgages. Creditors have asked for clarity regarding whether the disparate impact doctrine of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and its implementing regulation, Regulation B, allows them to originate only Qualified Mortgages. For the reasons described in the statement, the five agencies do not anticipate that a creditor's decision to offer only Qualified Mortgages would, absent other factors, elevate a supervised institution's fair lending risk.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - October 17, 2013 - (RealEstateRama) -- As part of Fannie Mae’s continued effort to provide greater transparency to the marketplace, Fannie Mae will begin publication of monthly loan level disclosure for single-family mortgage-backed securities (MBS) starting in December. The monthly loan level disclosure file will contain loans underlying single-family MBS with issue dates beginning on or after January 1, 2013. The first monthly loan level disclosure file will be published on the eighth business day of December (December 11, 2013)