Members of the K&L Gates Consumer Financial Services Group will speak on key topics at the upcoming MBA Legal Issues and Regulatory Compliance Conference in Boca Raton, FL (May 19-22). Melanie Brody will discuss a topic on everyone’s radar — fair lending and disparate impact — on Tuesday morning (May 21) , with a repeat… Continue Reading
Category Archives: FHA/VA
Subscribe to FHA/VA RSS FeedHUD Clarifies Procedures for Demanding Indemnification from FHA Lenders Participating in the Lender Insurance Program
Posted in FHA/VABy: Krista Cooley
On Wednesday, HUD issued Mortgagee Letter 2013-10 to implement the Lender Insurance (“LI”) regulation it finalized in January of 2012.
FHA Investing Mortgagees No Longer Required to Provide Compliance Report
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage ServicingBy: Phillip L. Schulman, Nathan Pysno
A recent change to the HUD Office of the Inspector General Audit Guide has removed the requirement that all FHA investing mortgagees submit reports on internal controls and compliance.
FHA Announces Upcoming Changes to Strengthen the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage Lending, Mortgage Servicing, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsBy: Phillip L. Schulman, Krista Cooley
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s recently announced that an independent actuarial review of the FHA Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund found that the Fund’s capital reserve ratio has fallen to -1.44%, which represents a negative economic value of $16.3 billion.
FHA and RHS Respond to Hurricane Sandy
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage Lending, Mortgage Servicing, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsBy: Holly Spencer Bunting , Kathryn M. Baugher
In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, both the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) and the Rural Housing Service (“RHS”) have issued guidance intended to help homeowners with government insured or guaranteed loans who were affected by the storm.
FHA Issues Annual Financial Report to Congress
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage Lending, Mortgage Servicing, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsBy: Phillip L. Schulman, Krista Cooley
On Friday, November 16, 2012, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released its 2012 Annual Report to Congress and announced that the FHA Mutual Mortgage Insurance (MMI) Fund suffered a $16.3 billion deficit.
Rural Housing Service Publishes Final Rule Regarding New Annual Fee
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage Servicing, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsThe U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Housing Service (RHS) today published a final rule implementing the new annual fee that will be charged on all RHS-guaranteed single family housing loans obligated on or after October 1, 2011.
Conflicted Out: When Must a Servicer Follow FHA Guidelines over the Global Foreclosure Settlement Servicing Standards?
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage ServicingBy: Krista Cooley, Rebecca Lobenherz
The National Servicing Standards, outlined in the March 2012 Global Foreclosure Settlement, are difficult to reconcile with the already stringent servicing requirements in place for the Federal Housing Administration’s (“FHA”) single family loan insurance program.
Refinancing Rural Housing Loans: Rural Housing Service Announces Pilot Program
Posted in FHA/VA, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsOn the heels of President Obama’s State of the Union address, the U.S. Department of Agriculture this month announced a two-year pilot program to help borrowers with USDA-guaranteed loans refinance their mortgages at lower rates without obtaining a new credit report, appraisal, or property inspection.
Administration’s Proposed Refinancing Plan for Non-GSE Loans Is Illusory
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage Servicing, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsThe Administration’s newly announced plan to provide low cost refinancings to underwater, current borrowers whose residential mortgage loans are not owned or securitized by the GSEs is high on hope and low on likelihood of success.
No More Mister Nice Guy: Indemnification Now Required by FHA Lender Insurance Regulations
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage LendingBy: Phillip L. Schulman, Krista Cooley, Holly Spencer Bunting
FHA mortgagees participating in the Lender Insurance (“LI”) program will be required to indemnify HUD for self-endorsed loans that HUD deems ineligible for FHA insurance based on a final regulation published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD” or “Department”) on January 25, 2012.
FHA’s Lender Insurance Program Will Soon Cost Lenders More Money
Posted in FHA/VA, Mortgage LendingBy: Krista Cooley, Phillip L. Schulman, Holly Spencer Bunting
FHA mortgagees participating in the Lender Insurance (“LI”) program will be required to indemnify HUD for self-endorsed loans that HUD deems ineligible for FHA insurance based on a final regulation to be published by HUD on January 25, 2012.
FHA Insured Mortgages Require an Appraisal by a State Certified Appraiser
Posted in Appraisals, FHA/VAEffective December 23, 2011, HUD has finally amended its rules to coincide with its existing practice of allowing only state certified appraisers to conduct appraisals of properties securing an FHA insured mortgage. This means that state licensed appraisers or those with only the certification of a “nationally recognized professional organization” are now permitted on the FHA Appraiser Roster.
FHA: HUD Uses FAQs to Communicate Policy Changes
Posted in FHA/VA, Other Federal Agencies & GSEsMortgagee Letters released by the Federal Housing Administration (“FHA”) appear to no longer be the final word on policy changes made by FHA and HUD related to FHA lending. Although FHA has maintained “FHA Frequently Asked Questions” on its website for some time, it only recently began to publish targeted Frequently Asked Questions in response to specific Mortgagee Letters and questions submitted by industry participants.