InfoBytes Blog
Filter
Subscribe to our InfoBytes Blog weekly newsletter and other publications for news affecting the financial services industry.
HUD Reaches $2.8 Million Settlement Over Redlining Allegations
On February 29, HUD announced an agreement with a Kansas City-based bank over its alleged redlining practices against African-American mortgage applicants. Two fair housing organizations (Complainants) filed separate complaints with HUD in October 2015 alleging that the bank engaged in discriminatory acts and violated the Fair Housing Act. According to Complainants, the bank’s “lack of market penetration in African-American communities made residential real estate products less available to persons based on race.” Complainants further alleged that the bank “designated their service area, or assessment area, in a way that excluded areas of high African-American concentration, which resulted in making residential real estate products less available to persons based on race” – a practice generally referred to as redlining. The agreement requires that the bank must, during the three-year agreement period: (i) allocate $75,000 in subsidy funds to provide discounts on home purchase loans to majority African-American census tracts in the Kansas City area; and (ii) originate $2.5 million in mortgage loans in African-American neighborhoods. Additional fair lending financing commitments pursuant the agreement require that the bank: (i) establish a loan pool of $105,000 to rehabilitate vacant or destroyed homes; (ii) spend $50,000 on marketing and outreach to African-American communities; (iii) provide $30,000 to support financial education in African-American communities; and (iv) spend $50,000 in support of the Complainants’ fair lending and community reinvestment work. The bank will also be required to appoint a Community Development Lender to focus on African-American neighborhoods and other lower-income communities. Finally, dependent upon the OCC’s approval of the bank’s application for a merger, the bank will be required to maintain three full-service branches in majority-minority census tract in the Kansas City area.
The CFPB's Mortgage Originations Agenda in 2016
Now more than ever, financial services firms need to proactively focus on issues of concern identified by the CFPB and ensure that they are engaged in industry best practices that are clearly identified and carefully monitored. In the mortgage originations sphere, the new TRID/ KBYO rule, MSAs, LO compensation, UDAAP, and fair lending are all issues for companies to focus on in the coming year.TRID/KBYO
Compliance with the new TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure/Know Before You Owe (TRID/KBYO) rule will likely be an area of Bureau concern in 2016. The rule took effect on October 3, 2015 and does not include a “hold harmless” period for errors as lenders implement the new disclosure requirements, although letters from the OCC, FDIC, and CFPB have clarified that regulators will focus in the beginning on institutions’ implementation plans, training, and handling of early technical problems. It is likely that the CFPB will require remediation back to the rule’s compliance date when it identifies tangible consumer harm, but it is unlikely that the Bureau will bring enforcement actions initially based on technical issues where there is no tangible consumer harm.
GSEs have also issued letters stating they will not perform TRID/KBYO compliance file reviews at the beginning of the implementation period. The GSEs further stated that it will not exercise its repurchase and other remedies unless (1) a required form is not used or (2) a practice would impair its enforcement of its rights against borrowers. In contrast, the FHA has stated that it expects lenders to comply with “all federal, state, and local laws, rules, and requirements applicable to the mortgage transaction as outlined in [the] FHA Handbook….”
MSAs and RESPA Enforcement
The CFPB set forth a strong position in October 2015 regarding Section 8 of RESPA, which generally prohibits kickbacks in connection with the referral of settlement services. Through enforcement actions, the CFPB has taken a broad interpretation of the term “thing of value,” finding that the opportunity to participate in a business—even if market rates are paid for services—can itself constitute a thing of value sufficient to create Section 8 liability for kickbacks.
This calls into question the legality of marketing services agreements (MSAs) generally. While the CFPB has stated that it does not view MSAs as per se illegal and has acknowledged that it does not have the authority to declare them per se illegal without a formal rulemaking process, it is possible that the Bureau may pursue further public enforcement actions regarding MSAs if it does not see institutions pulling back from using them. State examiners are also aware of the issue and may refer nonbank entities that they supervise to the CFPB if they see issues with MSA usage. Courts are getting the opportunity to weigh in on these RESPA issues, through the appeal to the D.C. Circuit of the PHH enforcement action and the 9th Circuit’s reversal of the district court’s refusal to certify the class in Edwards v. FAC.
LO Compensation Rule
The CFPB has been aggressive in applying the Federal Reserve Board’s LO Compensation rule, as amended by the CPFB. While the rule was passed to avoid steering of borrowers into certain products, the CFPB does not need to establish steering to prove a violation and instead tends to build cases based on technical non-compliance with the rule. In bringing cases under the rule, the CFPB often names individuals as well as companies. It should be noted that the CFPB views payments to LLCs controlled by producing branch managers based on mortgage profits as illegal compensation under the rule. In examinations, the CFPB typically looks for a written compensation plan and cites institutions that do not reflect their compensation practices in their plan, even if those practices are legal.
Examination Enforcement Trends and UDAAP
The CFPB has heighted its focus on vendor management, scrutinizing vendor products and services during examinations (including the marketing of these products and services as well as the value they add), and will bring enforcement actions or court cases where it finds issues. Biweekly payments are one area of heighted scrutiny, as the CFPB has been skeptical of the value added by this service. The Bureau has also focused on loss mitigation contracts that suggest that a borrower has waived rights in connection with receiving the modification.
Fair Lending
“What’s old is new again” in 2016 fair lending – issues such as pricing, discretion, and the charging or waiving of fees remain important. Regulators will remain focused on redlining and access to credit. The September 24, 2015 Hudson City Savings Bank enforcement action, requiring the bank to pay $27 million, focused on the role of brokers in redlining. The CFPB’s Office of Fair Lending and Equal Opportunity is a hybrid examination and enforcement division, which provides insight into the CFPB’s approach to fair lending. The CFPB also will look at nonbanks’ fair lending and bring enforcement actions against these institutions to the extent it finds problems.
House Passes Bills that Impact CFPB Mortgage and Auto Lending Policies
On November 18, the U.S. House of Representatives passed by voice vote H.R. 1210 and H.R. 1737, both of which will affect CFPB policies governing the mortgage and auto lending industries. The “Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act” – H.R. 1210 – would amend the Truth in Lending Act to create a safe harbor from certain requirements for depository institutions making residential mortgage loans held in portfolios. Specifically, the bill permits loans that appear on a depository institution’s balance sheet to be treated as a Qualified Mortgage subject to certain limitations, thus permitting such loans to fall under the Ability-to-Repay Rule’s safe harbor provisions. The “Reforming CFPB Indirect Auto Finance Guidance Act” – H.R. 1737 – would invalidate CFPB Bulletin 2013-02, which provides guidance to indirect auto lenders regarding compliance with federal fair lending laws.
In anticipation of the two bills passing the House, the White House released two separate statements voicing the Administration’s opposition to both.
CFPB and DOJ Fine Savings Association Over Alleged Mortgage Redlining Practices
On September 24, the CFPB and DOJ announced a joint enforcement action against a federally-chartered savings association, alleging that the lender excluded predominantly minority neighborhoods from its mortgage lending business. The consent order, subject to court approval, would require the lender to, among other things, (i) pay $25 million in various subsidies to assist minority borrowers; (ii) provide a total of $2.25 million, over a five-year period, to local initiatives providing assistance and consumer education to residents in the excluded neighborhoods; and (iii) pay a $5.5 million civil money penalty.
New York AG Settles with Community Bank over Redlining Allegations
On September 10, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced a settlement agreement with a New York-based community bank to resolve allegations that the bank engaged in discriminatory mortgage lending practices by excluding potential borrowers who resided in predominantly African-American neighborhoods in the Buffalo area. Under terms of the agreement, the bank agreed to revise its consumer and commercial lending policies to eliminate minimum mortgage amount requirements, provide fair lending training, to expand its lending footprint into previously excluded areas, and to establish an $825,000 fund to promote new homeownership and affordable housing opportunities.
CFPB Publishes Eighth Edition of Supervisory Highlights
On June 23, the CFPB published its eighth edition of Supervisory Highlights, covering supervisory activities from January 2015 through April 2015. The latest edition identifies issues with dual-tracking at mortgage servicers and the need for improved quality control measures at consumer reporting agencies. The report also provided supervisory observations related to debt collection, student loan servicing, mortgage origination and servicing, and fair lending. Notably, the report reveals that non-public supervisory actions and self-reported violations at banks and nonbanks in the areas of mortgage origination, fair lending, mortgage servicing, deposits, payday lending, and debt collection resulted in $11.6 million in remediation to more than 80,000 consumers during the first four months of 2015.
CFPB and DOJ Settle With Mortgage Lender for Alleged Discriminatory Mortgage Pricing
On May 28, the CFPB, along with the DOJ, filed a joint complaint against a California-based mortgage lender alleging that the lender violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act by engaging in a pattern or practice of discrimination from 2006 to 2011 that increased loan prices for African-American and Hispanic borrowers. The DOJ also alleges that the lender violated the Fair Housing Act. According to the complaint, the lender’s mortgage broker compensation policy, which incented discretionary interest rate and fee increases to borrowers, resulted in approximately 14,000 African-American and Hispanic borrowers being charged higher total broker fees on wholesale mortgage loans than non-Hispanic white borrowers. The complaint alleges that the higher fees were not based on the borrowers’ credit risk profile, but rather on the basis of race or national origin. The parties separately filed a proposed consent order which would require the mortgage lender to, among other things, pay $9 million in consumer relief to affected borrowers to resolve the allegations. The proposed consent order is currently pending court approval.
HUD Reaches $200 Million Settlement Over Redlining Allegations
On May 26, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that it entered into a conciliation agreement with a Wisconsin-based bank to resolve claims that, from 2008 to 2010, the bank discriminated on the basis of race and national origin by denying loans to qualified African-American and Hispanic applicants, and making few loans in majority-minority census tracts in five metropolitan areas in Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin (while making loans in nearby predominantly white tracts). Among other things, the agreement requires the bank, over a three-year period, to: (i) pay nearly $10 million in the form of lower interest rate home mortgages and down payment/closing cost assistance to qualified borrowers in majority-minority census tracts in specified housing markets in Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, (ii) invest nearly $200 million in increased mortgage lending in majority-minority census tracts in these areas, (iii) provide nearly $3 million to help existing homeowners repair their properties in these predominantly minority communities, (iv) pay $1.4 million to support affirmative marketing of loans in these census tracts, and (v) open offices in certain specified majority-minority census tract areas. According to HUD, this is the largest redlining settlement that it has initiated.
Southern District of New York Denies Class Certification in Fair Lending Suit Against Global Investment Bank
On May 14, the District Court for the Southern District of New York denied class certification status in a fair lending suit brought by the ACLU and NCLC against a global investment bank. Adkins v. Morgan Stanley, No. 12-CV-7667 (VEC) (S.D.N.Y. May 14, 2015). The Plaintiffs had alleged that the bank, as a significant purchaser of subprime residential mortgage loans, had caused a disparate impact on African-American borrowers in Detroit in violation of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. In an exhaustive 50-page opinion, the court denied class certification on multiple grounds, including the variation in loan types and the role of broker discretion. BuckleySandler anticipates the ruling will be widely cited in future fair lending class actions.
CFPB Report Recaps 2014 Fair Lending Activities
On April 28, the CFPB published its third annual report to Congress on its fair lending activities. Among other developments, the report highlights the following key supervision and enforcement priorities taken by the Bureau in the past year: (i) A continued focus on discrimination in the mortgage lending industry, including redlining and underwriting disparities; (ii) Emphasis on the auto lending industry, which has resulted in guidance given to lenders on complying with Federal consumer financial laws, and action taken when lenders do not abide by those laws; (iii) Attention to the credit card market, including an enforcement action against a company for its alleged failure to provide certain consumers with debt relief offers because of national origin; and (iv) Assistance to consumers who receive disability income by issuing Bulletin 2014-03 to lenders, which outlines the rights of a consumer whose income is derived, in part or in whole, from a public assistance program. According to the report, the Bureau’s efforts in 2014 to protect consumers from credit discrimination lead to financial institutions providing approximately $224 million in monetary relief to over 300,000 consumers.
