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  • OCC, FDIC provide guidance to institutions affected by California wildfires

    Federal Issues

    On August 9, the OCC issued a statement permitting OCC-regulated institutions to close their offices affected by wildfires in California. OCC Bulletin 2012-28 provides further guidance on natural disasters and other emergency conditions. (See previous InfoBytes coverage here). On the same day, the FDIC also provided guidance related to California wildfires in FIL-41-2018. Among other things, the FDIC is encouraging institutions to consider extending repayment terms and restructuring existing loans that may be affected.

    Federal Issues OCC FDIC Disaster Relief

  • Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac issue forbearance relief to homeowners affected by California wildfires

    Federal Issues

    On August 8, Freddie Mac extended its disaster relief options to homeowners affected by ongoing California wildfires who have access to federal individual assistance programs in FEMA-declared disaster areas. The relief suspends foreclosures by providing forbearance for up to 12 months. Penalties and late fees will also be waived. Freddie Mac also reminded servicers to consider borrowers who work in eligible disaster areas but have homes outside the affected area for standard relief policies. Moreover, servicers may leverage Freddie Mac forbearance programs to provide immediate mortgage relief to those affected by the wildfires in areas where FEMA has not made individual assistance available.

    On August 7, Fannie Mae issued a notice to mortgage servicers reminding them that homeowners impacted by the California wildfires are eligible to stop making mortgage payments for up to 12 months, during which time late fees will not be incurred nor delinquencies reported to the credit bureaus. Furthermore, servicers may immediately suspend or reduce mortgage payments for up to 90 days without any contact with homeowners believed to have been affected by the wildfires. Additionally, foreclosures and other legal proceedings must be suspended for impacted homeowners.

    Find continuing InfoBytes coverage on disaster relief here.

    Federal Issues Fannie Mae Mortgages Mortgage Servicing Disaster Relief

  • Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac issue disaster relief policy reminders and updates

    Federal Issues

    On July 18, Fannie Mae, in Lender Letter LL-2018-04, and Freddie Mac, in an industry letter released the same day, reminded servicers of requirements that continue to be in effect for servicing mortgages impacted by eligible disasters. Specifically, Fannie Mae provides information on (i) reimbursements related to insured loss repair inspection costs; (ii) disaster-impacted inspections; (iii) the Extend Modification for Disaster Relief policy—developed in conjunction with Freddie Mac for post-disaster forbearance mortgage loan modifications; and (iv) the disbursement of hazard loss draft proceeds. Freddie Mac also reminds servicers of property inspection reimbursement requirements and changes to insurance loss settlement distributions.

    Find continuing InfoBytes coverage on disaster relief here.

    Federal Issues Fannie Mae Freddie Mac Disaster Relief Mortgage Servicing

  • Fannie Mae updates borrower-initiated mortgage insurance termination requirements

    Federal Issues

    On July 18, Fannie Mae released Lender Letter LL-2018-03 (Letter) to provide updates to requirements for single-family servicers related to borrower-initiated conventional mortgage insurance (MI) termination requests. The Letter covers requirements for borrower-initiated MI terminations and outlines various processes for verifying current property values. Among other things, the Letter also incorporates into the Servicing Guide changes previously announced in LL-2017-09 (see previous InfoBytes coverage here), which allows for temporary forbearance mortgage loan modification for servicers with mortgage loans affected by recent disasters. Fannie Mae encourages servicers to implement the new requirements on January 1, 2019, but will not require them to do so until March 1, 2019, unless otherwise noted.

    Federal Issues Fannie Mae Mortgage Insurance Servicing Guide Disaster Relief

  • FDIC provides relief for storm-hit areas of Texas

    Federal Issues

    On July 3, the FDIC issued Financial Institution Letter FIL-37-2018 to provide regulatory relief to financial institutions and facilitate recovery in areas of Texas affected by severe storms and flooding from June 19 through the present. The FDIC is encouraging institutions to consider, among other things, extending repayment terms and restructuring existing loans that may be affected by the natural disasters. Additionally, the FDIC notes that institutions may receive favorable Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) consideration for community development loans, investments, and services in support of disaster recovery.

    Federal Issues FDIC Disaster Relief Mortgages

  • FDIC issues disaster relief guidance for storm affected areas of Hawaii

    Federal Issues

    On July 3, the FDIC issued Financial Institution Letter FIL-35-2018 to provide regulatory relief to financial institutions and facilitate recovery in areas of Hawaii affected by severe storms, flooding, landslides, and mudslides from April 13 through April 16. The FDIC is encouraging institutions to consider, among other things, extending repayment terms and restructuring existing loans that may be affected by the natural disasters. Additionally, the FDIC notes that institutions may receive favorable Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) consideration for certain development loans, investments, and services in support of disaster recovery. 

    Federal Issues FDIC Disaster Relief Mortgages

  • Agencies issue disaster relief guidance for volcanic activity in Hawaii and severe storm in Maine

    Federal Issues

    On June 19, the FDIC issued Financial Institution Letter FIL-33-2018 to provide regulatory relief to financial institutions and facilitate recovery in areas of Hawaii affected by volcanic eruption and earthquakes. The FDIC is encouraging institutions to consider, among other things, extending repayment terms and restructuring existing loans that may be affected by the natural disasters. Additionally, the FDIC notes that institutions may receive favorable Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) consideration for certain development loans, investments, and services in support of disaster recovery.

    On June 14, the Department of Veterans Affairs issued Circular 26-18-16, requesting relief for veterans impacted by Maine’s severe storm and flooding. Among other things, the Circular (i) encourages loan holders to extend forbearance to borrowers in distress because of the storms; (ii) requests that loan holders establish a 90-day moratorium on initiating new foreclosures on loans affected by the major disaster; and (iii) waives late charges on affected loans. The Circular is effective until July 1, 2019.

    Find more InfoBytes disaster relief coverage here.

    Federal Issues Department of Veterans Affairs Disaster Relief Mortgages FDIC

  • FHA extends foreclosure moratoriums for certain properties in Puerto Rico & U.S. Virgin Islands

    Federal Issues

    On May 16, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) released Mortgagee Letter ML 2018-03 (ML 2018-03), which extends the 180-day foreclosure moratorium on FHA-insured properties in Puerto Rico & the U.S. Virgin Islands affected by Hurricane Maria for an additional 90 days. As previously covered by InfoBytes, in March, FHA extended the moratorium an additional 60 days to May 18. The foreclosure moratorium is now in effect, for properties that meet certain conditions, until August 16.

    Find continuing InfoBytes coverage on disaster relief here.

    Federal Issues FHA Disaster Relief Mortgages Foreclosure

  • Federal agencies issue disaster relief guidance for North Carolina, Indiana, and Hawaii

    Federal Issues

    Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

    On May 16, the Department of Veterans affairs released Circular 26-18-10, requesting relief for veterans impacted by Hawaii’s volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. Among other things, the Circular (i) encourages loan holders to extend forbearance to borrowers in distress because of the storms; (ii) requests that loan holders establish a 90-day moratorium on initiating new foreclosures on loans affected by the major disaster; and (iii) waives late charges on affected loans. Previously on May 14, the VA released Circular 26-18-08 and Circular 26-18-09, which provide for similar relief in areas affected by severe storms and flooding in Hawaii and North Carolina. 

    FDIC

    On May 16, the FDIC issued FIL-28-2018 to provide regulatory relief to financial institutions and facilitate recovery in areas of Indiana affected by severe storms and flooding from February 14 through March 4. The FDIC is encouraging institutions to consider, among other things, extending repayment terms and restructuring existing loans that may be affected by the natural disasters. Additionally, the FDIC notes that institutions may receive favorable Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) consideration for certain development loans, investments, and services in support of disaster recovery. The FDIC also issued FIL-29-2018, which provides similar guidance for financial institutions for areas of North Carolina affected by tornadoes and severe storms on April 15.

    Find more InfoBytes disaster relief coverage here.

    Federal Issues FDIC Department of Veterans Affairs Disaster Relief CRA Mortgages

  • VA updates Disaster Loan Modification guidance regarding re-amortization

    Federal Issues

    On May 8, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) released clarification of its Disaster Loan Modification guidance in circular 26-17-39. (Previously covered by InfoBytes here.) The revised circular now allows a servicer to re-amortize if necessary to meet investor guidelines, so long as the new monthly payment is the same or less than the current.

    Find more InfoBytes disaster relief coverage here.

    Federal Issues Disaster Relief Department of Veterans Affairs Mortgages Mortgage Modification

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