InfoBytes Blog

CFPB Creates HMDA and ECOA Safe Harbor for New Fannie/Freddie Application Form

On September 29, the CFPB published an Approval Action in the Federal Register that provides a safe harbor under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and Regulation B for lenders who use the revised Uniform Residential Loan Application (URLA) form issued by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in August 2016. The Bureau’s Approval Action states that it has “determined that the relevant language in the 2016 URLA is in compliance with” Regulation B’s requirements for whether, and how, a creditor may seek information about an applicant’s race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, and income sources, and information about an applicant’s spouse or former spouse.

The Bureau’s Approval Action also offers flexibility for lenders who must collect and report information about mortgage applicants’ ethnicity and race under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), implemented by Regulation C. On October 28, 2015, the Bureau amended Regulation C to require covered lenders to offer applicants the opportunity to self-identify using disaggregated categories of ethnicity and race, effective January 1, 2018. The CFPB notes in the Federal Register notice that before January 1, 2108, asking applicants to self-identify using the disaggregated categories would not have been allowed under Regulation B’s restrictions on seeking information about an applicant’s ethnicity, race and other characteristics. The Approval Action gives lenders the option of using the disaggregated categories of ethnicity and race for applications taken in 2017 without violating Regulation B. It states that if a lender opts to collect information using the disaggregated categories in 2017, for applications that see final action before January 1, 2018, the lender must report the data to the Bureau using only the current aggregate categories for ethnicity and race. If a lender takes final action in 2018 or later on an application received in 2017, it may choose to report the data using either the current aggregate or the new disaggregated categories.

Federal Issues Mortgages Consumer Finance CFPB Freddie Mac Fannie Mae ECOA HMDA

GSEs Release Redesigned Uniform Residential Loan Application

On August 23, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (GSEs) published a redesigned Uniform Residential Loan Application (URLA), the first substantial update to the standardized form used by borrowers applying for a residential loan in more than 20 years. The GSEs also released a redesigned Uniform Loan Application Dataset (ULAD) Mapping Document, used to “ensure consistency of data delivery.” The GSEs revised the URLA and ULAD by (i) redesigning the format to support better efficiency and more accurate data collection; (ii) including new and updated fields intended to “[c]apture loan application details that reflect today’s mortgage lending business and support both the GSEs’ and government requirements”; (iii) simplifying instructions; and (iv) incorporating revised HMDA demographic questions. The GSEs released FAQs about the redesigned URLA and ULAD, which will be available for lender use beginning January 1, 2018. Among other things, the FAQs note that (i) the GSEs will continue to support the URLA in paper form; and (ii) updates to the published documents may be required as a result of the CFPB’s review of the redesigned URLA in connection with the Regulation B safe harbor.

CFPB Freddie Mac Fannie Mae HMDA Data Collection / Aggregation

FFIEC and HUD Release HMDA Filing Guides; CFPB Updates Resources for HMDA Filers Page

On July 13, the CFPB announced that the FFIEC and HUD had published new resources for financial institutions required to file data pursuant to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) and Regulation C, as amended by the CFPB’s October 2015 final rule, which revised and expanded the scope of HMDA reporting requirements. Accordingly, the CFPB updated its “Resources for HMDA filers” page to include the following new FFIEC and HUD resources: (i) a Technology Preview, which provides an initial summary for how HMDA filers will interact with the HMDA Platform, a web-based data submission and edit-check system that filers will use to submit HMDA data collected in or after 2017; (ii) Filing Instructions Guide (FIG) for HMDA data collected in 2017, which outlines changes to the submission process for data collected in 2017, 2017 file specifications, and 2017 edit specifications; and (iii) FIG for HMDA data collected in 2018. The 2018 FIG includes field definitions for the many additional or modified data points required for data collected in 2018 and 2018 file format and edit specifications. The technical specifications in the FIG will allow lenders and vendors of HMDA data-preparation software to begin making the systems changes needed to collect data in 2018 for submission in 2019. The CFPB’s HMDA resource page also includes FFIEC HMDA FAQs and reminds financial institutions to visit the FFIEC website for resources to submit data collected in or before 2016.

CFPB HUD FFIEC HMDA

CFPB Report Reviews 2015 Fair Lending Activities and Notes Continuing Priorities

On April 29, the CFPB released its fourth annual report to Congress on fair lending activities. The report recaps the CFPB’s 2015 supervisory and enforcement efforts around fair lending and identifies ongoing priorities in the areas of: (i) mortgage lending, noting a continuing focus on HMDA data integrity and fair lending risks related to redlining, underwriting, and pricing; (ii) indirect auto lending, noting targeted ECOA reviews in examinations; (iii) credit cards, focusing “on the quality of fair lending compliance management systems and on fair lending risks in underwriting, line assignment, and servicing”; and (iv) other product areas including small-business lending, focusing on risks in underwriting, pricing, and redlining, and offering that “current and future small business lending supervisory activity will help expand and enhance the Bureau’s knowledge in this area, including the credit process; existing data collection processes; and the nature, extent, and management of fair lending risk.” The report highlights that “supervisory work on mortgage servicing has included use of the ECOA Baseline Review Modules … to identify potential fair lending risk in mortgage servicing and inform [its] prioritization of mortgage servicers.” In addition to recaps of its 2015 rulemaking, published guidance and efforts at interagency cooperation (including its MOU and sharing of customer complaints with HUD), the report also indicates that the CFPB had a number of authorized enforcement actions in settlement negotiations or pending investigations at year end in areas including mortgage lending, indirect auto lending, and credit cards.

CFPB Fair Lending ECOA HMDA Redlining

CFPB Issues Request for Information Regarding HMDA Disclosure Guidelines

On January 7, the CFPB announced that it will request public feedback on the resubmission of mortgage lending data reported under HMDA. Upon publication in the Federal Register, the Request for Information Regarding Home Mortgage Disclosure Act Resubmission Guidelines (Request for Information) will be open for 60 days. The Bureau’s Request for Information follows the agency’s October release of a final rule amending Regulation C to expand the reporting requirements of the HMDA regulation. Among other things, the amended rule increases the number of data points collected from financial institutions that must be reported to federal regulators beginning March 1, 2019, thus potentially necessitating revisions to the resubmission guidelines, which are the guidelines that describe when supervised institutions will be expected to correct and resubmit data. In response to questions regarding whether the CFPB will adjust mortgage lending data resubmission guidelines to reflect the new data requirements under the amended rule, the Request for Information seeks public comment regarding (among other things): (i) the CFPB’s use of resubmission error thresholds and how they should be calculated; (ii) whether error thresholds should vary depending upon an institution’s LAR entry size; and (iii) whether systemic and non-systemic errors should be treated differently, and, if so, how they should be distinguished from one another.

CFPB HMDA

CFPB Releases HMDA Implementation Resources

On December 1, the CFPB released a group of resources designed to help financial institutions understand their obligations under HMDA and Regulation C, as amended by the Bureau's October 15 final rule. The resources include a brief 5-page executive summary of the recent changes, the HMDA Small Entity Compliance Guide, two reference tools that show when data must be collected, recorded, and reported and when data can be reported as "not applicable," and HMDA institutional coverage charts for both 2017 and 2018.

The most substantial of these resources is the HMDA Small Entity Compliance Guide that the Bureau describes as, "a plain-language guide to the new rule which makes the content more accessible for industry constituents, especially smaller businesses with limited legal and compliance staff." The guide is 109 pages and covers key changes and effective dates, institutions and transactions that are covered under the new rule, the data points that must be reported and how they should be recorded and reported, as well as small sections on practical implementation and how mergers and acquisitions affect the applicability of the new rule. The guide also provides an e-mail address and phone number for anyone who has reviewed all of the available materials and still has a specific regulatory interpretation question.

CFPB HMDA

Special Alert: CFPB Adopts Significant Expansion of HMDA Reporting Requirements

On October 15, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the CFPB or Bureau) issued a final rule that will expand the scope of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data reporting requirements while seeking to streamline certain existing requirements. Although some of the new data points the Bureau is requiring are expressly mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act, the Bureau is also requiring a significant number of new data points based on discretionary rulemaking authority granted by the Act.

While we describe the amended rule below in greater detail, highlights include:

• Expanded data-collection under the revised rule will begin on January 1, 2018, and reporting will begin in 2019. The Bureau would have been allowed under Dodd-Frank to require data-collection beginning in 2017 (at least nine months after issuance of the rule) but responded to industry requests for more time to convert systems to meet the extensive new data-collection requirements of the amended rule.
• The amended rule substantially expands the number of data points collected from financial institutions, including requiring reporting of rate spreads on most originated loans and lines of credit, not just higher-cost closed-end loans. However, the Bureau still has not decided the extent to which this information, which includes sensitive personal data such as credit scores, will be publicly available. It will solicit additional public input on privacy concerns before it determines how much of the information will be disclosed.
• The amended rule will require financial institutions to report home equity lines of credit (HELOCs) and reverse mortgages. However, in response to widespread criticism by industry commenters, the CFPB did not adopt its proposal to require reporting of all commercial-purpose loans secured by a dwelling.
• The amended rule does not make significant substantive changes to the definition of an “application” or to the “broker rule,” but it does reorganize and clarify existing Commentary provisions on those issues.
• The amended rule requires both depository and nondepository institutions that originated at least 25 closed-end mortgage loans or at least 100 open-end lines of credit in each of the two preceding calendar years to report HMDA data, so long as the institution meets all of the other tests for coverage of that type of institution.

HELOC HMDA

CFPB Finalizes Rule to Update Reporting Requirements of the HMDA

On October 15, the CFPB finalized a rule amending Regulation C to update the reporting requirements of the HMDA. The final rule changes what data financial institutions must provide to Federal agencies. Data points to be reported under the final rule include: (i) information on applicants, borrowers, and the underwriting process, including age, credit score, debt-to-income ratio; (ii) information about the property securing the loan, such as property value and additional information on manufactured and multifamily housing; (iii) information on the features of the loan, such as pricing information, loan term, interest rate, introductory rate period, non-amortizing features, and the type of loan; and (iv) unique identifiers, including the property address, loan originator identifier, and a legal entity identifier for the financial institution. For more on this rule, please read BuckleySandler's Special Alert.

CFPB HMDA Agency Rule-Making & Guidance

CFPB Increases Asset-Size Thresholds Under HMDA and TILA

On December 29, the CFPB published final rules adjusting the asset-size thresholds under HMDA (Regulation C) and TILA (Regulation Z). Both rules take effect on January 1, 2015.

HMDA requires certain lenders to collect and report data about mortgage application, origination, and purchase activity, and to make such data available to the public. Institutions with assets below certain dollar thresholds are exempt from the HMDA collection and reporting requirements. The final rule increases the asset-size exemption threshold for banks, savings associations, and credit unions from $43 million to $44 million, thereby exempting institutions with assets of $44 million or less as of December 31, 2014, from collecting and reporting HMDA data in 2015.

TILA, among other things, require creditors to establish escrow accounts when originating higher-priced mortgage loans (HPMLs). However, TILA exempts certain entities from this requirement, including entities with assets below the asset-size threshold established by the CFPB. The final rule increases this asset-size exemption threshold from $2.028 billion to $2.060 billion, thereby exempting creditors with assets of $2.060 billion or less as of December 31, 2014, from the requirement to establish escrow accounts for HPMLs in 2015.

CFPB TILA HMDA

CFPB Report Highlights Errors In Mortgage And Student Loan Servicing

On October 28, the CFPB released the fifth edition of its Supervisory Highlights report. The report highlighted the CFPB’s recent supervisory findings of regulatory violations and UDAAP violations relating to consumer reporting, debt collection, deposits, mortgage servicing and student loan servicing. The report also provided updated supervisory guidance regarding HMDA reporting relating to HMDA data resubmission standards.  With respect to consumer reporting, the report identified a variety of violations of FCRA Section 611 regarding dispute resolution.  The report noted findings of several FDCPA and UDAAP violations in connection with debt collection, including: (i) unlawful imposition of convenience fees; (ii) false threats of litigation; (iii) improper disclosures to third parties; and (iv) unfair practices with respect to debt sales.  For deposits, the report identified several Regulation E violations found, including: (i) error resolution violations; (ii) liability for unauthorized transfers; and (iii) notice deficiencies.   The report outlines four main compliance issues identified in the mortgage servicing industry: (i) new mortgage servicing rules regarding oversight of service providers; (ii) delays in finalizing permanent loan modifications;  (iii)  misleading borrowers about the status of permanent loan modifications; and (iv) inaccurate communications regarding short sales. Finally, the report outlines six practices at student loan servicers that could constitute UDAAP violations: (i) allocating the payments borrowers make to each loan, which results in minimum late fees on all loans and inevitable delinquent statuses; (ii) inflating the minimum payment due on periodic and online account statements; (iii) charging late fees when payments were received during the grace period; (iv) failing to give borrowers accurate information needed to deduct loan interest payments on tax filings; (v) providing false information regarding the “dischargeable” status of a loan in bankruptcy; and (vi) making  debt collection calls to borrowers outside appropriate hours.

CFPB FDCPA FCRA UDAAP Student Lending HMDA