Tag Archives: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

The mortgage servicing system is badly broken and would benefit from a single set of federal standards, according to White House officials. President Obama on Wednesday introduced what he's termed the Homeowner Bill of Rights - principles that he says will ensure borrowers and lenders are playing by the same common-sense rules. These rules address disclosures, conflicts of interest posed by investors and junior lien holders, assistance for at-risk homeowners, and safeguards to prevent wrongful foreclosures.

Richard Cordray, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has named Raj Date the agency's first deputy director. Date has been leading the day-to-day operations of the bureau since it launched in July. Cordray also named Kent Markus to the position of assistant director of the Office of Enforcement to fill the position Cordray vacated upon his director appointment.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) now has the authority to oversee nonbank businesses, including mortgage servicers that are not part of a depository institution and companies providing loan modification and foreclosure relief services. This expanded authority came with the appointment of an agency director on Wednesday, and the bureau wasted no time. That very same day, the CFPB announced the official launch of its nonbank supervisory program.

President Obama on Wednesday exercised his executive power by using Congress' recess to appoint Richard Cordray director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), devoid of a Senate confirmation vote. Without a confirmed director, the CFPB's reach was limited. Now that Obama has single-handedly positioned Cordray at the helm, the bureau has the authority to extend its regulatory powers to non-bank entities such as mortgage brokers and non-depository lenders.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is still headless. Senators had scheduled a confirmation vote Thursday for Richard Cordray - President Obama's pick to lead the newly formed watchdog agency. Republicans, though, blocked the process before lawmakers could even get to a final vote. Without a director, the CFPB does not have full authority to supervise non-bank mortgage lenders and debt collectors. President Obama told reporters that he is not giving up on putting Cordray in the top CFPB post.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has launched an investigation into the possible wrongful foreclosures of about 5,000 military members by 10 of the nation's largest banks. The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), signed into law in 2003, protects military members from foreclosure while on active duty. Rep. Brad Miller of North Carolina is calling for officials to pursue criminal charges should SCRA violations be substantiated.

Three government agencies are combining efforts to address mortgage modification scams through a joint task force. With the announcement of the task force, the participating agencies -- the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the Treasury Department -- released a consumer fraud alert to ensure homeowners understand that only their mortgage servicer has discretion to grant a loan modification.

In preparation for policing the nation's largest lenders, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Thursday released its examination procedures for mortgage servicers. The bureau will begin its review of more than 100 large banks, thrifts, and credit unions with extensive examinations of their mortgage servicing practices, including complaint resolution, loss mitigation procedures, and foreclosures. The agency stressed that mortgage servicing has a huge impact on consumers and therefore is a top priority for the CFPB.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is working alongside other federal agencies to create ""common-sense national servicing standards,"" according to the Treasury's advisor on the bureau Raj Date. One of the issues Date plans to address through national servicing standards is what he says has been a lack of incentive for originators and others involved in the front end of the lending process to ensure a borrower has the ability to repay their loan.

Richard Cordray has been hand-picked by President Obama to lead the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). On Wednesday, Cordray stood before the U.S. Senate to make a case for lawmakers' confirmation of his appointment. On the heels of major lawsuits announced by the government related to mortgage bonds, Cordray told senators that regulatory authority is his weapon of choice as opposed to litigation, which can be ""a very slow, wasteful, and needlessly acrimonious way to resolve a problem.""