What Happened? Immediately following President Biden’s State of the Union Address announcing plans to lower homebuyer and refinancing costs, the CFPB issued a blog post seeking public input on how mortgage closing costs impact consumers. The CFPB also announced that it will work to monitor closing costs and, “as necessary, issue rules and guidance to improve […]
RESPA
CFPB’s Message to Mortgage Servicers: Make Sure You Comply with RESPA’s Force-Placed Insurance Requirements
A&B Abstract: In Case You Missed It: At the recent Federal Housing Finance Agency’s Symposium on Property Insurance, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra spoke about force-placed insurance and conveyed the following message: “The CFPB will be carefully monitoring mortgage market participants, especially mortgage servicers to ensure they are meeting all of their obligations to consumers under […]
CFPB Issues Advisory Opinion Warning Against Kickbacks for Mortgage Rate Shopping Platforms
A&B ABstract: Last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an advisory opinion to address the applicability of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA)’s Section 8 – the anti-kickback provision – to operators of certain digital technology platforms that enable consumers to comparison shop for mortgages and other real estate settlement services. These […]
Alston & Bird Adds Consumer Finance Partner Aldys London in Washington, D.C.
Alston & Bird has strengthened and expanded its capabilities for advising companies on state and federal consumer finance regulatory compliance issues with the addition of partner Aldys London in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. Her clients include mortgage companies, consumer finance and FinTech companies, secondary market investors, real estate companies, home builders, insurance companies, banks, and other […]
CFPB Rescinds Compliance Bulletin on Marketing Services Arrangements and Issues FAQs on RESPA Section 8
A&B ABstract: On October 7, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB” or “Bureau”) rescinded Compliance Bulletin 2015-05, RESPA Compliance and Marketing Services Agreements (“Bulletin 2015-05”). In addition, the Bureau published Frequently Asked Questions (“RESPA FAQs”) on the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (“RESPA”) Section 8 topics in an effort to “provide clearer rules of […]