Government

Seven months after the implementation of its ability-to-repay and qualified mortgage (QM) rules, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it is tweaking the loan thresholds used to determine the maximum points and fees for QM loans.

Investors have filed another lawsuit against the U.S. government, alleging that common stockholders in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been shortchanged. Three individual common shareholders along with Pershing Square Capital Management alleged in their complaint that the diverting of GSE profits into Treasury equates to taking private property for public use without "just compensation," a practice forbidden by the Fifth Amendment.

As the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) mulls over a proposed increase in guarantee fees, a new report from the Urban Institute (UI) suggests the agency faces a more difficult task than one might assume. In a commentary released Thursday, UI authors Laurie Goodman, Ellie Seidman, Jim Parrott, and Jun Zhu say that, based on their modeling, g-fee determination "is an art, not a science—and more like a Jackson Pollock than a da Vinci."

While policymakers have made some headway in pushing through different GSE reform packages, a new report from Kroll Bond Rating Agency contends any reform legislation is unlikely to pass through Congress before the 2016 general election at the earliest.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has targeted an Atlanta-based online lender to pay up for its role in an alleged bait and switch scheme. AmeriSave, its affiliate, Novo Appraisal Management Companies, and the CEO/owner of both companies, Patrick Markert, were penalized for misleading consumers by advertising fraudulent low rates and then failing to honor those rates once the consumers were locked in.

In the first step of what is planned to be a multi-year effort, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has put out a request for industry input on the development of a common mortgage-backed security (MBS) designed to be issued and guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac.

Less than two years after being confirmed as the head of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), Commissioner Carol Galante is making plans to step down from her post.

Speaking at a conference in Sweden Monday morning, Stanley Fischer, vice chairman of the Fed and former governor of the Bank of Israel, admitted that the global recovery from the recession has been disappointing at best, noting that economic growth among the world's most advanced economies has underperformed compared to previous post-recessionary periods.

Fifth Third Bancorp has reached a settlement agreement with the Justice Department in which it will pay more than $1.5 million over allegations of loan discrimination against applicants with disability status. "Today's announcement holds lending institutions accountable for their actions, and is a reminder that every American has the right to apply for a home loan and live in the community of their choice," said Gustavo Velasquez at HUD.

Bank of America and the Justice Department are close to completing a long-rumored and record-setting deal to resolve allegations of misconduct sales of mortgage-backed securities that went bad, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.