A Spec Home is Probably NOT HMDA Reportable - Here's Why

Adam Witmer
HMDA

While the revised HMDA rules have been in place for just over a year now, we are finding that a number of financial institutions are still struggling with a few of the quirks of the new rules.  Specifically, one question we have seen a few times in recent months is this: Is a spec home HMDA reportable? To fully understand the answer to this question, we need to first discuss how the changes to the 2018 HMDA rules relate to this topic.  You see, under the old HMDA rules, spec homes were…

Love the Compliance Cohort?

Adam Witmer

Do you enjoy your membership at the Compliance Cohort? If so, we’d love to hear from you.

You see, we are redoing a few things on our website and are looking for a few member testimonials to be used on our home page and in other marketing material. If you are interested in providing feedback about your membership, you can do so here: www.compliancecohort.com/member-feedback

Members like you are the reason we do what we do.

HMDA Exemption Property Address

HMDA Exemption Property Address

Adam Witmer
HMDA

In this Compliance Clip (video), Adam discusses how the Property Address data point applies to the partial exemption. Specifically, he provides guidance on how exempt institutions are to report the street, city and state when they are listing the state data field as part of the Property Location data point. As you would expect, this is a fairly complex topic that has caused quite a bit of confusion, so Adam attempts to break the rules down into easy-to-understand layman’s terms.

If you are an exempt reporter or plan to use the partial exemption for your 2019 data, be sure to check out our Compliance Class (video webinar) on the HMDA partial exemption in our store. Everything you need to know about the partial exemption is covered in less than an hour and includes a comprehensive training manual for reference and a Q&A of some more complex questions relating to the partial exemption. View the Compliance Class (video webinar) at www.compliancecohort.com/hmda-webinar.

New TRID FAQs - Funny Joke or Something Else?

Adam Witmer
TRID, Regulatory Update, Regulation Z

I have spent a bit of time studying comedy.  I’m no expert by any means, but I’m always intrigued by the details of how things work, and comedy is no exception.  I figure that once I understand how something like comedy works, I will be able to better use it and appreciate it.

When we look at the art of comedy, there is one well-known element that seems to be….

(Click here to see how this post relates to the new TRID FAQs - and we promise it does!)

Reg E Start Times for Pending Transactions

Adam Witmer
Regulation E

Over the years, we have seen a number of questions relating to how Regulation E error resolution rules relate to pending transactions that have not yet settled to a customer’s account.  The challenge that many bankers face is a customer will call in to dispute a transactions they see on their account as a “memo post,” but since the transaction is pending, it may never actually post to the account or will be finalized in an amount different than the original “memo post” amount. For bankers, this is challenging because…

HMDA Exemption for Large CRA Reporters

HMDA Exemption for Large CRA Reporters

Adam Witmer
HMDA

Adam uses this Compliance Clip (video) to talk about one of the nuances of the CFPB’s Interpretive and Procedural Rule regarding the HMDA partial exemption. Specifically, this video explains how the property address and property location data points apply to large CRA reporters who also qualify for the HMDA partial exemption. The answer might not be exactly what you think…. or even what the CFPB intended.

Two Comments Due Next Week

Adam Witmer
Regulatory Update, Regulation CC

Two sets of comments are due next week.

First, Tuesday, February 5 marks the last day to comment regarding the proposal to increase the appraisal threshold for residential real estate transactions from $250,000 to $400,000.  The proposed rule provides thirteen questions for which the agencies are seeking comment.

Secondly, comments regarding the Regulation CC proposal must be in by Friday, February 8, 2019.  This request for comment does two things as the proposal would first implement new changes to the Expedited Funds Availability Act and also provides an additional opportunity for public comment on the 2011 funds availability proposal that was never finalized.

Agencies Release Final Rules for Private Flood Insurance

Adam Witmer
Flood, Regulatory Update

On January 25, 2019, the joint agencies issued a final rule requiring lending institutions to accept “private flood insurance.”  This long-awaited rule was mandated by the Biggert-Waters Act and went through two different proposals. One of the biggest challenges the new rule could have created relates to how lenders will determine whether a private flood insurance policy is considered to be in compliance and, therefore, acceptable.  To alleviate this challenge, the final rule provides a…

Comparative vs Overt Disparate Treatment

Adam Witmer
Fair Lending, Regulation B

Fair lending continues to be one of the highest risk areas for any creditor.  Deficiencies can result in significant penalties, fines, and other enforcement actions.  Therefore, each creditor must understand the different types of fair lending violations that could be cited during a fair lending audit or compliance examination.  In other words, if a creditor if familiar with what an examiner will be looking for, they will be more likely to self-identify and correct the issue before it becomes a significant exam violation.

How to Calculate 10% Tolerance Under TRID

Adam Witmer
Regulation Z, TRID

Though estimate tolerance rules have been around before TRID, “good faith,” tolerances, and refunds/cures seem to still be a challenge for many lenders and creditors.  This is concerning as tolerances/cures are one of the higher-risk areas (like rescission) that creditors really need to ensure they are doing appropriately as deficiencies can result in significant fines, penalties, and enforcement actions.  

In reviewing the challenges related to calculating “good faith” and providing appropriate refunds/cures, it appears that there still seems to be quite a bit of confusion relating to how a creditor must calculate tolerances in the 10% tolerance bucket.

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