Filtered by category: Legislative Clear Filter

FHFA Allots Record $1.1B for Affordable Housing Programs

Originally published on February 28, 2022, by Adam Russell for the FHFA.

 Today, FHFA Acting Director Sandra L. Thompson announced that the Housing Trust Fund and Capital Magnet Fund will receive a total of $1.138 billion for affordable housing initiatives from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises). This is the largest amount ever provided to these programs from the Enterprises.

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AI Board of Directors Adopts 45-Day Notice Item During February Meeting

Originally published on March 2, 2022, for the Appraisal Institute. 

The Appraisal Institute Board of Directors voted to adopt one 45-Day Notice item during its Feb. 24-25 meeting in Chicago. The 45-Day Notice item addresses Compensation Committee Policies and Procedures.

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FHFA Requests Input on Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2022-2026

Originally published on February 9, 2022, by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

​Washington, D.C. – The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today requests input on its Draft Strategic Planwhich outlines the Agency's priorities for the coming years as a regulator of the Federal Home Loan Bank System and as regulator and conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises).

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Biden Administration Creates Coalition to Improve Building Performance Standards

Originally published on January 21, 2022 by the White House. 

Today, President Biden announced during his remarks at the U.S. Conference of Mayors that his Administration is teaming up with states, cities, labor, and industry to launch the Building Performance Standards Coalition, the first-of-its-kind partnership between 33 state and local governments dedicated to delivering cleaner, healthier, and more affordable buildings. With nearly 20% of the nation’s building footprint in their jurisdictions, the partnership facilitates new commitments to design and implement building performance standards at the state and local level, create good-paying, union jobs, lower energy bills for consumers, keep residents and workers safe from harmful pollution, and cut emissions from the building sector. Today’s announcement builds upon the Department of Energy’s efforts to upgrade one million homes and makes progress toward President Biden’s goal to retrofit four million buildings and two million homes during his first term.

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USPAP Needs Clarity Regarding Bias, Federal Law: Agencies

Originally published on February 7, 2022, by NAFCU Newsroom.

The NCUA, CFPB, and several other agencies including the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), and Federal Reserve Board (FRB) Friday wrote to The Appraisal Foundation (TAF), a private non-governmental entity with the sole power to set professional standards for appraisers, regarding appraisal discrimination. The agencies called out TAF for failing to “include clear warnings about the requirements of federal law in the standards it sets, and in the training it provides for appraisers.” 

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Report Explores USPAP, AQC Inclusiveness and Objectivity

The National Fair Housing Alliance, under contract by the Appraisal Subcommittee and the Council on Licensure, Enforcement, and Regulation, on Jan. 19 released its report on whether the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice and Appraiser Qualifications Criteria support or promote fairness, equity, objectivity and diversity in both appraisals and the training and credentialing of appraisers. The findings and recommendations are far-reaching, and some will require legislative action.

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State Attorneys General Target FHA Loan Violations

Originally published on January 5, 2022, by Georgia Kromrei for HousingWire.com.

Some Federal Housing Administration-approved mortgage servicers have routinely flouted the agency’s loan modification program, according to Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine and 20 other state attorneys general.

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Inflation at 40-year High, Rates Could Rise: Labor Report

Originally published on January 12, 2022, by Lucia Mutikani for Reuters.com

U.S. consumer prices increased solidly in December as rental accommodation and used cars maintained their strong gains, culminating in the largest annual rise in inflation in nearly four decades, which bolstered expectations that the Federal Reserve will start raising interest rates as early as March.

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FHFA Releases Q3 Uniform Appraisal Dataset Statistics

Originally published on December 15, 2023, by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today published its 2022 third-quarter data for the Uniform Appraisal Data (UAD) Aggregate Statistics Data File.

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One Quarter of Homes Constructed Last Year Were in Established Neighborhoods: NAHB

Originally published on December 9, 2021, by the National Association of Home Builders.

According to the latest Annual Builder Practices Survey (ABPS), one in four new single-family detached homes were built in established neighborhoods in 2020. Homes built on infill lots constituted 18.6% of new homes, while homes built after tearing down an existing building constituted 6.4% of new homes.

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White House Mulls Restrictions on All-cash Property Sales

Originally published on December 6, 2021by Justin Sink for Bloomberg.com.

The U.S. Treasury Department will begin developing regulations that could expand reporting requirements for all-cash real estate purchases as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to cut down on global corruption, according to two senior administration officials.

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Agencies Raise Appraisal Exemption Threshold

Originally published on December 1, 2021, by Michael Robinson for The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Reserve Board, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency today announced that the 2022 threshold for exempting loans from special appraisal requirements for higher-priced mortgage loans will increase from $27,200 to $28,500.

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VA Increasing Appraisal Fees, Turnaround Times

Originally published on November 19, 2021, by Georgia Kromrei for HousingWire.com.

The Department of Veterans Affairs will raise appraisal fees and lengthen allowable turnaround times in select markets across the country in response to the high demand for appraisals.

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FHFA Conforming Loan Limits for 2022 Approach $1M

Originally published on November 30, 2021, by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today announced the conforming loan limits (CLLs) for mortgages to be acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) in 2022. In most of the U.S., the 2022 CLL for one-unit properties will be $647,200, an increase of $98,950 from $548,250 in 2021. 

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CRE Lending Activity on the Upswing, Led by Alternative Lenders and Banks: CBRE

Originally published on November 17, 2021, by Michael Tucker for Mortgage Bankers Association.

CBRE, Dallas, reported commercial real estate lending activity surged in the third quarter, reflecting rebounding property acquisitions activity.

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FHFA Releases 2022 Scorecard for Fannie, Freddie, Common Securitization Solutions

Originally published on November 17, 2021, by Adam Russell for the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

Today, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released the 2022 Scorecard for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac (the Enterprises), and Common Securitization Solutions, LLC (CSS). The purpose of the 2022 Scorecard is to hold the Enterprises and CSS accountable for fulfilling their core mission requirements by promoting sustainable and equitable access to affordable housing and operating in a safe and sound manner.

AI Board of Directors Adopts 45-Day Notice Items During November Meeting

Originally published on November 17, 2021, by the Appraisal Institue.

The Appraisal Institute Board of Directors voted to adopt three 45-Day Notice items during its Nov. 11-12 meeting in Chicago. The 45-Day Notice items address Designated Member Status, Compensation Committee, and Standards of Valuation Practice.

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CRE Lending Boom Expected Despite Ongoing Coronavirus Pandemic: Yardi Matrix

Originally published by Paul Fiorilla on October 14, 2021, for CommercialSearch.com.

Low-interest rates, increasing transaction volume and pent-up demand for short-term debt on transitional properties have contributed to a surge in mortgage origination in 2021.

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Desktop Appraisals Are Here to Stay, FHFA Announces

Originally published on October 18, 2021, by Adam Russell for Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today announced two measures to sustainably advance the affordability of homeownership for mortgage borrowers across the nation, especially those in underserved communities.

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Federal Reserve Expected to Raise Rates in the Coming Year: Bankrate Survey

Originally published on October 7, 2021, by Sarah Foster for BankRate.com.

The U.S. economy’s sharp rebound from the pandemic that sent inflation soaring to its highest in decades might push up interest rates over the next year, according to a new survey from Bankrate.

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