Volume 4 | Issue 63 | Monday, April 04, 2005
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“The interesting problem of the mortgage industry is that it is the most collaborative. It takes more than a village to make a mortgage. It takes 15 intermediaries, including mortgage insurance, title insurance, flood certification and [lenders] are really choreographing 15 different facets of vendors.”
--Bill Kelvie, CEO of Overture Technologies, Bethesda, Md.
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Top National News
OFHEO Is Looking at Fannie Mae's Accounting for Trusts (Wall Street Journal)
Will Practices Change for Real Estate Pros? (Denver Business Journal)
U.S. Construction Spending Sets Another Record (American Banker)
Wall Street to Focus on Greenspan Remarks (Los Angeles Times)
Bush Set to Tap Bernanke for Economic Post (Wall Street Journal)
Fannie May Be His New Home (Business Week)
Congress Draws a Bead on Predatory Lending (Business Week)
The Fed May Be Talking Too Freely (Business Week)

Residential Finance News
Automation Drives Mortgage Process
Residential/Technology Briefs

Commercial/Multifamily Finance News
MBA Commercial/Multifamily Data Book Shows Record Growth
DealMaker of the Day

MBA News
MBA Seeks Diversity Data
MBA National Policy Conference April 19-20

Spotlight: Washington
MBA Advocacy Update
Washington: The Week Ahead

Top News
OFHEO Is Looking at Fannie Mae's Accounting for Trusts
Wall Street Journal (04/04/05) P. C1; Weil, Jonathan; Kopecki, Dawn; Hagerty, James R.
The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight is now examining the ways in which Fannie Mae accounts for the trusts it establishes to issue mortgage-backed securities, and the findings of the investigation will determine how much capital Fannie Mae must hold by the Sept. 30 deadline. The government-sponsored enterprise presently needs to raise another $4.5 billion to meet the minimum capital requirements imposed by OFHEO, according to FTN Financial Capital Markets executive Jim Vogel. Fannie Mae considers the thousands of trusts it has created to be "qualifying special purpose entities" under Financial Accounting Standard 140, which allows the company to keep the trusts off its balance sheet. The government-sponsored enterprise is required to retain 2.5 percent of the MBS it owns and puts on its balance sheet in capital, but only 0.45 percent of the MBS it guarantees but leaves off the balance sheet.
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Will Practices Change for Real Estate Pros?
Denver Business Journal (04/04/05); Johansen, Erin
Since HUD has started more strictly enforcing the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, a growing number of property professionals have begun examining their practices to see if they are in violation of the law. According to Marc Friedland of HUD's Single Family Homeownership Center in Denver, realty agents, brokers, and title insurers often mistakenly believe that only lenders are subject to the law. Additionally, they fail to realize that nearly all conventional mortgages are governed by RESPA--not just those backed by the Federal Housing Administration or the Department of Veterans Affairs. Moreover, when considering the provision that prohibits kickbacks, many industry professionals assume that only referral fees are banned; but the law actually makes it illegal to trade anything of value for business or split charges for services that are not performed by those accepting the cash.
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U.S. Construction Spending Sets Another Record
American Banker (04/04/05)
The Commerce Department confirms that U.S. construction spending increased for a 13th consecutive month in February, rising 0.4 percent from January to buoy total spending to a record annual rate of $1.05 trillion. Building activity in the first two months of 2005 climbed more than 10 percent from the same period a year ago, which in turn led to the addition of new construction jobs. Private residential construction, which accounts for over 50 percent of U.S. construction expenditures, increased 0.7 percent in February of this year as rising mortgage rates helped propel housing demand. Meanwhile, government-backed construction increased 1.1 percent to an annual rate of $239.9 billion and federal construction rose 2.4 percent to $17.4 billion; yet private nonresidential construction decreased 1.2 percent to $228.7 billion.
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Wall Street to Focus on Greenspan Remarks
Los Angeles Times (04/04/05)
Wall Street analysts and investors will pay close attention to Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan this week, as he comments on inflation and high oil prices, to gauge the pace of interest-rate hikes in the coming months. "It's an environment where there is really no external stimulus, so you watch the market action itself to see what it's signaling to traders--whether they should buy more or unload," explains Oppenheimer & Co. Chief Investment Strategist Michael Metz. This week, Greenspan will serve as a guest speaker at the International Petrochemical Conference held by the National Petrochemical and Refiners Association, testify before the Senate Banking Committee regarding legislation to beef up oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and talk about consumer finance at a community affairs conference hosted by the central bank.
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Bush Set to Tap Bernanke for Economic Post
Wall Street Journal (04/04/05) P. A2
As anticipated, President Bush has identified Federal Reserve Board member Ben Bernanke as his choice for chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. The Princeton-educated economist will remain at the central bank until his nomination for the Council is confirmed by the Senate, but he will not be included in any interest-rate deliberations in the interim. If approved, Bernanke will succeed Harvey Rosen as chair of the three-person panel. Bernanke eventually could end up back at the Fed, however, as he is one of an elite few considered to be in the running for chairman of the central bank once Alan Greenspan's term expires in January.
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Fannie May Be His New Home
Business Week (04/04/05) Vol. 3927, P. 14; Borrus, Amy
Washington insiders say Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Chairman William McDonough is no longer viewed as a potential successor to Alan Greenspan at the Federal Reserve but is interested in other opportunities. Instead, the 70-year-old former president of the New York Federal Reserve has a chance to become the next CEO of Fannie Mae--although a PCAOB spokeswoman says he is not in talks with the mortgage company. McDonough would face the challenge of three ongoing federal investigations and a move by Congress for tougher oversight; but he stands to earn more than his current $595,000 annual salary, considering that former Fannie Mae CEO Franklin Raines averaged more than $2 million a year. Former Conseco CEO William Shea and former Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, also are considered to be candidates for the Fannie Mae post.
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Congress Draws a Bead on Predatory Lending
Business Week (04/04/05) Vol. 3927, P. 49; Borrus, Amy
U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa., the second-highest Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, and eight other House Democrats have lined up behind a GOP bill that would preempt state predatory lending regulations and establish national standards for predatory lending. "If ever the stars were aligned, it's now," American Bankers Association director of community development James Ballantine says of the bill, which has been floating around for three years. Republican leaders will be more focused on reforming oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in the months to come, but a report by the Federal Reserve in August on loan terms and demographics trends in subprime lending--which is expected to show that minorities bear the brunt of the high-cost loans--could prompt Congress to move faster on the issue. The GOP bill also would reform mortgage services and appraisals as well as set minimum standards for licensing mortgage brokers.
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The Fed May Be Talking Too Freely
Business Week (04/04/05) No. 3927, P. 36; Miller, Rich
Forced to deal with the threat of a deflationary downturn two summers ago, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and his colleagues at the central bank began providing investors with specific guidance on future monetary policy for the first time ever. These statements have created much confusion in financial markets, however, which in turn has helped stoke considerable investor worry that higher inflation is just around the corner. Consequently, many Fed insiders as well as outsider observers are questioning whether the central bank's strategy--particularly regarding the management of long-term interest rates--has done more harm than good and set the stage for greater inflation. Greenspan and his cohorts contend that the results so far speak for themselves, as the nation's economy has expanded at a 4.5-percent annual rate since the summer of 2003 while inflation has been modest.
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Residential
Automation Drives Mortgage Process
MBA (4/4/2005) Murray, Michael
ORLANDOWilliam Shakespeare wrote, “The fault lies not in the stars but in ourselves.” Mortgage technology professionals might add, “The fault lies not in ourselves, but in the mortgage process.”

“The interesting problem of the mortgage industry is that it is the most collaborative. It takes more than a village to make a mortgage. It takes 15 intermediaries, including mortgage insurance, title insurance, flood certification and [lenders] are really choreographing 15 different facets of vendors,” said Bill Kelvie, CEO of Overture Technologies, Bethesda, Md., speaking here at the Mortgage Bankers Association’s National Technology in Mortgage Banking Conference & Expo. “How do you do it and do it quickly? You need a driver.”

Garth Graham, senior vice president of strategic technology at ABN AMRO Mortgage Group, Sunrise, Fla., said the number of steps between approval and closing are not “value-add” processes. He said elimination of numerous documents would help the process but “the document problem is not going away for some time.”

Graham said the Good Faith Estimate, based on third-party services, can achieve greater accuracy with more motivation from originators. “The title insurance is picked by a realtor when the contract is written, two days before talking to the customer [borrower],” Graham said. “[A mortgage originator] has no incentive to change that asynchronous process around because it does not help [them] get the deal. If anything, it is just going to confuse the customer from how they shop now.”

Graham, a strong proponent of Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) reform, said a Housing Choice Voucher Program (formerly known as Section 8) exemption is one method to change the business process to enhance technological capabilities. Home equity loans, for example, have limited Housing Choice Voucher Program exemptions. “They’ve had it since the early 1990s,” Graham said.

Automated Valuation Models (AVMs) played a large role in the refinance boom and continues to play a major role in home equity lending. “[The home equity loan] has no fees, it closes real fast and has no documents,” Graham said. “The reason is because as soon as they rip out the Section 8, everyone says that, in essence, whoever is doing the loan is paying for all the services. If you’re paying for all the services, guess what, you’re going to invest and get rid of [costs].”

Connie Moore, vice president and research director of information delivery research at Forrester Research, Cambridge, Mass., analyzes industries outside of mortgage banking. She said the mortgage banking industry process is complex and paper intensive with a numerous players. “BPM [Business Process Management] is a business tool,” Moore said. “It very much needs to be driven by the business as opposed to technology limitation driven by IT [information technology]. The business needs to change.”

She said the banking industry has legislation to “radically change” how banks transfer physical checks in check processing that can quickly change the industry. However, in the world of working with BPM vendors, mortgage origination is one of the harder processes to tackle. “This is a really complex thing,” Moore said. “It’s very paper intensive and there are so many players in it and the processes are really hard processes.”

Graham said the Sarbanes-Oxley Act will bring about change in the mortgage industry as well as the necessity for customer satisfaction. “The customer wants change and the regulators are going to force us to do it,” he said. “We can do it the hard way or the easy way.”

“I think that this electronic involvement is happening sooner,” Kelvie said. “If you build these links and install services for each of those intermediaries, you start to work on a bundled close, I think you’ll win the marketplace.”

Chris Burckhardt, chief information officer at Pulte Mortgage, Englewood, Colo., said the mortgage industry recognizes that it can process information in a more sophisticated way through automating it.

“It’s going to be better for everybody, better for us, better for our customers, better for our trading partners,” Burckhardt said. “I’m an optimist. I think we can get there.”
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Residential/Technology Briefs
MBA (4/4/2005) MBA Staff
Freddie Mac, McLean, Va., announced the launch of its Reference REMIC (real estate mortgage investment conduits) securities—structured mortgage-backed securities investments for global investors. The inaugural Reference REMIC is expected to settle in April and will be distributed by a multi-tiered dealer syndicate.

The securities will be offered on a quarterly basis; issuance will be set on a calendar for 2005. The minimum issuance size of each Guaranteed Maturity Class (GMC) tranche will be $1 billion, with the initial offering to be at least $2 billion.

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FNC, Oxford, Miss., a collateral information management provider, launched a portal site, www.GAARPort.com, designed to make available the company’s Generally Accepted Appraisal Rules (GAAR) on an open basis.

The GAAR are a series of rules that lenders and others can run against residential real estate appraisals for issues of completeness, compliance with regulatory guidelines and signs of fraud, overvaluation and other elements representing risk to the lender.

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Dorado Corp. launched its Enterprise Lending System, a servicer platform that enables unification of loan channels, products, services, personnel, customers and fulfillment partners through a single port of sale.

The system’s services are delivered through a unified point-of-sale using a service-oriented architecture (SOA), which enables integration of personnel, information, systems and services across multiple technology platforms.

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Radian Guaranty Inc., Philadelphia, a provider of mortgage insurance products and services announced the release of a plug-in for MI Online, the company's Web-based mortgage insurance ordering system, for users of MORvision, a loan origination system from Dynatek Inc.

MORvision is designed to automate the loan generation process, including origination and underwriting to closing, secondary tracking and delivery. Radian's MI Online is designed to offer lenders a way to order and service mortgage insurance.

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Landlords and rental agents who violate the Fair Housing Act are more likely to come under federal scrutiny by HUD, according to its 2005 State of Fair Housing Report released last week.

In 2004, HUD and its state and local Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) partners received 9,187 housing discrimination complaints, a 13 percent increase over the previous fiscal year. Together they settled or conciliated 3,183 cases and provided more than $11 million in monetary relief, in addition to other resolutions, such as the desired housing, HUD said.

The report can be found at www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/enforcement/hudcharges.cfm

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VECTORsgi, Addison, Texas, a provider of financial transaction applications, announced the addition of VECTOR:MICR-Complete, a system that captures the magnetic ink character recognition (MICR) line and ensures compliance for image exchange files sent to the Federal Reserve and reproduction requirement of Check 21 for image-replacement document (IRD) creation.

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Sollen Technologies, Dallas, an Internet-based application services provider of product, pricing and execution capabilities for the mortgage industry, announced release of Lender Online at the end of the second quarter.  The new platform is designed to enhance lenders’ ability to provide their borrowers with the loans, prices and rates.

The Lender Online upgrade expands the original platform’s functionality, enabling users to capture multiple lending options in one execution. The platform also eliminates having to do multiple searches for different loan programs and/or document types.

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DocuTech Corp., Orlando, a provider of compliance service and documentation technology, announced establishment of a dedicated processing center to manage initial disclosures for its customers. The processing center assists lenders in reducing their level of liability and eliminates the risk of lawsuits due to perceived compliance issues with initial disclosure documents. 
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CREF / MF News
MBA Commercial/Multifamily Data Book Shows Record Growth
MBA (4/4/2005) Waugaman, Angela; Sorohan, Mike
The Mortgage Bankers Association released its Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Quarterly Data Book for the fourth quarter of 2004. The Data Book results show that 2004 was a record year for the commercial/multifamily sector of the industry.

The Data Book, published by MBA’s Research and Economics staff, contains analysis and highlights of trends within the commercial real estate/multifamily finance industry highlighting the fourth quarter and including a year end summation.

"The Commercial Real Estate/Multifamily Finance Data Book is a quarterly publication, providing current industry research on a variety of critical topics," said Doug Duncan, MBA's chief economist and senior vice president of research and business development. "This quarter's Data Book exemplifies the vitality of the commercial/multifamily market during 2004, reporting a variety of record numbers for the fourth quarter as well as the entire year."

The Data Book combines information on five topics of interest to industry participants and observers into one succinct publication. These topics include: economic outlook, commercial/multifamily finance environment, mortgage production, mortgage debt outstanding and servicing.

Among the report’s highlights:

• Economic data becoming available over the past month suggest that the pace of expansion is quickening in the first quarter;

• Business capital spending appears to have gained a degree of vigor not previously experienced in the current economic expansion; in constant dollars, this component of GDP rose by 14 percent at an annual rate in the fourth quarter, and appears on track to equal or exceed that pace in the current quarter.

• Labor demand is also strengthening early this year. Initial claims for unemployment insurance have fallen to only a little above 300,000 a week, and the rate of insured unemployment has dropped to 2.1 percent, the lowest since April 2001.

• Commercial and multifamily mortgage bankers' loan originations set a record during 2004. The $136 billion in loan originations reported for 2004 were up by 16 percent from the $117 billion reported in 2003.

• Loan originations in the fourth quarter were the highest ever recorded in MBA's quarterly survey. The fourth quarter total of $42.7 billion was $7.1 billion above third quarter 2004 volume and $3.8 billion above fourth quarter 2003 volume.

• The increase in commercial/multifamily lending activity during 2004 was across most property and investor types. The $18.8 billion increase over 2003 included a $7.2 billion increase in office loans, a $4.7 billion increase in retail loans, a $1.8 billion increase in industrial loans and a $1.5 billion increase in multifamily property loans. Among investor types, commercial banks had the largest increase at $9.1 billion, while life insurance companies increased by $4.9 billion, CMBS conduits increased by $2.4 billion and Freddie Mac increased by $1.9 billion. Fannie Mae decreased by $1.9 billion and FHA decreased by $1.3 billion.

• Commercial mortgage bankers originated $50.4 billion of loans on multifamily properties, representing 37.3 percent of total originations, down from 41.6 percent in 2003. Office lending was the next most active property group, with $33.2 billion in originations or 24.5 percent of the total, followed by retail originations of $24.8 billion or 18.3 percent of the total. The largest percentage increase in commercial mortgage lending was for office properties, where the $33.2 billion in originations for 2004 represented a 27.7 percent increase from 2003 volumes.

• At the end of 2004, $2.29 trillion in commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding was recorded by the Federal Reserve, an increase of $219.5 billion or 10.6 percent from the end of 2003. In the fourth quarter alone, commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding increased by $68.6 billion, or 3.1 percent, also a new record. At the end of 2004, multifamily mortgage debt outstanding stood at $601 billion – an increase of $44.1 billion or 7.9 percent over the year, and $12.1 billion or 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter alone.

The Data Book can be found at:
http://www.mortgagebankers.org/cref/data/04/CREF%20Data%20Book%202004Q4.pdf
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DealMaker of the Day
MBA (4/4/2005) Murray, Michael
CharterMac’s subsidiary, Related Capital Co., New York, will provide $10.6 million in equity financing in exchange for tax credits generated by the Ocean Park Apartments complex in Far Rockaway, Queens.

Related Capital Co. provided financing to a development team comprised of Related Apartment Preservation, LLC and DB Development, Ltd., for renovation of the 600-unit mixed use apartment complex.

The Ocean Park complex highlights a critical need for preservation of any affordable housing initiative, a spokesperson for Related Capital Co. said. The complex, originally developed in 1972, is part of the Mitchell-Lama Housing Program. The original purpose of the program, created in 1955, was to build affordable housing for low- and middle-income residents. Over the life of the program, nearly 290 Mitchell-Lama developments with more than 149,000 apartments were built. The regulated developments are eligible to withdraw from the Mitchell-Lama program, or “buyout,” after 20 years upon prepayment of the mortgage.

The rehabilitation project comes on the heels of Governor George Pataki’s (R) recent announcement of initiatives for affordable housing programs in New York, the spokesperson said. The city will leverage private equity by partnering it with local government and other funding sources in an effort to provide quality affordable housing opportunities.

“When developments buy out, they are no longer subject to the same regulations, and apartments need not be kept affordable for low- or moderate-income families,” the spokesperson said. The program includes “hundreds” of affordable housing properties which are now converting to market rate communities, leaving still more of a void in housing affordability in New York City, the firm said. 

Related Capital and Related Apartment Preservation renovate the existing complex and maintain affordable unit rents. “Preservation is a key to maintaining affordable housing in New York City,” said Eric Trucksess, executive vice president of Related Capital Company. “New York City has seen little new affordable housing in decades, and Far Rockaway is no exception, with strong demand for quality, affordable apartments.”

“Public and private cooperation…serves as a template for how other Mitchell-Lama properties can successfully be modernized while retaining affordability,” said Mark Carbone, president of Related Apartment Preservation LLC.

The 600 renovated units at Ocean Park Apartments, currently 94 percent occupied, will provide relief to the nearly 60 percent of area residents who are renters, giving them better housing than existing affordable units, the Related Capital spokersperson said.

Trucksess said residents will benefit from a convenient location near the Atlantic Ocean. “The ocean side complex is located on the Rockaway peninsula, fifteen miles east of downtown Manhattan in an established, stable community,” Trucksess said. “Residents enjoy convenient access to retail shopping, JFK International airport, a major area employment center, all levels of schooling, and public transportation, including bus service adjacent to the property and rail service just one mile north of the site.”

Ocean Park Apartments consists of two 26-story buildings containing one- to three-bedroom residences ranging in size from 760 square feet to over 1,100 square feet, larger than average market-rate properties in the area. The majority of the residential units at Ocean Park will be set-aside for residents earning 60 percent or less of the area median income, with the remainder of the units set at rents regulated by HUD’s Section 236 program for tenants earning 80 percent or less of the area median income. Renovations are not expected to displace any tenants and are expected to be complete by the end of 2005. Rents are expected to start at $660 per month, up to $370 below other income-restricted rental complexes in the area. The property includes 12,000 square feet of retail space.

Unit amenities at Ocean Park Apartments will include a frost-free refrigerator, dishwasher, oven/range, in-wall air conditioning sleeve, mini-blinds and balcony. Common area amenities include a community room with kitchen facilities, playground and swimming pool, on-site management office, central laundry facility in each building, on-site garage and lot parking, and the convenience of the on-site retail options that include a grocery store, pharmacy, restaurant, bank and medical clinic. The complex also has access to the ocean via a beach-front boardwalk adjacent to the complex. Security features at Ocean Park Apartments will include a card-access gate, a phone intercom building entry system, keycard building access, perimeter fencing and cameras in community and parking areas.
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MBA News
MBA Seeks Diversity Data
MBA (4/4/2005) Pardo, Sheryl
As you register for Mortgage Bankers Association conferences and meetings in the future, you’ll see and hear (if you register by phone) a set of new questions. MBA has begun to ask registrants about their gender and racial and ethnic identity.

The intent in asking these questions, which registrants can freely decline to answer, is to track personal diversity information about individual members so that MBA to more accurately measure their success in achieving the strategic goal of increasing diversity in its leadership.

MBA and its 2,900 member companies are committed to expanding the pool of well-rounded and diverse professionals in the real estate finance industry. “Diversity strengthens MBA, strengthens our companies and strengthens our industry as we continue to reach out to our increasingly diverse customers,” said MBA President and CEO Jonathan Kempner.

Kempner noted that MBA specifically benefits when its leaders represent the full breadth of the markets and the richness of society and that the association’s leaders need to fully reflect the social, geographic, gender and racial/ethnic mix that is evident in our local communities.

Yet, diversity does not happen accidentally—it must be intentionally fostered. Accordingly, when MBA adopted its 2005-2007 Strategic Operating Plan, it sought to increase racial, gender and ethnic diversity in MBA’s leadership and to support and promote diversity within member companies.

As you register for meetings and conferences with MBA in the future, you can choose to either answer or decline to answer these questions. If you are not expecting to register for any conferences or meetings in the near future but would like to help MBA collect this information, you can also go to the “My MBA” website at http://mymba.mortgagebankers.org/login.aspx and answer a similar set of questions.

The use of the information MBA collects in this process will be restricted to the association. No personal information will be provided to any external organization. 

(Sheryl Pardo is a director in MBA’s Government Affairs Department. She can be reached at 202/557-2809 or at spardo@mortgagebankers.org.)
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MBA National Policy Conference April 19-20
MBA (4/4/2005) Hilliar, Paul
The Mortgage Bankers Association’s 2005 National Policy Conference gives you the opportunity to make your voice heard with some of Washington’s most influential politicians. Early registration deadline for this conference, which takes place April 19-20 in Washington, D.C., is this Tuesday, April 5.

The National Policy Conference also provides the opportunity to hear some of those lawmakers and policy makers. Scheduled to appear at this year’s conference:

• Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., chair of the Senate Banking Securities and Investment subcommittee and author of a bill, S.190, that would comprehensively reform oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac;
• Treasury Secretary John Snow;
• HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson, who recently signaled that the department was ready to move forward with a new effort to reform the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA);
• Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., a key player in legislation related to the real estate finance industry;
• Political pundits Ann Coulter and Donna Brazile, who will provide a spirited lunchtime debate on the Washington political landscape.

The conference also includes the opportunity for participants to visit Capitol Hill and discuss issues of importance with their legislators. By doing so, participants demonstrate to the newly elected Congress the united force of MBA's members and its commitment to investing in America's communities.

All individuals from MBA member companies are encouraged to attend this important event. Registration fee is just $370 for MBA members. The preliminary registration deadline is April 5.

To register, call (800) 793-6222 or visit the registration page for more details. For sponsorship information, contact Paul Hilliar at (202) 557-2858 or philliar@mortgagebankers.org.

(Paul Hilliar is a director in MBA's Government Affairs Department.)
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Washington
MBA Advocacy Update
MBA (4/4/2005) Pfotenhauer, Kurt
PfotenhauerKurtWhen Congress returns from its two week Easter recess today, the House is scheduled to take up the Senate-passed bankruptcy reform bill, S. 256.

MBA Issues Rebuttal to Freddie Mac Bright Line Paper
In response to a recent Freddie Mac piece attacking the “bright line” between the primary and secondary mortgage markets, the Mortgage Bankers Association last week released a rebuttal, asserting that the "bright line" provisions in S. 190, the Senate GSE oversight reform bill, would bring clarity to the mortgage markets and better define the primary and secondary markets. The piece also reaffirms MBA's long-standing advocacy for such clarity.

In the rebuttal, MBA specifically points out that the bright line language will not end Fannie Mae's Desktop Underwriter (DU) and Freddie Mac's Loan Prospector (LP). Currently, the GSEs do not permit outside competition in technology for underwriting loans. The bright line language would promote competition and transparency in loan underwriting technology, and would require that the GSEs accept competing technologies. It would give lenders the opportunity to find a better price, and better technology, elsewhere.

MBA further discounts Freddie Mac's arguments by asserting that a bright line would provide more than mere clarity by retaining competition, especially in the primary market. MBA also takes umbrage with the GSEs' practice of protecting GSE technology and punishing non-GSE technology, stating that the lack of competition for loan underwriting technology limits innovation and keeps prices artificially high. 

In short, the rebuttal asserts that the bright line would not fundamentally alter the role of the GSEs, but rather would ensure that neither GSE originates loans and would simply clarify what is and is not permissible. 

For more information, please contact Chris Harrington at (202) 557-2863 (charrington@mortgagebankers.org).

MBA to Discuss TRIA with Democratic Governors
During the Democratic Governors Association's spring policy conference on April 1 and 2, MBA participated in a roundtable discussion on Homeland Security and the Federal Protection of Critical Infrastructure. During the roundtable, MBA discussed the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) and the need for its extension beyond December 31.

In addition, MBA's issue paper and briefing materials on TRIA will be included in a briefing packet for attendees.  Following the conference, the materials were sent to the Democratic governors who did not attend the conference.
 
For more information, please contact Paul Richman at (202) 557-2899 (prichman@mortgagebankers.org).

FHA Publishes Hybrid ARM Rule
FHA published the "Eligibility of Adjustable Rate Mortgages Interim Final Rule" on March 29, changing the interest rate cap structure for 5/1 hybrid ARMs. Under the long-expected rule, the initial and annual interest rate cap is 2 percent and the lifetime cap is 6 percent. MBA understands that these changes are effective for loans endorsed on or after April 28.
 
The change to the 5/1 hybrid ARM cap structure was authorized by Public Law 108-186, signed by President George W. Bush on December 16, 2003. The FHA hybrid ARM program was introduced on March 10, 2004, without the cap structure changes incorporated. This interim final rule marks the culmination of a process that started with passage of Public Law 107-73, approved November 26, 2001. In addition to lobbying Congress for the changes, MBA has had multiple communications with FHA on this issue over the past four years, including sending six letters urging for the quick enactment of the program.

For more information, please contact Tim Doyle at (202) 557-2860 (tdoyle@mortgagebankers.org).

Georgia Supreme Court Issues Opinion on Fax Ban Rules
In October 2004, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a stay until June 30 of its rules regarding established business relationships (EBRs) and unsolicited faxes. Prior to the new rules, the law prohibited unsolicited fax advertisements but provided an exemption for those with EBRs. However, under the new rule, which has been postponed until June 30, businesses would be required to obtain written consent before faxing commercial advertisements or business-to-business faxes, such as rate sheets.

On March 14, the Georgia Supreme Court issued an opinion in which it rules that state courts must follow the FCC's regulations on EBRs unless and until they are overturned by a U.S. Court of Appeals. The court issued the opinion as grounds for upholding a lower court decision refusing to allow the recipient of a fax to turn the case into a class action.

Some state trial courts have disagreed with the validity of the extension of the rules, even though the regulation eliminating the EBR exception and requiring signed written consent will become effective on July 1. MBA will continue to work with the Fax Ban Coalition on legislation to create a statutory EBR exception and will likely request a further delay in the FCC's regulation eliminating the EBR exemption.

For more information, please contact Vicki Vidal at (202) 557-2861 (vvidal@mortgagebankers.org).

Montgomery County Council (MD) Scheduled to Address Predatory Lending Ordinance
On April 4, the Montgomery County (Md.) Council is scheduled to meet for a third time to discuss provisions in the Council's proposed predatory lending ordinance (Bill 36-04). The latest intelligence indicates the new draft may contain language recommending that the actual damages cap increase to $250,000 from the current cap of $5,000, and may retain the disparate impact language. 

Should the disparate impact language remain in the ordinance, the County would be the first in the nation to codify such language, which would set a harmful precedent. There is also concern that this provision may impede the flow of mortgage capital and availability of affordable credit in the County, thus hindering the overall secondary market. 

The meeting is scheduled for 2:00 pm (eastern) on Monday, April 4.
 
For more information, please contact Beth Percynski at (202) 557-2866 (bpercynski@mortgagebankers.org).
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Washington: The Week Ahead
MBA (4/4/2005) Sorohan, Mike
Congress returns to Capitol Hill, and a flurry of activity is expected.

The Senate Banking Committee will hold the first two of a series of hearings on proposals to reform the government-sponsored enterprises. The hearing will take place in Washington, D.C. on April 6 and 7. The first hearing will feature testimony from Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. The second hearing’s scheduled witnesses include Treasury Secretary John Snow and HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson.

Both hearings will take place in room 538 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building. Staff of the Mortgage Bankers Association’s government affairs department will attend the hearing, and MBA NewsLink will provide coverage.

Not to be outdone, the House Financial Services Committee also focuses on the GSEs. The subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises holds a hearing on "Additional Accounting and Management Failures at Fannie Mae-OFHEO’s Efforts to Ensure Safe and Sound Operations" on Wednesday, April 6. Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight Director Armando Falcon Jr. is expected to testify. The hearing takes place at 10:00 a.m. in room 2128 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

Also on April 6, the full Committee on Financial Services holds a hearing on "Strengthening America’s Communities: A Review of the President’s FY2006 Budget Initiative." That hearing begins at 1:00 p.m. in 2128 Rayburn.

Senate hearings can be heard live over the Internet at www.capitolhearings.org. House Financial Services Committee hearings can be viewed live over the Internet at www.financialservices.house.gov.

Additionally, Congress is expected to take up several bills, including legislation that would reform the nation's bankruptcy laws. Also this month, Rep. Richard Baker, R-La., is expected to release draft legislation calling for a new regulatory structure for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Upcoming Reports/Events:

April 6: MBA Weekly Application Survey
April 7 : Consumer Credit, Commerce Department
April 10-15: CampusMBA School of Mortgage Banking III, Oak Brook, Ill.
April 12: CampusMBA: Creating New Customers, Oak Brook, Ill.
April 12: Treasury Department Monthly Statement
April 13 : MBA Weekly Application Survey
April 13-14: CampusMBA: Detecting and Avoiding Mortgage Fraud, Birmingham, Ala.
April 18 : NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index
April 19-20: MBA National Policy Conference, Washington, D.C.
April 19: New Residential Construction, Commerce Department
April 19: Producer Price Index, Labor Department
April 20: MBA Weekly Application Survey
April 20: Consumer Price Index, Labor Department
April 20: Beige Book, Federal Reserve
April 25: Existing Home Sales, National Association of Realtors
April 26: New Residential Sales, Commerce Department/HUD
April 26: Consumer Confidence, The Conference Board
April 27: MBA Weekly Application Survey
April 28: Gross Domestic Product, Labor Department
April 28: Housing Vacancies and Homeownership, Commerce Department
May 1-4: MBA National Secondary Market Conference & Expo, San Francisco
May 4-6: Commercial Asset Administration & Technology Conference, Chicago
May 10: Campus MBA: Creating New Customers, Chicago
May 10-11: CampusMBA Default Best Practices Workshop, Chicago
May 11-12: CampusMBA Real Estate Appraisal for Mortgage Lenders, Dallas
May 15-18: MBA Legal Issues & Regulatory Compliance Conference, Phoenix
May 15-20: CampusMBA School of Mortgage Banking Course I, Philadelphia
May 17-18: CampusMBA: The Next Step in Combating Mortgage Fraud, Atlanta
June 2-3: FHA/VA/USDA Housing Finance Conference, Washington, D.C.
June 5-8: MBA Presidents Conference, Palm Beach, Fla.
June 8-10: MBA Subprime Lending & Alternative Products Conference, Washington, D.C.
June 12-17: CampusMBA School of Mortgage Banking Course II, Denver
June 15-17: CampusMBA eMortgage Workshop, San Francisco
July 10-15: CampusMBA Commercial School of Mortgage Banking, San Diego
July 17: CampusMBA: Essentials on Employment Law Compliance, San Francisco
July 17-22: Campus MBA School of Mortgage Banking Course I, Washington, D.C.
Aug. 14-19: CampusMBA School of Mortgage Banking Course III, Chicago
Aug. 24-25: CampusMBA: Detecting and Avoiding Mortgage Fraud, San Francisco
Sept. 11-13: MBA Document Custody Conference, Miami Beach, Fla.
Sept. 18-23: Campus MBA School of Mortgage Banking Course II, San Diego
Sept. 19-20: MBA Quality Assurance Conference, Chicago
Sept. 20-21: CampusMBA: Handling Fraud Files, San Diego
Oct. 23-26: MBA Annual Convention & Expo, Orlando
Nov. 10-11: MBA Residential Underwriting Conference, Coronado, Calif.
2006
Feb. 5-8
: MBA Commercial Real Estate Finance/Multifamily Housing Convention & Expo, Orlando

Information about MBA Events can be found at the MBA Web site, www.mortgagebankers.org; and at the CampusMBA Web site, www.campusmba.org.
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Publisher: Cheryl Crispen, Senior Vice President - Communications and Marketing
Editor: Mike Sorohan 202/557-2855 MSorohan@mortgagebankers.org
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