New York’s Department of Financial Services has issued an emergency regulation requiring state-regulated financial institutions to offer consumers relief on mortgage payments and certain fees if they demonstrate financial hardship resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.
The emergency regulation, issued late Tuesday, requires financial institutions to give mortgage borrowers forbearance of at least 90 days if they apply for assistance due to job loss or other issues brought on by the economic fallout from the pandemic. It also requires those financial institutions to waive ATM fees and late payment fees on credit cards for the same reason.
The order Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo
The Biden administration once again extended the pause on student loan payments enacted to help borrowers during the COVID-19 pandemic, this time through the end of August.
The two states' combined plans amount to over $1.5 billion of the Homeowner Assistance Fund included within the American Rescue Plan Act , which was passed a year ago.
An uptick in pandemic-related payment suspensions reflecting new or restarted plan activity previously occurred as the omicron variant spread, but activity has since subsided.
“Thanks to Governor Cuomo, DFS is further empowered to step up for New Yorkers during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Superintendent of Financial Services Linda A. Lacewell said in a statement. “This emergency regulation provides a measure of much needed financial relief to New York residents with New York State mortgages on homes in New York State."
According to a DFS official familiar with the matter, the regulation will be in place for at least 30 days, but can be renewed if the governor extends the executive order.
The emergency regulation only applies to banks and credit unions already regulated by the agency. The largest state-chartered banks in New York are the $311.8 billion-asset Bank of New York Mellon, the $229 billion-asset Goldman Sachs Bank USA, the $119.4 billion-asset M&T Bank., $53.6 billion-asset New York Community Bancorp and the $50.6 billion-asset Signature Bank.
Cuomo has
As of Tuesday evening, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the U.S. had over 44,000 cases of coronavirus, including over 544 deaths. On Monday, New York confirmed that it had
