Mortgages

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has moved ahead with an earlier proposal to postpone the full adoption of the qualified-mortgage ability-to-repay rule, citing a need to maximize borrowers' credit access.

The modifiable templates are a follow-up to a similar notification the organization created in 2019 for lender use.

However, conditions for commercial mortgages overall worsened slightly due to persistent concerns in the hotel and office sectors, a Moody’s Investors Service report found.

While government protections currently shield most borrowers and delay process timelines, a growing backlog is likely to hit some areas of the country worse than others.

Thanks to a series of government measures, the pandemic did not cause the massive wave of distressed debt flooding the market that many expected, but certain property types remain vulnerable.

Though the government-sponsored enterprises have some of the lowest forbearance rates in the market, they expect to contend with a significant population of borrowers who face steep financial setbacks after the pandemic ends.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau disputes a district court ruling that misconduct claims against the company were already covered by a previous settlement.

The persistently slow reduction in the number of borrowers at risk of default indicates that while loan performance overall is improving, a substantial pool of mortgages will need workouts when forbearance ends.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria said he wants to work with the consumer bureau on an “exit strategy” for borrowers approaching the end of their forbearance periods.

The mortgage real estate investment trust has been a first-mover regarding innovations in the private securitized market, and others tend to follow its lead.