2021 Colorado Privacy Act Passes and Heads to Governor for Signature

Colorado appears set to become the third state to adopt comprehensive privacy legislation following passage of the Colorado Privacy Act by the Colorado Legislature on June 8, 2021. The Colorado Privacy Act mimics its predecessors, the California Consumer Privacy Act and the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act, in a number of ways, including by providing consumers the rights to access, obtain a portable copy of, correct, and delete their personal data.

Student loan refinancing rates drop again to record low: How to find your rate

College debt is a burden for young adults who are working toward financial milestones, like saving up for a home down payment or investing in retirement. Fortunately, it's possible for college graduates to pay off student loans faster and save money on interest so they can achieve these personal finance goals.

U.S. home buying and refinancing boom boosted mortgage lending in 2020

June 17 (Reuters) - Mortgage lending surged last year after the pandemic fueled a housing boom driven by low interest rates and the shift to work from home, according to information released Thursday by the Federal Reserve. The annual release of data under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act also showed the share of home purchase loans given to Black borrowers rose last year and the share made to Hispanic and Asian borrowers declined slightly.

FDIC: Banks Continued Residential Mortgage Lending amid Economic Uncertainty

Amid ongoing pandemic-related economic uncertainties, the nation’s banks maintained the flow of credit by continuing to make residential mortgage loans, according to an article published in the FDIC Quarterly. The article noted that “community banks in particular have maintained strength in residential lending,” and that community banks’ share of all residential real estate loans has remained consistent at around 26% for more than a decade.

Hawaii Adopts Comprehensive Payday Lending Reform

Hawaii just enacted significant legislation to reform the state’s small-dollar loan market and prohibit balloon-payment payday loans. House Bill 1192 garnered unanimous support in the State Legislature, and Gov. David Ige (D) signed it into law June 16.

Car loans and the impact on insurance rates: what you need to know

Nearly every state has minimum requirements for auto insurance coverage. But the decision to buy other types of coverage — like collision and comprehensive — may be left up to you. However, if you have a car loan, your lender will very likely require you to carry both collision and comprehensive coverage on your policy.

Nevada and New Mexico State Medical Debt Collections Laws to Take Effect July 1, 2021

State legislatures in New Mexico and Nevada enacted laws this session targeting medical debt collections. Both laws have been signed by the states’ Governors and take effect July 1, 2021.

Impact of COVID-19 to Household Incomes Reaches Pandemic Low with Recent Graduates Demonstrating the Most Optimism

The percentage of U.S. consumers who said their household income continues to be negatively impacted by COVID-19 dropped to 32% at the beginning of June. This is down from 38% three months ago and is the lowest level since TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) began tracking this metric via its Consumer Pulse study in March 2020.

FFIEC Announces Availability of 2020 Data on Mortgage Lending

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) today announced the availability of data on 2020 mortgage lending transactions at 4,475 U.S. financial institutions reported under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). Covered institutions include banks, savings associations, credit unions, and mortgage companies.

CFPB Issues Mortgage Servicing FAQs

The CFPB recently released new FAQs regarding the Mortgage Servicing Rule and Regulation X and Regulation Z relating to escrow account guidance and analysis. Putting it Into Practice:  Some key takeaways include the following:

CFPB New Rule Prevents Predatory Lending To Military Service Members

A new interpretive rule issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) stipulates its authority to examine supervised financial institutions for risk to active-duty service members and their dependents from conduct that violates the Military Lending Act. 

Delinquencies on credit accounts continue to be low despite the pandemic

This post is the first in a series documenting trends in consumer credit outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Last August, we published a report on early trends in consumer credit outcomes through June 2020, which found largely positive trends in those outcomes despite widespread economic hardship due to the pandemic. In this series we will examine how the trends in consumer credit outcomes have evolved since June 2020.

Department of Education Announces Approval of New Categories of Borrower Defense Claims Totaling $500 Million in Loan Relief to 18,000 Borrowers

The U.S. Department of Education (Department) announced today the approval of 18,000 borrower defense to repayment (borrower defense) claims for individuals who attended ITT Technical Institute (ITT). These borrowers will receive 100 percent loan discharges, resulting in approximately $500 million in relief. This brings total loan cancellation under borrower defense by the Biden-Harris Administration to $1.5 billion for approximately 90,000 borrowers.

11th Circuit Court of Appeals Withholds Issuance of Mandate in Hunstein

On Monday, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order withholding the issuance of the mandate as to the April 21, 2021, panel decision in Hunstein v. Preferred Collection & Mgmt. Servs.

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Fintech Lending Is On The Rise, But Default Rates Aren’t Pretty

Imagine a sub-prime consumer who wants to pay off their credit card bills, because their interest rates hover somewhere between 15% and 21%. They want to take out a personal loan with better repayment plans to pay off their existing debt. Are people more likely to go to a bank or credit union, when they’re researching their options, or are they going to be more intrigued by the fintech offering loans entirely online? The latter looks like a nicer option. And it’s what’s been happening. Fintechs have been snatching up market shares left and right from traditional banks and credit unions. Fintechs claimed 49.4% of the unsecured personal loan market in March 2019, up from 22.4% four years before, according to Experian.

CFPB Marks World Elder Abuse Awareness Day With New Resources

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is marking June 15’s World Elder Abuse Awareness Day with the addition of new educational resources which are designed to combat harmful practices aimed at older Americans. This is according to a statement released by the Bureau on Tuesday.

Lina Khan Sworn in as Chair of the FTC

Lina Khan was sworn in today as Chair of the Federal Trade Commission. President Biden named Khan, a Democrat, to a term on the Commission that expires September 25, 2024, and designated her as Chair. Khan was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on June 15, 2021.

FTC Files Amended Complaint Seeking Civil Penalties Against Small Business Financing Providers

In a newly filed amended complaint, the Federal Trade Commission alleges that merchant cash advance provider RCG Advances and other defendants made multiple unauthorized withdrawals from small businesses’ banks, sometimes taking thousands of dollars more than the agreed repayment amount.

LAWMAKERS LOOKING TO INCREASE PENALTIES FOR ROBOCALLS THAT VIOLATE TCPA

Federal lawmakers are continuing to push for an end to robocalls by increasing penalties for automated, illegal calls through the Deter Obnoxious, Nefarious, and Outrageous Telephone (DO NOT) Call Act. U.S. Majority Leader Charles Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand joined others in the Senate calling for an end to scam calls that often target and victimize the elderly. “This vital piece of legislation will give the FCC the tools needed to combat scammers who grossly violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and, all too often, target and defraud senior Americans,” said Gillibrand. “I am a fierce advocate of the DO NOT Call Act, and will do everything I can to put sensible protections in place and put an end to unsolicited robocalls.”

SENATORS PROPOSE LOAN FORGIVENESS FOR SMALL FARMERS

The Agriculture Department would offer small farmers one-time loan forgiveness of up to $250,000 under legislation announced by five Democratic senators on Thursday. Lead sponsor Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said she would try to include debt relief in the upcoming infrastructure bill “to make certain our farmers are not left behind.”

Mortgage market slows as interest rates rise on shortened holiday week, MBA survey says

The mortgage market slowed down slightly over Memorial Day week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's latest weekly mortgage applications survey. The survey measured mortgage applications for the week ending June 4, 2021, and showed a decrease of 3.1% on a seasonally adjusted annual basis. That’s because, while mortgage rates ended up dipping slightly, that rate change didn't occur until the end of the week. Throughout the rest of last week, mortgage rates were up, offering homeowners less incentive to refinance their home loan. 

HMDA Threshold Report Blog

The CFPB released a report today analyzing differences in lending patterns for lenders below and above the 100-loan closed-end threshold set by the 2020 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act rule. While this analysis is necessarily limited and preliminary, the report does find some differences in lending patterns for lenders above and below the threshold. Lenders below the 100-loan threshold appear to make more investment purpose loans to higher income borrowers and non-natural person borrowers (i.e., trusts, partnerships, and corporations), as well as more loans secured by properties in low-to-moderate income census tracts.

Facing eviction? What to do before the CDC eviction moratorium expires

With the CDC eviction moratorium set to expire on June 30, 2021, you may be asking yourself “I gave my landlord the CDC Eviction Protection Declaration. What do I need to do now?”

CFPB Issues FAQs on Electronic Fund Transfers

On June 4, the CFPB issued eight updated FAQs to the unauthorized transfer and error resolution provisions under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) and Regulation E. Highlights from the FAQs include the following:

Spring 2021 Rulemaking Agenda

We have published our Spring 2021 Agenda as part of the Spring 2021 Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions , which is coordinated by the Office of Management and Budget under Executive Order 12866. The agenda lists the regulatory matters that, to further our consumer protection mission and mandate, we are currently pursuing under interim leadership pending the appointment and confirmation of a permanent Director. The permanent Director’s changes to our regulatory agenda will be reflected in the Fall 2021 Unified Agenda. We have also taken actions, and plan further actions, to focus our resources on addressing the adverse impacts to consumers in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis, and are taking concrete steps toward furthering our commitment to promoting racial and economic equity.

Here’s how to decide what debt you should tackle first

Not all debt is the same. So how should you decide which to repay first? Amid the coronavirus pandemic last year and ensuing economic recession, debt grew for many Americans. In 2020, consumer debt ballooned to a new high of $14.88 trillion, a 6% increase from the previous year, according to credit rating company Experian.

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