Editor’s Note: The Mortgage Mix is RISMedia’s biweekly highlight reel of need-to-know mortgage-industry happenings. Watch for it every other Friday afternoon.
– Caliber Home Loans has been fined by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) for overcharging California borrowers. The DFPI found that in 2016, Caliber had overcharged borrowers per diem interest. They uncovered 4,912 affected loans between 2012 and 2019, which totaled $550,316. The mortgage company has agreed to a $2.3 million settlement over the charges, and refunded customers with 10% annual interest.
– TransUnion announced that a data breach occurred at the company in July, which affected more than 4.4 million customers’ personal information, as reported by National Mortgage News. The company confirmed that the breach included customers’ names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers, but claimed that “no credit information was accessed.”
– Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook has been accused by Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte of alleged mortgage fraud in a criminal referral letter he sent to Attorney General Pam Bondi. Pulte has alleged that Cook “falsified residence statuses” in order to get better mortgages when she listed two different homes as her primary residences in nearly simultaneous applications (one of which has since been put on the rental market). Following these allegations, Trump announced his firing of Cook, claiming that through the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 he has “for cause” to remove Cook. He stated in his letter firing Cook that the American people cannot “have such confidence in your integrity,” and called into question her “competence and trustworthiness as a financial regulator.” Cook has since filed a lawsuit against Trump that challenges his effort to remove her from the Fed’s Board of Governors, and according to CNBC, a judge has set a hearing on Cook’s request to block Trump from firing her for Friday morning.
– Rocket Companies’ acquisition of mortgage company Mr. Cooper has been approved by the FHFA. The $9.4 billion offer has been in the works since March. The FHFA has stipulated that the combined company should not exceed a 20% counterparty risk limit, as well as “other appropriate financial and operating safeguards should be imposed to protect the GSEs and the mortgage market.” A Rocket spokesperson said that the company is “pleased to have cleared FHFA’s review in our pending acquisition of Mr. Cooper, which we expect to close in the fourth quarter.”
– Chase Home Loans has announced that it is now offering a home equity line of credit (HELOC) product. With the HELOC, homeowners will now be able to borrow against up to 80% of their home equity from Chase, without changing their mortgage rates. “As home valuations reach historic highs, homeowners are looking for more options to tap into their home’s equity. We’re proud to offer customers the ability to secure a HELOC through Chase,” Erik Schmitt, digital channel executive at Chase, said in a release.
