Lending Law Changes to help Consumers?

by Pete Belcastro.
Effective November 3, 2015, new federal regulations take hold around the USA that is going to change the way mortgage loans processed. It’s an offshoot from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and is designed to combine current disclosure requirements into one clearer and more understandable format.
On a recent Real Estate Show, these new regulations put greater regulation, responsibility and liability onto mortgage lenders. Rick Harris, Principal Broker Coldwell Banker, Jim Palazzolo and Sandy Boughton, Mortgage Express and Cindy Fox, Ticor Title Escrow Officer shared the new rules with me and for the most part, I agree with it.
Many consumers got screwed by lenders before the Great Recession and these rules are intended to give consumers more information all through the process to prevent surprises at closing.
I have never experienced problems with my local lenders and escrow officers but obviously many others have. My fear is that delays in closing are going to ramp up on mortgage loans. Disclosure forms are suppose to be easy-to-use and I should be able aid comparison shopping for loans. It all sounds good.
In reality, however, it takes a team to make this work for you. A good broker who knows the rules and advises accordingly, an escrow officer who keeps the transaction going through the new rules and mortgage lenders who look out for their clients first and offer better products and prices. If that happens for you, then the CFPB rules are terrific for consumers. Let’s hope it works out as promised.
Watch or listen to the full discussion on-demand of “The Real Estate Show.”