GREATER HOUSTON ASSOCIATION
OF MORTGAGE PROFESSIONALS
     Letter from the President
       

              Letter from the President

                03/24/2014           
 
Greetings Members and Future members,

I hope that 2014 is off to a great start for all of you!!  We are in the thralls of QM and I hope that your business models have not been greatly affected by the changes.  At GHAMP, we are committed to keeping you all updated on any and all impactful mortgage industry changes and are advocates for equal treatment for all mortgage channels whether TPO (broker/banker) or depository banks.

With this being said, I am pleased to let you know that we had a very successful Lobby Day in Washington, D.C. on March 4th.  The National Association of Mortgage Professionals (NAMB) Legislative Conference was held on March 2nd-4th with speakers from the CFPB, National Association of Realtors, Mortgage Bankers Association and the National Association of Home Builders.  Although the conference was lightly attended due to a winter storm that brought 3 to 4 inches of snow on Monday and cancelled many flights to the Northeast, the content was informative and I would like to acknowledge NAMB for adhering to the agenda and schedule despite this unforeseen circumstance.

Your Houston Lobby Team had a productive day on Capitol Hill with six appointments scheduled and attended.  We met with aides from Congressman Al Green, John Culberson, Kevin Brady, Pete Olson, Ted Poe and Michael McCaul’s offices.  Our talking points were very specific this year and were group around three main points. 

  1. The first was regarding the double-counting of the broker compensation per the 3% rule for points and fees with QM.  Our (NAMB) position is that all fees that are included in the APR are already factored into the cost of the financing and to count these payments twice is confusing to the consumer. We were asking that Congress make a technical correction to the definition of “mortgage originator” to make clear that payments included in the interest rate are not also included in the 3% points and fees cap.
  2. The second topic was regarding the recent decline in FHA loan limits in certain parts of the country and how this is detrimental to those specific housing markets and the overall economic recovery.  The position of NAMB was to recommend that the FHA loan limits not decline if housing values decline.  Even though this has been not an issue in Texas, our position supports any future changes in this law. 
  3. The third talking point was in regards to flood insurance and spiking premiums on certain National Flood Insurance Plan (NFIP) policies until the new rates are actuarially sound.  NAMB was lobbying to support HR 3370, the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2013 and we were asking our Congressman to support this bill that was currently up for vote in the House of Representatives.  The vote was actually scheduled for the afternoon of March 4th, the day we were on the Hill.

Since our return from DC, we were informed that HR 3370 passed in the House with 305 votes and Representative Gary Miller from California has introduced legislation to curb efforts by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to lower Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loan limits.  This bill is titled “The Stabilizing FHA Loan Limit Calculations Act”.

I was proud and honored to represent GHAMP this year in Washington, D.C. and look forward to continuing to support small business and the mortgage industry for years to come.  If you are not already a member of GHAMP, I would ask you to consider joining the association and help to continue to fight to support small business and equality in mortgage lending.

Serving you,

Wayne King
GHAMP President 2013 - 2014

   

 
 
 
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Contact email: wking@elgloans.com
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