Kate Berry has covered the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for American Banker since 2016. She joined the publication in 2006 covering mortgage lending and the financial crisis. Berry also has covered big banks including Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase and Wells Fargo. She has won five awards from the Society of American Business Writers and Editors, and has worked at several news organizations including the Orange County Register, the Los Angeles Business Journal and the Associated Press. Berry began her career as a clerk at the New York Times.
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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a proposal Friday that would require mortgage servicers to provide clear monthly statements, earlier disclosures for interest rate adjustments and options to help borrowers avoid foreclosures and costly force-placed insurance.
August 10 -
The agency is desperately trying to avoid a bailout this year by settling disputes with major banks for cash, selling severely delinquent loans and raising insurance premiums for new borrowers.
August 9 -
The Federal Housing Finance Agency warned Wednesday it would take action, if necessary, to stop cities from using eminent domain to seize underwater mortgages and attorneys say they are likely to prevail.
August 8 -
The Office of Mortgage Settlement Oversight said Monday that it has hired secondary consulting firms to assist BDO Consulting in overseeing compliance of the five largest mortgage servicers with the $25 billion national servicing settlement.
August 6 -
After initially dragging their feet, the largest mortgage servicers have modified nearly 70% of loans from delinquent borrowers that qualify, thanks largely to government incentives.
August 2 -
Fannie Mae on Wednesday opened a mortgage help center in Ontario, Calif., and now operates a dozen centers nationwide that provide free education and counseling servicers to struggling homeowners.
August 1 -
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has taken its first civil action, suing and effectively stopping business at a Los Angeles law firm that charged homeowners for loan modifications that allegedly never happened.
August 1 -
Commercial and multifamily lending jumped 25% in the second quarter from a year earlier and 39% from the first quarter driven by strong loan demand for retail and hotel properties, according to figures released Tuesday by the Mortgage Bankers Association.
July 31 -
It's not too soon for CEOs to think about how they'll fill the profit hole sure to come when interest rates rise and the number of borrowers eligible to refinance ultimately drops.
July 30 -
Chicago is the latest municipality to adopt a resolution to hold hearings on whether to use eminent domain to take over underwater mortgages from private investors.
July 27 -
New York Community Bancorp Inc. (NYB) on Wednesday posted a 10% jump in second-quarter profits driven by robust refinancing activity on multifamily loans and strong prepayment penalty income.
July 25 -
Black and Latino borrowers received government-backed loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration or guaranteed by the Department of Veterans Affairs significantly more often than white borrowers, raising concerns about redlining, a new study has found.
July 24 -
SunTrust, Huntington, First Horizon and TCF would suffer the biggest drops in Tier 1 common equity under proposed guidelines, unless they change their mix of assets.
July 24 -
Umpqua executives were scratching their heads Friday over the sudden drop in the company's stock price following what appeared to be a strong earnings report this week. TCF, PacWest and Associated also saw slides.
July 20 -
A proposal by San Bernardino County to use eminent domain to take control of underwater mortgages would hurt government-sponsored entities Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks. It would also hurt plans to reduce the government's role in housing.
July 19 -
Bank of America (BAC) swung to a profit in the second quarter largely by slashing expenses and releasing reserves, but the nation's second-largest bank remains hobbled by continued repurchase requests on soured loans.
July 18 -
The city says the bank's inaction has blighted neighborhoods, but U.S. Bank insists it is suing the wrong party.
July 17 -
The first surprise was learning that billionaire Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg even has a mortgage. The second was finding out that he pays an interest rate of just 1.05%.
July 17 -
Banks are worried that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is placing too much emphasis on the stressful years of the financial crisis in determining lenders' concentration of high-risk loans.
July 9 -
Three California local governments may use their eminent domain powers to seize mortgages and restructure them to help distressed borrowers stay in their homes — much to the dismay of investors who hold the mortgages.
July 6
