As Texas’ new commissioner of savings and mortgage lending, Doug Foster does not appear to have the same industry pressures as regulators elsewhere.
“We have not seen the level of consumer complaints” or the number of lenders leaving the business “that we thought we would,” Mr. Foster said in an interview last week, since the state’s economy appears to be doing better than most.
Several other states and the federal government are re-examining industry laws. But Mr. Foster said that mortgage licensing requirements in Texas are already among the strictest in the nation and that he plans to focus on enforcement, which has lagged in the past.
“The major focus for us will not be a change in philosophy,” he said. “We are getting the staff ready to act more quickly, so there will be a more immediate response. We hope to be as efficient as possible.”
Mr. Foster, 47, has more than 22 years of experience with the Department of Savings and Mortgage Lending and became the commissioner last week. He had been serving his second stint as the interim commissioner since yearend, when Danny Payne stepped down. Mr. Foster also had been the interim commissioner for four months before Mr. Payne’s appointment in 2004. Earlier Mr. Foster had been the deputy commissioner and director of examination.
The department oversees 27 state-chartered savings banks and about 23,000 licensed mortgage brokers and loan officers.
John Snider, the chairman of the Texas Finance Commission, which oversees the department, said that the commission had three finalists, but that Mr. Foster’s experience won him the job.
“We looked very closely at several applicants,” Mr. Snider said. “Doug already had the knowledge of the agency. He knows the industries being regulated, and he has a very calm approach. The others were close, in comparison, but with Doug we had a known entity.”
Mr. Foster said he plans to focus on responding better to complaints about mortgage brokers and loan officers.
“On the savings bank side, we are really pleased with the current condition of institutions and the industry as a whole,” he said.
