BankThink

Are Standards for High-Risk Mortgage Appraisals a Moot Point?

Regulatory agencies have jointly proposed new standards, required by Dodd-Frank, for mortgage appraisals. But many of the standards “have largely already been adopted by the industry, observers said, due to the fallout from the housing crisis,” write American Banker’s Joe Adler and Kate Berry.

The standards specific to high-risk mortgages hinge on another required Dodd-Frank rule-making: the definition of a “qualified mortgage.”

"What this is dealing with is a non-issue today because there won't be any higher risk mortgages as defined by Dodd-Frank," said Edward Pinto, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute "They've already eliminated this particular piece of the market because they basically outlawed these types of loans under the definition of a qualified mortgage. The reason for that is the ramifications of originating a non-qualified mortgage are so egregious that no one is ever going to do it."

For the full piece see "Bank Regulators Seek to Revamp Home Appraisal Process" (may require subscription).

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Law and regulation
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