Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), ranking member of the House Committee on Financial Services, introduced Monday a bill designed to bolster aid to homeowners facing foreclosure.
Waters said the Homeowner Mortgage Servicing Fairness Act of 2018 would protect homeowners against foreclosure and increase the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s (FHFA) oversight of mortgage servicers that conduct business with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The agencies own or guarantee nearly 60 percent of all mortgage loans.
Waters said the legislation bolsters FHFA oversight of servicers who conduct business with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac; requires documentation of servicer behavior and FHFA evaluation of the services provided to borrowers; and penalizes servicer failure to meet minimum standards established by the FHFA.
“Mortgage servicers play a critical role in determining whether homeowners experiencing financial hardships will be forced out of their homes,” Waters said. “However, despite the lessons learned during the foreclosure crisis, we continue to uncover evidence of bad behavior by our nation’s mortgage servicers. Borrowers can’t choose their servicer, so it’s especially important Congress provide strong protections to prevent servicers from taking advantage of borrowers and to protect borrowers from foreclosure. This bill will implement reforms to ensure servicers are giving borrowers every possible opportunity to avoid foreclosure.”
The bill is supported by the National Consumer Law Center and the National Fair Housing Alliance.