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House Enhances Oversight of Mortgage Industry
Plan Includes Pryce-Authored Mortgage Statement Disclosure Requirements
Washington, DC -- Tonight, the U.S. House of Representatives approved H.R. 3915, the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act. The bipartisan legislation responds to the spike in foreclosures by combating abusive lending practices and improving oversight of the mortgage industry.
“There is no larger consumer protection issue facing Ohio than the mortgage crisis,” said Congresswoman Deborah Pryce (OH-15), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises. “But while our economy may be recovering from the impact of both the housing slump and the credit crisis, it is imperative that Congress does not impede this recovery. In our necessary efforts to help the countless consumers and homeowners who have been hit hardest by the spiking foreclosure rates, we must not place the prospects of homeownership out of reach for families financially capable of managing it by choking off access to credit. This bill achieves this difficult balance.”
Pryce also highlighted provisions in the Act she authored to simplify and standardize mortgage statements as a means of helping borrowers make prudent financial decisions. “It is alarming that more than three in ten homeowners do not know what type of mortgage they own,” said Pryce. “The language I authored allows consumers to plan ahead by arming them with basic – but critically important – information like the date of an interest rate reset or where to call if they questions. For far too long, such fundamental and vital information has either been buried amid voluminous fine print, or absent from mortgage statements altogether. These disclosure requirements will help borrowers recognize true mortgage costs and avoid potentially deceptive lending practices.”
“Buyer beware is a prevalent concept in any free market economy,” Pryce added. “However, often buyers cannot beware when they are holding a mortgage they do not understand, and in which the critical terms of the loan are not made apparent.”
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