Change the American Philosophy on Consumerism and the Lending Industry

The mortgage crisis of 2007 marked catastrophe for millions of homeowners who suffered from foreclosure and short sales. Most of the problems involving the foreclosing of families’ homes could boil down to risky borrowing and lending. Lenders were pushed to ensure families would be eligible for a loan, when in previous years the same families would have been deemed too high-risk to obtain any kind of loan. With the increase in high-risk families obtaining loans, there was a huge increase in home buyers and subsequently a rapid increase in home prices. As a result, prices peaked and then began falling just as fast as they rose. Soon after families began to default on their mortgages forcing them either into foreclosure or short sales. Who was to blame for the risky lending and borrowing that caused the mortgage meltdown? Many might blame the company Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but in reality the entire system of buying and selling and free market failed home owners and the housing economy.

An alternative would be for lenders to add a true customer service department which is not based on pay or get out, but is counseling based to keep Americans in the American Dream of home ownership. This would not only keep their customers for future business with new home loans, but would be noticed by neighbors and the community who are appreciative their home values are not decreasing. The lenders would counsel them through the sale by assisting them with getting the most they can for their home. By getting local community organizations involved to help with home repairs and curb appeal. Once the home is market ready and a dollar amount has been reached for these repairs the home owner will have to volunteer time and/or resources to assist another person going through the same situation. This would not only help the homeowner but will keep homes in the area selling at a fair market value and not bring down the values in their neighborhood. The assistance provided by the lenders and assistance from the community will help build their self confidence and make them feel like they are not alone.

Mortgage law is as clear, consistent, and enforceable in the United States as in any place in the world, and far more so than in many countries. Why is this a vital element of an efficient real estate finance system?

The recent mortgage crisis in the US was unprecedented. It led to a massive clampdown of financial institutions, occasioning one of the worst financial melt-downs the US has ever faced (Jaffe, 2008). Quite naturally, it would be necessary to examine the cause of the crisis in order to draft prophylactic measures that would prevent the same financial disaster in the future. This paper will discuss the events that led to the mortgage crisis.

The financial crisis emerged because of an excessive deregulation of business operation of financial institutions and of abusing the securitization mechanism in the absence of clearly defined rules to regulate this area in the American mortgage market (Krstić, Jemović, & Radojičić, 2013). Deregulation gives larger banks the opportunity to loosen underwriting lender guidelines and generate increase opportunity for homeownership (Kroszner & Strahan, 2013). After deregulation, banks utilized many versions of mortgage loans. Mortgage loans such as subprime and Alternative-A paper loans became available for borrowers challenged to find mortgage lenders before deregulation (Elbarouki, 2016; Palmer, 2015). The housing market has been severely affected by fluctuating interest rates and the requirement of large down payment (Follain, & Giertz, 2013). The subprime lending crisis has taken a toll on the nation’s economy since 2007. Individuals who lacked sufficient credit ratings or down payments resorted to subprime mortgages to finance their homes Defaults on subprime and other mortgages precipitated the foreclosure crisis, which contributed to the recent recession and national financial crisis (Odetunde, 2015). Subprime mortgages were appropriate for borrowers with substandard credit and Alternate-A paper loans were

For the last several years, the one issue that has been bringing the United States into a state of trouble that it has not been seen since the great depression has been the monstrous Foreclosure problem. Thousands of people have lost their houses. Thousands of people have faced the dangers of debt and chaos. Thousands of people lives have been ruined because of the mistakes that Americans have done in this nation. In order to solve the problem, one must take a look at how it started and how this depression began. Around eight-nine years ago, the market in housing caused many people to chase after it. This caused a mistake of creating a domino affect that has hurt banks from lending out the high amount of money to people and finding out

Prior to the 2008 economic depression, obtaining a mortgage was relatively simple for home buyers. However, many of those mortgages had provisions that made it difficult for borrowers to repay their mortgages (“Dodd-Frank,” n.d.). As a result, many homeowners lost their homes when they were unable to repay their mortgages, which led to the real estate crisis. In 2010 the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act, also known as the Dodd-Frank Act, was enacted to reform how mortgage servicers vetted borrowers and to eliminate the use of predatory loan practices (Cheeseman, 2013, p. 485). Under the Dodd-Frank Act, creditors must establish borrower’s credit history, income and expected income, debt-to-income ratio, and other factors before

A brief history into its creation is when this all began when the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) was put into place July 21, 2010 by President Barrack Obama, in order to combat the Great Recession. This act requires the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to issue rules and systems that organize certain disclosures provided to consumers when applying for and closing a mortgage loan under the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) was brought into effect May 29, 1968 as a United States federal law, which was designed to promote informed use of consumer credit, by requiring disclosures about its terms and cost to standardize

The mortgage crisis we are experiencing in the United States today is already ranking as among the most serious economic events since the Great Depression of the 1930’s. Hardly a day goes by without a story in the newspaper or on the cable news stations reporting about the increase in the number of foreclosures across the United States. The effects of this crisis have spread across all financial markets, where in the end all of us are paying a price for this home mortgage crisis. When the housing market collapsed, so did the availability of credit which our economy depends upon. The home mortgage crisis, the financial crisis and overall economic crisis all need to address by the

The foreclosure crisis in America has impacted everyone- even those who don’t own homes. Our nation is currently struggling with high unemployment, a relatively illiquid credit market, and a deficit that raises serious concerns about the value of the US Dollar in the not too distant future. With interest rates already at historic lows and the government pursuing an unprecedented policy of quantitative monetary easing, options for government intervention are limited. While there is no simple solution to this problem, I think that we must look at the reasons the housing market went into crisis, and based on that develop a regulatory system that will allow us to avoid another situation like this in the future. If Americans believe

In order to fix the foreclosure crisis, the supply of homes on the market will need to be sold. My plan creates a team approach to achieving this goal. The team would consist of a realtor, an appraiser, a mortgage broker, and a homeowner. The realtor will complete a market analysis for the homeowner, and the appraiser will do an appraisal for the mortgage company. The mortgage broker will assess the homeowner’s financial situation to determine what they can now afford. The realtor will help the homeowners find a new home at a price they can afford. The mortgage broker will set up a new mortgage with new strict guidelines designed to help the homeowner succeed. The homeowner

As the economy drops and foreclosures are on the rise, millions of Americans who were financially stable several years ago are asking the same question, “How could this happen to me?” The crisis has occupied the minds of politicians, who are trying desperately to solve this problem, but the tragedy continues as more and more Americans are foreclosed on with no alternatives. The foreclosure crisis will not be solved by simply lowering interest rates, firing loan brokers, or other short-term, ineffective solutions. The long term solution to the housing crisis has nothing to do with housing. The government has lost its way and needs to redirect the way the whole economy is run.

Though it may not immediately impact the economy for the better, the far reaching consequences will be much greater than simply writing a new homeowner a check for $8,000 that they may or may not have earned. This financial education will focus on a far-ranging plethora of topics, but in regards to buying a house specifically, there will be three main pillars: the importance of a savings account for emergencies, the importance of living by a budget, and a more expansive area of loan and interest education.

Within the constructs of a mortgage lending plan, whether traditional or modified, there will be a clause that requires every consumer seeking a loan to pass a “Mortgage Loan and Foreclosure” course in order to receive a Consumer Intelligence Certification (C.I. CERT). The federal government will require, through oversight of the CFPA, that every bank includes this C.I. CERT within the lending process.

The institutions that stated regulatory burden as a major reason not to continue with consumer lending was the direct result of Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that has affected TIL requirements. They stated in order to comply, they will have to hire outside personnel or revamp their current training program dealing with consumer lending. If costs were not considered (will be discussed later), the lack of expertise and appropriate training for all administrative staff and lending officers would require a significant time investment and result in production loss in other critical lending areas (e.g. agricultural products). Thus, some institutions believe the man-hour investment needed by institutions to comply was burdensome and not cost effective with production losses to core borrowing activities.