Law Letters
Read our views on the things that matter to you.
Monday, December 26, 2022 is a business day for rescission and CD delivery purposes.
Merry Christmas from everyone here at BairdLaw! This year, December 25, 2022 will fall on a Sunday. Many offices will observe the Christmas holiday on Monday, December 26, 2022. However, 12/26/22 is still a business day for rescission and CD delivery purposes....
Juneteenth Impact Update
Juneteenth Impact Update Yesterday, we sent a Law Letter regarding the impact of the new Federal Holiday, Juneteenth National Independence Day. This new Federal holiday is June 19 and will be celebrated in 2021, which will have an impact on Closing Disclosure review...
Juneteenth Impact on TRID and Rescission
Today, President Biden signed the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, S. 475, which amends 5 U.S.C. 6103(a) to add “Juneteenth National Independence Day, June 19”. This creates a new federal holiday: Juneteenth National Independence Day. This bill is effective...
FHFA Announces Delay of Adverse Market Refinance Fee, with Exemptions
On August 25, 2020, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), which regulates Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, announced the adverse market refinance fee implementation would be delayed until December 1, 2020. Additionally, the FHFA announced that refinances with loan...
Fannie Mae Announces “Adverse Market Refinance Fee”
Fannie Mae, in Lender Letter (LL-2020-12), has announced that an "Adverse Market Refinance Fee" will be imposed on certain loans purchased on or after September 1, 2020. The new fee comes as a loan-level price adjustment of 50 basis points (0.500%) applicable to all...
CLARIFICATION: Home Improvement and Home Equity Loan Closing Location Requirement Still Applies
Yesterday, we sent a law letter announcing Governor Abbott's suspension of the in-person requirement for traditional notarizations. We have received a number of inquiries as to whether this order suspends the requirement that home improvement loans or home equity...
Governor Abbott Temporarily Suspends In-Person Requirement for Traditional Notarization
On April 27, 2020, Governor Abbott temporarily suspended the requirement that a notary be physically present for a notarization under Texas Civil Practices and Remedies Code §121.006(c)(1). Traditional in-person notarizations and online notarizations are still...
Texas Joint Financial Regulatory Agencies Issue Coronavirus Home Equity Lending Guidance
The Texas Joint Financial Regulatory Agencies published guidance this morning on home equity lending during the Coronavirus pandemic. A link to the publication can be found here. Here is a summary of the guidance: One year seasoning requirement - An existing home...
Discontinuance of LIBOR Index
Regulators have signaled that financial institutions should transition away from using the London Interbank Offering Rate (“LIBOR”) lending benchmark as it will be phased out by the end of 2021. If your office offers adjustable rate mortgages and uses the LIBOR index,...
2019 Legislative Update
The 2019 Texas Legislative Session was relatively quiet for Residential Mortgage Lending, in stark contrast to the 2017 Legislative Session where Texas lenders saw substantial changes to Home Equity Lending, Powers of Attorney, Remote Notarization and other...