Housing Market Coming off “The Patch.” What’s That? And What’s Next?

Housing Market Coming off “The Patch.” What’s That? And What’s Next?

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) regarding the expiration of the so-called GSE Patch. The provision is scheduled to expire no later than January 10, 2021. As background, the Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection and Wall Street Reform Act amended the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) to establish, among other things, ability-to-repay (ATR) requirements in connection with the origination of most residential mortgage loans. TILA identifies the factors a creditor must consider in making a reasonable and good faith assessment of that ability including the consumer's credit history, current and expected income, current obligations, debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, employment status, and other financial resources. A lender, however, may not