Good afternoon —
It was a pretty big shock on March 4 when the CFPB proposed delaying the implementation of the Final QM rule until October 1, 2022. After all, the Bureau had just issued its Final Rule in December after a long, hard-fought battle to get consensus.
The Bureau cited pandemic concerns for their about-face, saying that "At a time when so many consumers are struggling and at risk of losing ground, particularly Black and Hispanic consumers, we need to do all we can to help people stay in their homes and to ensure the availability of responsible, affordable mortgages."
But the CFPB didn't provide any actual data to back up the claim that delaying the QM rule would in fact help consumers — something that becomes obvious when you read through the letter sent by the Housing Policy Center today as part of the comment period.
The 9-page letter outlines point by point why the HPC opposes the delay, which can be summed up as follows: all the other ideas were already proposed, debated, weighed and found wanting; all the truly workable ideas are already incorporated in the Final Rule.
And really, when you can get everyone from mortgage industry trade groups, to civil rights groups, to consumer housing advocates, to D.C. policy makers to agree on anything, that deserves some respect. The reason all those parties came together is that they recognized that settling the QM question would allow the industry to innovate new products to better serve those very consumers the CFPB is concerned about.
Why, then, just as the industry is poised to make good on expanding opportunities for new homebuyers, is the CFPB choosing to knock the knees out from the whole effort? The July implementation date should stand unless the Bureau can make a compelling data-backed argument for opening up Pandora's box to re-litigate QM.
Until tomorrow —
Sarah Wheeler
HousingWire Editor in Chief
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