Contact: Edmund D. Harllee; Williams Mullen (North Carolina & Virginia, USA)
On Wednesday, October 23, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the "Bureau") published interim final rules (and a request for public comment) in the Federal Register to amend further its Regulation Z (Truth in Lending) and Regulation X (Real Estate Settlement Procedures).
On February 14, 2013, the Bureau published final rules amending the servicing requirements of Regulations Z and X (see this publication of February 25, 2013) and on January 31, 2013, the Bureau published final rules amending the homeownership counseling requirements of these regulations (see this publication of February 11, 2013). These rules were issued in order to implement changes required by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Act").
On October 15, 2013, the Bureau issued its Bulletin 2013-12 (the "Bulletin") to address a range of servicing issues that have arisen since the publication of the final rules and the amendments referenced above. The interim final rules and the Bulletin clarify compliance requirements with respect to bankruptcy law and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ("FDCPA"). Currently, there is confusion over the proper way to communicate with delinquent borrowers, given the prohibition of certain communications with such borrowers under bankruptcy law and the FDCPA, and the requirement of communications with such borrowers mandated by the Act.
