WASHINGTON–The House has passed the credit union-backed Mortgage Choice Act (HR 1153). The Mortgage Choice Act would provide relief to mortgage lenders by excluding certain charges from the points and fees calculation.
“The Mortgage Choice Act is a common-sense piece of legislation that would bring more consistency to the lending process, providing consumers with more access to mortgage credit and more choices in credit providers,” said CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle. “This has seen bipartisan support in this and the previous Congress, and CUNA will continue our work to move it forward in the process.”
Currently, qualified mortgages (QM) cannot have a points and fees value of more than 3% of the loan amount.
The bill would remove the following from the points and fees calculation:
- Title insurance purchased from a company affiliated with the lender (purchases from a non-affiliated title insurer currently do not count against points and fees)
- Escrowed homeowners insurance premiums
"NAFCU thanks Reps. [Bill] Huizenga and [Gregory] Meeks for introducing this legislation to reduce credit unions' regulatory burden and increase consumer choice in the mortgage market," said NAFCU CEO Dan Berger. "Consumers deserve affordable mortgage options and this bill, by fostering more competition, will help ensure that.
The legislation, which also passed in the prior Congress, passed this session by a 280-131 vote and now heads to the Senate.