Fed’s New Compensation Rules: Ouch!

The Federal Reserve Board has amended Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act and Home Ownership Equity Protection Act, with new policies for how loan originators may be compensated.
Effective April 1, 2011, all loan originators will no longer be able to receive compensation based on the interest rate or other loan terms, but instead be compensated based on a percentage of the loan amount.
The final rules protect mortgage borrowers from unfair, abusive, or deceptive lending practices that can arise from loan originator compensation practices.
The final rules, which apply to closed-end loans secured by a borrower’s home, will:
·Prohibit payments to the loan originator that are based on the loan’s interest rate or other terms. Compensation that is based on a fixed percentage of the loan amount is permitted;
·Prohibit a mortgage broker or loan officer from receiving payments directly from a consumer while also receiving compensation from the creditor or another person;
·Prohibit a mortgage broker or loan officer from “steering” a consumer to a lender offering less favorable terms in order to increase the broker’s or loan officer’s compensation; and
·Provide a safe harbor to facilitate compliance with the anti-steering rule.
This policy eliminates yield spread premium as of April 2011, and will be a very significant change to the lending business. There will be a drastic reduction in mortgage broker profitability unless they increase their loan origination fees to cover the change.