Safeguard Properties

FEMA Declared Disaster New York

Posted on by Safeguard

FEMA Alert
December, 19 2019

FEMA issued a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in New York affected by severe storms, straight-line winds and flooding that took place October 31 to November 1, 2019.

The following counties are eligible for assistance:

Public Assistance

  • Chautauqua
  • Chenango
  • Cortland
  • Erie
  • Essex
  • Fulton
  • Hamilton
  • Herkimer
  • Jefferson
  • Lewis
  • Madison
  • Montgomery
  • Oneida
  • Oswego
  • Otsego
  • Saratoga
  • Tioga
  • Warren

New York Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds and Flooding (DR-4472)

FEMA Declared Disaster New York: ZIP Code List


Additional Resources

FEMA’s web site

FEMA’s Disaster Declaration Process

Safeguard Properties Industry Alerts

HUD Moratorium on Foreclosure

VA’s Policy Regarding Natural Disasters

Freddie Mac Disaster Relief Policies

Fannie Mae’s Natural Disaster Relief Policies

OCC: Central District Comptroller Selected

Posted on by Safeguard

Investor Update
January 6, 2020

Source: OCC

WASHINGTON—The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today announced Brian James as Deputy Comptroller for the Central District.

In this role, Mr. James will oversee 320 community banks and federal savings associations and manage more than 380 examiners and other professional personnel who ensure the financial institutions they supervise operate in a safe, sound, and fair manner. Mr. James assumes these duties in January 2020.

“Brian has demonstrated strong bank supervision skills and excellent personnel management talent,” said Senior Deputy Comptroller for Midsize and Community Bank Supervision Blake Paulson. “Brian will be an effective member of the agency’s executive leadership team and ensure the banks and thrifts in the Central District continue to receive world-class supervision that enables them to better serve their communities.”

Mr. James has served in a variety of key positions during his nearly 30 year career at the OCC, including National Bank Examiner responsible for supervision of community and large banks, Assistant Deputy Comptroller, and Associate Deputy Comptroller.

In 2013, Mr. James earned the agency’s Managerial Excellence Award, its highest award for managers. He joined the agency in 1990 after earning a bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting, and economics from the University of Nebraska – Kearney.

FHFA: Foreclosure Prevention Report – Third Quarter 2019

Posted on by Safeguard

Investor Update
January 9, 2020

Source: FHFA

Washington, D.C. – The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today released its third quarter 2019 Foreclosure Prevention and Refinance Report, which shows that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises) completed 26,475 foreclosure prevention actions in the third quarter of 2019, bringing the total number of foreclosure prevention actions to 4,381,036 since September 2008.

The report also shows that 37 percent of loan modifications completed in the third quarter reduced borrowers’ monthly payments by more than 20 percent.  The Enterprises’ serious delinquency rate dropped to 0.65 percent at the end of the third quarter.  This compares with 3.39 percent for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans, 1.87 percent for Veterans Affairs (VA) loans and 1.81 percent for all loans (industry average).  The report also shows that the Enterprises completed 539,485 refinances in the third quarter.

FHFA’s quarterly report also includes data on the Enterprises’ mortgage performance, delinquency, home forfeiture actions and refinances by state.  FHFA publishes the report data in an online, interactive Borrower Assistance Map on FHFA.gov.

Link to Report​

Contacts:
Media:  Stefanie Johnson (202) 649-3030 / Raffi Williams (202) 649-3544

January Storms Sweep Across South

Posted on by Safeguard

Disaster Alert
January 12, 2020

Source: The Weather Channel

Additional Resources:

Arkansas Governor Emergency Proclamation (1/11/20)

Associated County ZIP Code List (Statewide)

Mississippi Governor Emergency Proclamation (1/10/20)

Associated County ZIP Code List (Statewide)

Approximate locations sustaining structural damage

Alabama
– Joppa (Cullman, Marshall counties, 35087)
– Carrollton (Pickens County, 35447)
*Concentrated damage in Settlement Community

Arkansas
– Midway (Baxter County, 72651)
– Prairie View (Logan County, 72863)
– Scranton (Logan County, 72863)

Louisiana
– Benton (Bossier Parish, 71006)
– Dubberly (Webster Parish, 71024)
– Haughton (Bossier Parish, 71037)
*Homes reportedly destroyed on Davis Road and James Lane
– Oil City (Caddo Parish, 71061)

Mississippi
– Batesville (Panola County, 38606)
– Cleveland (Bolivar County, 38732, 387833)
– Lewisburg (DeSoto County, 38654 check 38611)
– Olive Branch (DeSoto County, 38654)

Missouri
– Fair Play (Polk County, 65649)

Oklahoma
– Keys (Cherokee County, 74451)

Texas
– Center (Shelby County, 75935)
*Concentrated damage reported in Lakewood Subdivision)
– Nacogdoches (Nacogdoches County, 75961, 75962, 75963, 75964, 75965)

NOTE: This has not yet been declared a FEMA Major Disaster.

A two day outbreak of severe storms with damaging winds, a few tornadoes and flooding rain knocked trees onto homes, ripped away roofs and flattened buildings as it marched from Texas and Oklahoma to the East Coast, killing at least eight people along the way.

Winds knocked down power lines and toppled trees. Hundreds of thousands lost power during the peak of the storms and tens of thousands were still without power on Sunday morning long after the storms had passed through, according to poweroutage.us.

The governors of Mississippi and Arkansas both declared states of emergency to mobilize resources for clean up. Several roads and highways remained closed due to high water and debris in Oklahoma, Arkansas

At one point on Saturday, even Interstate 20 in Louisiana was closed in both directions because of storm damage near the city of Minden in Webster Parish, according to the State Police.

For full report, please click the source link above.

CFPB: Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law Members Announced

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
January 9, 2020

Source: CFPB

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today announced four members who will serve on the Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law.

The Taskforce on Federal Consumer Financial Law will examine the existing legal and regulatory environment facing consumers and financial services providers and report to Director Kraninger its recommendations for ways to improve and strengthen consumer financial laws and regulations.  The Taskforce will produce new research and legal analysis of consumer financial laws in the United States, focusing specifically on harmonizing, modernizing, and updating the federal consumer financial laws—and their implementing regulations—and identifying gaps in knowledge that should be addressed through research, ways to improve consumer understanding of markets and products, and potential conflicts or inconsistencies in existing regulations and guidance.

“The Taskforce will conduct a thorough examination of our current regulatory framework and report on how we can improve federal consumer financial laws to benefit and protect consumers,” said Director Kathleen L. Kraninger.  “I look forward to the work the Taskforce will undertake and reviewing their recommendations.”

The Taskforce members are:

  • Dr. J. Howard Beales, III, former Professor of Strategic Management and Public Policy at the George Washington University and former Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection at the Federal Trade Commission;
  • Dr. Thomas Durkin, Senior Economist (Retired) at the Federal Reserve Board;
  • L. Jean Noonan, Partner at Hudson Cook, former General Counsel at the Farm Credit Administration, and former Associate Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection’s Credit Practice at the Federal Trade Commission; and
  • Todd J. Zywicki, Professor of Law at George Mason University (GMU) Antonin Scalia Law School, Senior Fellow of the Cato Institute, and former Executive Director of the GMU Law and Economics Center.

The Bureau also announced the designation of Todd Zywicki to serve as the Chair of the Taskforce and the appointment of Matt Cameron to serve as Staff Director of the Taskforce.

California Reportedly Launching Its Own CFPB

Posted on by Safeguard

Industry Update
January 9, 2020

Source: HousingWire

California already has one of the most active state agencies in terms of regulating and (when necessary) punishing the financial services industry: the California Department of Business Oversight.

But the state could soon have a financial regulator that rivals the New York Department of Financial Services in terms of clout, reach, and scope.

On Friday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom will reportedly unveil a plan for the state to enact its own version of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, overhauling and increasing the power of the state’s Department of Business Oversight.

According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, the proposal to create a state-level CFPB will come in Newsom’s 2020-2021 budget, which Newsom is scheduled to reveal Friday.

From the Times report:

Gov. Gavin Newsom will unveil a California Consumer Financial Protection Law as part of his proposed 2020-21 state budget, to be introduced Friday.

“As the Trump administration undermines and weakens the rules that protect consumers from predatory businesses, California is filling the void and stepping up to protect families and consumers,” he told me via email.

According to materials shared with me by the governor’s office, the proposed California Consumer Financial Protection Law would overhaul the existing Department of Business Oversight and rename it the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, or DFPI.

For full article, please click the source link above.

OCC: Annual Report 2019

Posted on by Safeguard

Investor Update
January 7, 2020

Source: OCC

Summary

The OCC Annual Report provides Congress with an overview of the condition of the federal banking system. The annual report discusses the OCC’s strategic priorities and details agency regulatory and policy initiatives. Additionally, the report discusses the agency’s financial management and condition, including its audited financial statements.

HUD: 2019 Year in Review

Posted on by Safeguard

Investor Update
January 2, 2020

Source: HUD

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) today released its 2019 Year in Review outlining the major accomplishments of the agency under Secretary Ben Carson.

“The Trump Administration continues to deliver on its promise to create greater economic opportunity for low-income families and revitalize underserved communities,” said, Secretary Carson. “HUD is committed to doing its part to help families get on the path to self-sufficiency and I look forward to working with President Trump to continue building on these successes in the new year.”

HUD’s achievements in 2019 include:

Advancing Economic Opportunity

•  Served over 990,000 single-family homebuyers through HUD’s Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured mortgage programs.

•  Oversaw the production or preservation of over 2.6 million insured and assisted multifamily rental units and provided over $4.3 billion in insurance for hospitals and residential care facilities.

•  Continuing to Implement the Expansion of the Moving to Work Demonstration Program from 39 to 139 agencies.

•  Distributed the one-millionth book to low-income children through the Book Rich Environments Initiative.

•  Nearly doubled the number of EnVision Centers across the nation.

Protecting Taxpayers

•  Achieved a 4.84 percent FHA Capital Reserve Ratio, the strongest ratio since 2007.

•  Began development work on a state-of-the-art technology infrastructure for FHA insurance programs, which will replace some technology that is more than 30 years old.

•  Saved $2.7 million by lowering agency costs for shared services.

•  Began implementing a new oversight process for Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Reducing Regulatory Barriers

•  Removed over 600 pieces of outdated or unnecessary subregulatory guidance documents from external websites.

•  Signed a landmark agreement with the Department of Justice on the appropriate use of the False Claims Act with FHA Single Family lenders.

•  Collaborated across the Executive Branch to establish the White House Council on Eliminating Regulatory Barriers to Affordable Housing, covering eight federal agencies, led by Secretary Ben Carson.

•  Developed a portal enabling Tribally Designated Housing Entities (TDHEs) to submit Tribal HUD-VASH data electronically for the first time in HUD’s history, improving and streamlining this grant process.

Helping Disaster Victims Recover

•  Made more than $7.5 billion of funding available to 15 states, local governments, and territories.

•  Expanded the use of the Disaster Standalone Partial Claim to assist victims of disasters in all Presidentially declared Major Disaster Areas by helping homeowners stay current on their mortgage payments, which reduces the number of foreclosures and subsequent claims paid by the FHA.

Reducing Homelessness Among Extremely Vulnerable Populations

•  Launched the Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) Initiative to provide youth exiting foster programs who are at risk for homelessness with Housing Choice Vouchers. In the eight months since the start of the initiative, 166 youths have received vouchers.

•  Announced approximately 5,000 new HUD-VASH vouchers to help homeless veterans and their families find and sustain permanent housing.

•  Awarded more than $2.45 billion to help end homelessness.

Providing Safe & Fair Housing

•  Registered more than 1,500 properties to test HUD’s new inspection pilot program, the National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE) demonstration.

•  Expanded Safety and Security grants to include carbon monoxide detectors.

•  Provided $28 million to address lead-based paint hazards in public housing.

•  Negotiated the largest disability compliance settlement of its kind which put motion a plan to produce over 4,600 fully accessible homes for persons with disabilities in Los Angeles.

•  Reached a major agreement with the City of New York and the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) that requires supervision of a Federal Monitor and obligates New York City to provide $1.2 billion in new capital funding over the next five years.

•  Undertook a Secretary-initiated Fair Housing Act complaint against Facebook, to ensure housing-related ads on Facebook’s platforms comply with the law.

Spurring Reinvestment in Communities

•  Preserved and renovated over 17,000 public housing units in FY2019 through the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program and expanded the program to include housing for very-low income elderly persons.

•  Invested $3.4 billion in CDBG funds in our nation’s communities and insular areas, creating 19,933 jobs.

•  Announced funding for 1,200 affordable housing units on Indian reservations and in other Indian areas.

•  Implemented program incentives for lenders intending to build or refinance multifamily properties, hospitals, and residential care facilities located in Opportunity Zones.

•  Established new program incentives to facilitate purchases and rehabilitation of single-family primary residences located in Opportunity Zones.

Read more of HUD’s 2019 accomplishments here and learn more about many of the individuals and families who have been impacted by HUD’s programs and services at HUD.gov/humansofhud.

Damaging Earthquakes Hit Puerto Rico

Posted on by Safeguard

Updated 3/10/20: FEMA issued an update to a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico affected by earthquakes from December 28, 2019, to February 4, 2020.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (DR-4473 Amendment No. 5)

Updated 2/27/20: FEMA issued an update to a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico affected by earthquakes beginning December 28, 2019 and continuing. The action closes the incident period on February 4, 2020.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (DR-4473 Amendment No. 4)

Updated 2/14/20: FEMA issued an update to a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico affected by earthquakes beginning December 28, 2019 and continuing.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (DR-4473 Amendment No. 3)

Updated 2/5/20: FEMA issued an update to a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico affected by earthquakes beginning December 28, 2019 and continuing.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (DR-4473 Amendment No. 2)

Updated 1/22/20: FEMA issued an update to a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico affected by earthquakes beginning December 28, 2019 and continuing.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (DR-4473 Amendment No. 1)

Updated 1/16/20: FEMA issued a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico affected by earthquakes beginning December 28, 2019 and continuing.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (DR-4473)

Updated 1/11/20: NBC News published an article offering the latest updates on continued earthquake activity occurring in Puerto Rico.

NBC News (Quake-stunned Puerto Rico hit by another 5.9-magnitude shock)

Updated 1/7/20: FEMA issued an Emergency Declaration for areas in Puerto Rico (entire island) affected by earthquakes beginning on December 28, 2019 and continuing.

Puerto Rico Earthquakes (3426-EM-PR)

Associated Municipal ZIP Code List

NOTE: This has not yet been declared a FEMA Major Disaster.

Updated 1/7/20: The Weather Channel issued a report detailing continued earthquake activity that has has damaged homes in portions of southern Puerto Rico.

The Weather Channel (Deadly Magnitude 6.4 Earthquake in Puerto Rico Is Latest in Swarm of Temblors Shaking the Island)

Additional approximate areas sustaining home damage:

Puerto Rico

  • Ponce (00716, 00717, 00728, 00730, 00731, 00732, 00733, 00734)
  • Yauco (00698)


NOTE: This is not currently a FEMA Declared Disaster.

Disaster Alert
January 6, 2020

Source: CNN

Approximate areas sustaining home damage:

Puerto Rico

  • Guanica, Yauco (00647, 00653)
  • Guayanilla, Yauco (00601, 00624, 00656, 00698)


NOTE: This is not currently a FEMA Declared Disaster.

(CNN) — A damaging earthquake struck Puerto Rico early Monday, with plenty of aftershocks expected.

The magnitude 5.8 tremor happened at 5:32 a.m. ET, the US Geological Survey said.

It was centered about 8 miles south-southeast of Indios, Puerto Rico, at a depth of about 3.7 miles below ground.

No major injuries were reported, Puerto Rico Director of Emergency Management Carlos Acevedo said.

He said some homes were damaged in Guanica, and a home collapsed in Guayanilla.

Some victims of the earthquake posted photos of deep cracks in walls. There were also reports of rock slides along Route 2, Acevedo said.

No tsunami warning was issued after the quake. But geologists warn of more tremors to come.

For full report, please click source link above.

New York Foreclosure Protection Law Signed by Governor

Posted on by Safeguard

Legislation Update
December 23, 2019

Source: The New York State Senate (full bill text)

Additional Resource:

Kings County Politics (Cuomo Signs Bill Strengthening Court Protections For People Facing Foreclosures)

A5619 (ACTIVE) – SUMMARY

Provides that the defense, in a mortgage foreclosure action, of the plaintiff’s lack of standing is not waived because of the defendant’s failure to raise such defense in his or her responsive pleading.