Real world effects of Dodd Frank Act on lending over the last five years

In response to the approximately 8 million homes that fell into foreclosure during the financial crisis in 2008 through 2010, the Dodd Frank Act was made into law by Congress in 2010. With it Dodd Frank brought numerous rules that were meant to safeguard consumers – and the economy in general – against a variety of “predatory” lenders and unfair lending practices.

The 5-year anniversary of the enacting of this historic financial reform legislation was recently passed. As a result several of the biggest financial news outlets including CNBC marked the occasion by looking at the effects that the Dodd Frank Act has had on financial reform in its first 5 years of existence. CNBC Real Estate Reporter Diana Olick published an article looking at both the good and bad effects that Dodd Frank has had on the United States (and Florida) housing market.

Olick’s (and many other experts in the financial industry’s) conclusion? Dodd Frank has made it significantly tougher to get a mortgage or any other type of loan instrument, particularly if you do not have the financial means or history to prove your credit worthiness. In addition, the cost to lenders has risen significantly, and on several levels, due to the extra time and effort that must be put into the additional paperwork, background checks and other compliance stipulations required by the law.

According to a recent study by the Mortgage Bankers Association cited by Olick, lenders are taking longer to process loan applications, and are able to process only about 20% of the number of applications per month today as compared to 2005. Olick concluded, “The home loans being made today are arguably the most pristine in history. New default rates are at record lows. All that, however, comes at a cost to lenders, borrowers and the overall health of the housing market itself.”

To read Diane Olick’s entire article, please go to: http://www.cnbc.com/2015/07/16/how-dodd-frank-changed-housing-for-good-and-bad.html

A perfect example of every law meant to fix a situation has both good and unintended consequences. On the bright side, the rampant predatory lending issues from 10 years ago have been curbed to a significant degree, a clear sign that the law is having positive effects, as well.

The Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Defense Attorneys at Korte & Wortman, P.A. have the knowledge and information to help you to utilize the Dodd-Frank Act if you feel that you have been exploited by a predatory lender. If you are in West Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Clearwater or anywhere else in the state of Florida and in need of a law firm knowledgeable about the Dodd-Frank Act, then contact us at Korte & Wortman, P.A. Korte & Wortman, P.A. is a law firm specializing in all aspects of real estate law, including the Dodd-Frank Act.

In addition to using this blog as a helpful resource, please contact us directly if you have any questions or current legal issues that might related to predatory lending, foreclosure, bankruptcy or credit issues. Our main office is based in West Palm Beach, at 2041 Vista Parkway, Suite 102. We also have offices in Sunrise and Clearwater, Florida.

You can call us at (561) 544-7071, stop in to our office, email us at vdinapoli@kwlawfirm.com or come to our website at http://www.foreclosurefactor.com. Our firm represents clients throughout the state of Florida and across the eastern seaboard. We also have offices in Sunrise and Clearwater, Florida.

We look forward to helping you get the legal advice that you need in all predatory lending, foreclosure, bankruptcy and credit card situations.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau offers database of consumer complaints to the public for first time

As part of our Federal Government’s effort to step up protection of you, the consumer, in the wake of the financial crisis we endured in 2008 and 2009, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was created as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Act. The CFPB’s website was opened in July of 2011. For the first time in June of this year the website, www.consumerfinance.gov made consumer complaints public:

According to Assistant Director Scott Pluta in a blog he released on June 25^th, “Today, for the first time, we are making consumers’ complaint narratives – the heart and soul of the complaints we receive – public. These narratives are important because they tell the story of what happened in the consumers’ own words. Making these consumer narratives public, amplifies the voice of the consumer.”

The release of these individual complaint submissions has been made public through a new forum called the “Consumer Complaint Database”. For the last 3 years the website had been sharing data compiled from consumer complaints to the public, but not the individual complaints themselves. The CFPB Assistant Director stated that the agency had been working on publishing the individual narratives for several years as the majority of the 627,000 consumers submitting complaints (approximately 59%) had said they wanted their experiences to be shared with the public.

Assistant Director Pluta stated, “After four and a half years of hard work, I am proud that the Consumer Complaint Database is now a reality. It reflects the commitment of our amazing team of dedicated public servants to empower consumers to make better decisions for themselves and their families. And now that it’s in your hands, it will help the financial marketplace run more fairly for all Americans.”

Visit the Consumer Complaint Database to read about consumers’ experiences, and if you’re facing a problem with a financial service or product you can submit a complaint and add your voice to the database: http://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaintdatabase/

The Frank-Dodd Act in 2010 was enacted to help protect the rights of consumers. One part of Frank-Dodd created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2011. This agency is offering help to millions of consumers who need a voice for protection against predatory lenders and lending practices.  The foreclosure and bankruptcy defense attorneys at Korte & Wortman, P.A. in West Palm Beach have the knowledge and information to help you to utilize the Dodd-Frank Act if you feel that you have been exploited by a predatory lender.

If you are in West Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Clearwater or anywhere else in the state of Florida and in need of a law firm knowledgeable about the Dodd-Frank Act, then contact us at Korte & Wortman, P.A. Korte & Wortman, P.A. is a law firm specializing in all aspects of real estate law, includingth Dodd-Frank Act. In addition to using this blog as a helpful resource, please contact us directly if you have any questions or current legal issues in any type of real estate transaction. Our home office is based in West Palm Beach, at 2041 Vista Parkway, Suite 102. You can call us at (561) 544-7071, stop in to our office, email us at vdinapoli@kwlawfirm.com or come to our website at http://www.foreclosurefactor.com. Our firm represents clients throughout the state of Florida and across the eastern seaboard. We also have offices in Sunrise and Clearwater, Florida.

We look forward to helping you get the legal advice that you need in all real estate, foreclosure, bankruptcy and credit card situations.

Dodd-Frank Act: how it came into being, and how it can help you as a home owner in mortgage trouble

The crisis that almost felled our country’s banking system in late 2008 was the culmination of years of poor financial policies at many levels, both from business and government. Although much of the blame does fall on the banks and other institutions in the financial industry, the federal government itself also accepts blame for the severity of the recession that followed.

“Our broken financial regulatory system was a principal cause of that crisis. It was fragmented, antiquated, and allowed large parts of the financial system to operate with little or no oversight. And it allowed some irresponsible lenders to use hidden fees and fine print to take advantage of consumers,” according to White House’s own article on the subject called Wall Street Reform: The Dodd-Frank Act.

While running for President Barack Obama pledged that if he won the job one of the first pieces of legislation that he would fight for would be a modernization of the laws governing the country’s financial system and Wall Street. The financial reform legislation that came out of that promise was the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, passed into law in 2013.

The White House article goes on to say that “as the most far reaching Wall Street reform in history, Dodd-Frank will prevent the excessive risk-taking that led to the financial crisis. The law also provides common-sense protections for American families, creating new consumer watchdog to prevent mortgage companies and pay-day lenders from exploiting consumers. These new rules will build a safer, more stable financial system—one that provides a robust foundation for lasting economic growth and job creation.”

To read more on this article, please go to: https://www.whitehouse.gov/economy/middle-class/dodd-frank-wall-street-reform

One of the most important pieces of that legislation is the “consumer watchdog” that was created to prevent mortgage companies and other lenders from taking advantage of consumers. Over the next few blog posts we will offer more information on how the Foreclosure and Bankruptcy Defense Attorneys at Korte & Wortman, P.A. in West Palm Beach have the knowledge and information to help you to utilize the Dodd-Frank Act if you feel that you have been exploited by a predatory lender.

If you are in West Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Clearwater or anywhere else in the state of Florida and in need of a law firm knowledgeable about the Dodd-Frank Act, then contact us at Korte & Wortman, P.A. Korte & Wortman, P.A. is a law firm specializing in all aspects of real estate law, includingth Dodd-Frank Act. In addition to using this blog as a helpful resource, please contact us directly if you have any questions or current legal issues in any type of real estate transaction. Our home office is based in West Palm Beach, at 2041 Vista Parkway, Suite 102. You can call us at (561) 544-7071, stop in to our office, email us at vdinapoli@kwlawfirm.com or come to our website at http://www.foreclosurefactor.com. Our firm represents clients throughout the state of Florida and across the eastern seaboard. We also have offices in Sunrise and Clearwater, Florida.

We look forward to helping you get the legal advice that you need in all real estate, foreclosure, bankruptcy and credit card situations.