Bloomberg Law
March 3, 2021, 9:15 PM

CFPB Proposal Would Allow Safe Mortgage Mix During Pandemic

Evan Weinberger
Evan Weinberger
Correspondent

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau wants to give lenders an extra 16 months before they have to comply with new safe mortgage standards, citing concerns about the pandemic.

A proposalissued Wednesday would allow mortgage lenders to offer home loans under the CFPB’s old qualified mortgage standard—including the so-called GSE patch that allows all mortgages sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to qualify under the rules—until Oct. 1, 2022.

The existing QM standard relies on a 43% borrower debt-to-income (DTI) ratio to determine whether a loan is safe and affordable.

The CFPB under former Director Kathy Kraninger finalized a ...