WASHINGTON, April 17,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Land Title
Association (ALTA), the national trade association of the land
title insurance industry, commends the group of 18 Democratic
Members of Congress—led by Rep. Wiley
Nickel (D-NC)—who wrote a letter to President Biden
expressing concerns regarding the administration's plan approved by
the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to waive title insurance
on loans purchased by Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs)
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
"While well-intentioned, this pilot program will not address the
true issue of housing affordability in our communities and puts
homebuyers at risk," the members wrote. "Title insurance
professionals halt fraudulent real estate transactions such as
impersonation scams, elder financial exploitation, and attempts to
defraud spouses, partners, or other property heirs. Under the new
program, consumers and lenders will be forced into a completely
experimental claims resolution process with the GSEs, ultimately
risking being forced into property sale or foreclosure. We ask that
you reconsider moving forward. While we understand the enormity of
the housing affordability crisis, shifting risk from the
well-regulated title insurance industry to the GSEs and pushing
small businesses out of the real estate ecosystem is not the right
path forward to address that crisis."
"On behalf of title companies in every county nationwide, who
work tirelessly every day to protect the American dream of
homeownership, we commend the leadership of Rep. Nickel and his
Democratic colleagues in raising serious concerns about the
administration's title waiver pilot program," said ALTA CEO
Diane Tomb. "While well intentioned,
this program is flawed—removing the expertise and protections
provided by title professionals and doing little to promote
homeownership affordability for those who need it the most while
heightening risk at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It is encouraging
to have such thoughtful Members of Congress who understand the
importance of sound housing policy."
Other signers of the letter were Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA),
Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA), Rep.
Jim Costa (D-CA), Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT), Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN), Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Rep. Joe Morelle (D-NY), Rep. Scott Peters (D-CA), Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-CO), Rep. Deborah Ross (D-NC), Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA), Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX), Rep. Jennifer Wexton (D-VA) and Rep. Nikema Williams (D-GA). To read the full letter,
click here.
The title waiver program has faced bipartisan backlash from
Members of Congress since being revived ahead of the State of the
Union. Last month, three Republican members from the House
Financial Services Committee—Warren Davidson (R-OH), Bill Huizenga (R-MI) and Andrew Garbarino (R-NY)—wrote a letter to
the FHFA questioning whether the program conflicts with the
agency's Prior Approval for Enterprise Products rule.
About ALTA
The American Land Title Association,
founded in 1907, is the national trade association representing
more than 6,000 title insurance companies, title and settlement
agents, independent abstracters, title searchers, and real estate
attorneys.
Contact: Megan Hernandez,
mhernandez@alta.org
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SOURCE American Land Title Association