b'Mortgage Origination & ServicingIn 2021, Goodwin tracked 13 publicly announcedmortgage borrowers as the CARES Act and various mortgage origination and servicing enforcement actionsFederal and State foreclosure moratoria are phased out at the state and federal levels resulting in total recoveriesover the summer. These amendments went into effect of approximately $271 million. This represented aon August 31, 2021.decrease from the 27 actions we tracked in 2020, but anAs 2021 drew to a close, the CFPB, federal banking increase from the approximately $174 million recoveredagencies, and state regulators signaled that they that year. Federal agencies were responsible for theare ready to return to pre-pandemic norms in the majority of enforcement actions in the mortgage space,supervision and enforcement of the mortgage accounting for 10 of the 13 total actions tracked. Theservicing industry. In a joint statement issued by the decrease in activity in this space in 2021 is not all thatBoard of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the CFPB, surprising given that COVID-19-related forbearancesthe FDIC, the NCUA, the OCC, and state financial were extended until August 2021. However, with theregulators, the agencies alerted mortgage servicers expiration of millions of borrowers forbearancesatthat they were revoking the temporary supervisory least 2.1 million of which were for loans 90+ days behindand enforcement flexibility previously announced in on their payments as of March 2021 (according to theApril 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. CFPB)we anticipate that mortgage servicing inAs Goodwin reported last year, the agencies April particular will be an area of scrutiny and enforcement2020 guidance advised that the agencies would as servicers continue to deal with challenges and newnot take supervisory or enforcement action against regulations resulting from the pandemic and COVID-19- mortgage servicers for failing to meet certain timing related forbearance repayments. Additionally, based onrequirements under the mortgage servicing rules recent statements and new leadership at the CFPB andprovided that servicers made a good faith effort to DOJ, we anticipate that mortgage originators can expectfurnish required notices and disclosures and took heightened scrutiny of their fair lending practices. actions within a reasonable time period. According to the Joint Statement, the agencies believe that the Key Trends flexible standards are no longer necessary because servicers have now had sufficient time to adjust their Although enforcement in the mortgage space mayoperations during the pandemic and have worked with have been down a tick in 2021 relative to years past, aconsumers affected by COVID-19. Notably, the Joint number of agenciesmost notably the CFPB and DOJStatement cautioned that the new approach includeshave indicated that mortgage lenders and servicersthe potential enforcement of servicer violations of the will be under enhanced scrutiny in the years ahead.CFPBs August 31, 2021 COVID-19-related amendments First, in March, the CFPB issued policy guidance urgingto Regulation X (promulgated at 86 FR 34848). The servicers to dedicate sufficient resources and staff toagencies Joint Statement did, however, acknowledge assist borrowers with their post-forbearance paymentthe ongoing challenges faced by mortgage servicers and loss mitigation options, and warning that theand their efforts to assist consumers who are impacted CFPB will consider a servicers overall effectivenessby the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, explaining that at achieving such goals, along with other relevantthey will consider, when appropriate, the specific factors, in using its discretion to address violationsimpact of servicers challenges that arise due to the of Federal consumer financial law in supervisory andCOVID-19 pandemic and take those issues into account enforcement matters, and it will hold mortgagewhen considering any supervisory and enforcement servicers accountable for complying with Regulationactions. Consideration, however, is not a promise of X. Then in June, the CFPB issued its final amendmentsany leniency, and servicers should take note to ensure to Regulation X to establish temporary protections forcompliance with mortgage servicing rules in response 14'