Few things capture the attention of the real estate community as the threat of fines for violations. Or perhaps, more appropriately stated, the threat of enforcement for violations. So, when new regulatory guidelines for lenders, title companies and real estate agents were announced which made changes to the lending and closing process starting in October of 2015, there was understandably some angst as to how things would play out.
The concern was buttressed by an investigation by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau of a West Michigan title company which resulted in a significant fine. A warning shot across the bow, I was told by one industry veteran.
However, in January I was in a room packed with professionals in the industry where the question was posed, 'How has TRID impacted your business'. As a REALTOR, I was especially interested to know how my peers had fared since the implementation approximately 90 days earlier. It was notable that most of those present did not seem to feel that there had been any impact. To be fair, this was the consensus of the REALTORS present. Lenders definitely had a different take on the issue. During the event, one explanation for why there was less regulatory impact than expected was that implementation was being delayed until April 2016 to provide time for the industry to make adjustments. Since then, it appears that legal challenges are also impacting the speed of implementation by the Bureau.
The webinar below was recorded in March of 2016.
