Good morning all. I am looking to see what my peers are doing. I do not know if this the correct category or if it should be under Ability to Repay.

We have an applicant looking to close on a mortgage loan. The loan is to a federal employee I do not know what type of it it matters. They are currently not working or getting paid because of the shutdown. We also can't get a VVOE from what I am told by the UW. They were want to close this week. The only guidance I have seen is that the agencies want us to work with customers but nothing about "new customers".

Please advise on what you would do in this situation. Unfortunately I am leaning on not closing until the gov't reopens. Let me know Thanks.

Consider all consumers to be "customers"...some just don't know it yet!

The spirit of the guidance is to do your best to look through this temporary distortion in your customers' circumstances and focus on the other end of the tunnel. They will all go back to work eventually, and past experience tells us Uncle Sam will probably give them full back-pay. Some of these furloughed govt. employees will actually improve their finances as a result of the "shutdown." They'll be able to double dip If they have a second job and can increase hours.

The current shutdown is unlike any we have seen before, both in its duration and in the vehement stubbornness asinine pig-headedness of the opposing sides over a single issue (although I agree more with one side than with the other). Given the "NEVER" statements from both ends of the continuum in this impasse, "eventually" may be a lot farther away than any of us will want to contemplate.

Sigh..... government.


PS John I am eventually going to steal your "Professional Compliance Nerd" signature.. although the years are going to be a lot less

PPS, Darth, I am not so pigheaded as to deny you the pleasure.

I'd like to hear feedback from other servicers on this matter. In theory, nobody has even rolled 30 days delinquent yet. Its not like you get our home foreclosed on at 30 days anyways. The various agencies have such strict letter requirements surrounding delinquency, it should seem impossible for a borrower not to reach out. We plan to service as normal, but almost daily guidance is being released to "strongly" encourage a servicer to suppress credit reporting to government workers. How is that any different in the eyes of UDAAP to any unemployed borrower? Its just a slippery slope...

What is everyone doing to assist customers affected by the Govt. Shutdown?

Most are following this lead and that of the GSE's on mortgage loans.

https://www.fdic.gov/news/news/press/2019/pr19002.html

Loan extensions, short term low-rate unsecured loans, etc.

https://www.usbank.com/newsroom/news/us-...t-shutdown.html

We are doing 90 day principal payment deferments for existing and have just set up a new consumer loan program for small unsecured loans with a 90 day first payment deferral.

We're just trying to help and take some of the stress off of these unfortunate victims of what John B. said!