U.S. Reps. Travis Childers (D-Miss.) and Gary Miller (R-Calif.) have teamed up to champion a bill that would put a moratorium on the new Home Mortgage Valuation Code of Conduct.
HVCC is an agreement between Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the New York State Attorney General that went into effect earlier this year with the aim of improving the accuracy of appraisals, although it's come under criticism in the real estate industry for causing its own problems.
Although the agreement involves the New York AG, it's being applied nationwide to all the mortgages handled by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The bipartisan legislation directs the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which is the conservator of the two secondary mortgage market companies, to suspend the code for 18 months.
Among other things, the code has been criticized by the National Association of Mortgage Brokers for delaying residential property closings and costing its members business at a critical time. Group members also are up in arms about having to pay high fees to appraisal management firms.
Source: American Banker, 06/30/09
