CFPB issues interim rule

Today, the CFPB is issuing an interim rule effective immediately to fill a regulatory gap.

Some lenders are chartered or licensed by states, while others operate under federal charters. For years, state lenders have been able to rely on a federal law called the Alternative Mortgage Transaction Parity Act (or AMTPA, for short) to make variable rate loans and other “alternative” mortgages, regardless of state law restrictions. Congress passed AMTPA to allow state lenders to make alternative mortgages on the same footing as their federally chartered competitors. Last year, the Dodd-Frank Act amended AMTPA to update it and to provide states more room to regulate certain fixed-rate loans and certain features of adjustable rate mortgages.