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In this Issue |
November 2017 Edition |
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State News & EventsLegislative Update - George Klaetsch Chapter News & EventsMadison Chapter Upcoming Events |
 Happy Holiday Season to All, Our industry continues to receive good news with yesterday’s announcement of increased loan limits for conventional loans. https://www.fanniemae.com/content/announcement/ll1710.pdf 2018 is set to a productive year for our membership. As we put the closing touches on another wonderful year, please make sure to mark your calendars for the WMBA Milwaukee Chapter Holiday Party on Thursday Dec. 14th at Albanese's Roadhouse in Waukesha. The Madison Chapter will be hosting their Holiday gathering on Thursday Jan. 25th (details to follow). Warmest wishes to you and your families and please let me know how we can help serve you better. Thank you for your membership!  Joe Doyle WMBA President 2017-2018
Legislative Update - George Klaetsch
Multiple WMBA Bills of Interest Pass Legislature – Await Governor Walker Signature |
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Madison Chapter Upcoming Events
The seminar held on Thursday, November 9 had a panel of 4 top Realtors anf drew approximately 40+ attendees. The comments following the meeting were all positive. Plans are under way for our holiday party on Thursday, January 25, 2018-Location TBD. Our annual bowling event is set for Thursday, March 15, 2018 with the golf outing Thursday, May 17, 2018 at University Ridge. All of these events are fun, well attended, and most worthwhile. The Realtors Association of South Central Wisconsin and the Madison Chapter of the Women's Council of Realtors are sponsoring a "Game Changer" event featuring a national speaker on Thursday, March 8, 2018. Our chapter will be promoting and supporting this event. Details to follow.
SAVE THE DATE
February 21, 2018
Lender's Down Payment Assistance Training
Dane County UW Extension Offices
5201 Fen Oak Drive
Two sessions to choose from!
Morning: 8:30-11:30 a.m. /Afternoon: 12:30-3:30 p.m.
Registration information coming soon!
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Milwaukee Chapter
Registration deadline December 4, 2017
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FHFA Announces Maximum Conforming Loan Limits for 2018
Washington, D.C. – The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today announced the maximum conforming loan limits for mortgages to be acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2018. In most of the U.S., the 2018 maximum conforming loan limit for one-unit properties will be $453,100, an increase from $424,100 in 2017.
Baseline limit
The Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) requires that the baseline conforming loan limit be adjusted each year for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to reflect the change in the average U.S. home price. Earlier today, FHFA published its third quarter 2017 House Price Index (HPI) report, which includes estimates for the increase in the average U.S. home value over the last four quarters. According to FHFA's seasonally adjusted, expanded-data HPI, house prices increased 6.8 percent, on average, between the third quarters of 2016 and 2017. Therefore, the baseline maximum conforming loan limit in 2018 will increase by the same percentage.
High-cost area limits
For areas in which 115 percent of the local median home value exceeds the baseline conforming loan limit the maximum loan limit will be higher than the baseline loan limit. HERA establishes the maximum loan limit in those areas as a multiple of the area median home value, while setting a "ceiling" on that limit of 150 percent of the baseline loan limit. Median home values generally increased in high-cost areas in 2017, driving up the maximum loan limits in many areas. The new ceiling loan limit for one-unit properties in most high-cost areas will be $679,650 — or 150 percent of $453,100.
Special statutory provisions establish different loan limit calculations for Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. In these areas, the baseline loan limit will be $679,650 for one-unit properties, but loan limits may be higher in some specific locations.
As a result of generally rising home values, the increase in the baseline loan limit, and the increase in the ceiling loan limit, the maximum conforming loan limit will be higher in 2018 in all but 71 counties or county equivalents in the U.S.
Questions about the 2018 conforming loan limits can be addressed to LoanLimitQuestions@fhfa.gov.
- For a list of the 2018 maximum loan limits for all counties and county-equivalent areas in the U.S. click here.
- For a map showing the 2018 maximum loan limits across the U.S. click here.
- For a detailed description of the methodology used to determine the maximum loan limits in accordance with HERA, click here.
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MISMO Announces New Licenses for Standards and Collateral
WASHINGTON, DC (November 2, 2017) - MISMO, the Mortgage Industry Standards Maintenance Organization, is revising the licenses required to use MISMO standards and collateral. The new licenses, effective for standards and collateral issued after December 31, 2017, cover the terms of use for the various products issued by MISMO. The changes include a revision to the existing End-User License as well as the adoption of a new Distributor License. Fees may be required to obtain the new licenses for organizations that are not members of MISMO. These changes will ensure that appropriate terms of use exist for the new types of standards and collateral that MISMO expects to issue in the coming years.The need for standards, implementation guidance and other tools to meet new and changing mortgage industry requirements continues to grow. Supporting these efforts requires expanded industry participation and involvement in the standards development process. These efforts also require additional staff support, tools, and other resources, which will be paid for with the new license fees. The new licenses will also enable MISMO to better understand how industry standards are being used and incentivize additional industry participation. MISMO's current license, implemented in 2004, does not support these priorities.
"The mortgage industry has undergone enormous change since MISMO released the industry's first data standards 13 years ago," said Jan Davis, Vice President of MISMO and Associate Vice President of Industry Standards at MBA. "Back then, there was no common data language for creating a mortgage loan. Today, you cannot deliver a loan without using MISMO standards. As more processes go digital, and the need for collaboration increases, the importance of MISMO standards will continue to grow. The new licenses will ensure that MISMO is positioned to support our ever-changing industry."
Organizations that download the MISMO standards and develop technology based on MISMO standards are required to have the appropriate MISMO license. The appropriate license is determined by two components. The first criteria is based on the date that the standard was issued. The second criteria is based upon how the organization is utilizing the standard. The license criteria is described briefly below:
2004 End-User License - Applies to all MISMO products (standards and collateral) issued prior to January 1, 2018. This license is automatically granted when an organization downloads any MISMO product (MISMO standards or collateral) with an issue date through December 31, 2017.
2018 End-User License - Applies to all MISMO products issued on or after January 1, 2018. The 2018 End-User License is appropriate for organizations that download MISMO products or develop technology that incorporates MISMO products released after December 31, 2017, where the MISMO products are used for internal company use when the organization does not make the MISMO products available to customers or external partners.
2018 Distributor License - Applies to all MISMO products issued on or after January 1, 2018. The Distributor License is appropriate for organizations that develop technology that incorporates MISMO products and makes that technology available to customers or external partners.
Organizations that rely on third-party technology (e.g., lender using a vendor provided LOS) that incorporates MISMO standards or collateral are not required to have a MISMO license.
MISMO members receive both the Distributor License and the End User License for free as a benefit of their membership in MISMO. A MISMO membership costs $2,500 annually. License fees may apply for organizations that are not members of MISMO. These fees will only apply for MISMO standards or collateral released after December 31, 2017. Organizations that are not MISMO members will pay $2,250 for a Distributor License if they are using MISMO standards to build technology for commercial sale and $1,500 if they are building technology they share with partners. The 2018 End User License to use the MISMO standards will cost non-members $1,500. Licenses are annual and will require annual renewal. Downloading the standards may be free if the organization will not be using the standards to build new technology. Costs for MISMO collateral will vary for each MISMO product and may not require annual renewal.
MISMO recognizes that there are many small lenders and service providers involved in the mortgage industry. To ensure that the license fee is not a burden to these organizations, a license fee waiver will be available. The license fee waiver will be available upon application for lenders that originate less than $500 million or fewer than 1,000 loans annually or other organizations such as vendors with fewer than 10 employees.
"Fees generated from MISMO licenses will help MISMO provide additional support to the industry" said Rick Hill, Executive Vice President of MISMO and Vice President of Industry Technology at MBA. "Licensing fees for future standards will also ensure that companies that benefit from the standards will contribute to the standards development process, either through membership and volunteer effort or through the fees. At the same time, the small business fee waiver recognizes the importance of smaller organizations to the health and dynamism of the industry."
Answers to frequently asked questions about MISMO's licensing initiative are available on mismo.org. For more information, contact MISMO at info@mismo.org.
It is important to note that the new licenses do not apply to standards issued prior to January 1, 2018. MISMO standards issued prior to January 1, 2018 remain subject to the 2004 End-User License. Furthermore, the date a company begins to use the standards or collateral has no bearing on which license is applicable.
Licenses will be required for both MISMO standards and MISMO collateral, such as MISMO toolkits and implementation guides.
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Upcoming Educational Webinars
Click here to view the calendar register for the upcoming December webinars
Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Association Online Store
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Please use the link below to help support our Association!
Wisconsin Mortgage Bankers Online Store
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