Just like most banks already are This Op-Ed appeared in HousingWire on July 29, 2016. by Scott Olson The Community Home Lenders Association believes that balanced regulatory policies for community mortgage lenders benefit not just those lenders, but also consumers. Independent non-bank lenders stepped up in recent years to fill the access to credit vacuum created by the exodus of many big banks from mortgage lending. And, community

This letter by Scott Olson, executive director of CHLA, appeared in The Washington Post “Letters to the Editor” on June 7, 2016 in response to the June 3 editorial, “A financial zombie”. Don’t reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into the grasp of Wall Street and big banks The policy choice we face is simple: Either turn over the securitization and mortgage markets for government-guaranteed mortgage

This Op-Ed appeared in American Banker on May 26, 2016. By Scott Olson It is quite clear that comprehensive legislative reform of the government-sponsored enterprises is not going to happen this year. But Congress is still considering adopting piecemeal housing finance provisions in advance of a broader longer-term proposal. Unfortunately, those piecemeal provisions risk setting GSE reform on the wrong path. Without comprehensive steps mandated by

The disagreement on what comes next This Op-Ed appeared in HousingWire on March 8, 2016. by Scott Olson  Congress recently adopted so-called government-sponsored enterprise “Jump Start” legislation. Since the bill actually restricts actions to facilitate GSE reform, this is somewhat of a misnomer. But the goal is understandable. Congress wants to reserve to itself the right to make the big picture GSE reform decisions, like whether

This Op-Ed appeared in American Banker on March 1, 2016. By Scott Olson A recent article in American Banker and National Mortgage News estimated that 20-25% of independent nonbank mortgage lenders “could change hands or simply shut down in the next 12 to 18 months.” This should worry consumers wondering how they will obtain the credit to buy a home. Nonbank community lenders have led the charge in recent years to expand

This Op-Ed appeared in American Banker on December 17, 2015. By Scott Olson The Federal Housing Administration can count 2015 as another successful marker in its management of the post-crisis period. But looking ahead to 2016, the FHA should be dubious about calls for it to reduce its mortgage market footprint. FHA has continued to fulfill its mandate of insuring loans with an emphasis on families