‘Tis the Season to Be Thankful-and Start Looking Ahead to 2012 [Mortgage Banking]

This is the season for giving thanks for all that we have, extending goodwill to all we see - and wearing the occasional horrible reindeer sweater to a family party.

And as 1 look back over the last year, we have plenty to be proud of. At Quicken Loans, we are helping to revitalize downtown Detroit - a city that is firmly on the comeback trail, thanks to high-tech companies and entrepreneurs recognizing the value and talent in the region.

Our company is also having a very successful year while our industry is enjoying historically low rates. I hope all of you had a similar type of year. Some consumers are able to refinance their homes, save some money and theoretically stimulate our economy. Many more need to be able to take advantage of the opportunity to refinance.

At the same time, low rates are also allowing consumers to enjoy first-time homeownership - adding a bit of positive news for the embattled housing industry. We need to keep working to be able to provide that opportunity to even more folks who deserve to get financing but are still shut out because of the tightening credit market.

By the time this column is published, the new Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) standards will be out and, based on everything we've seen so far, we should be able to help more people who are underwater on their homes.

But as we take time to look back over the past year and reflect on some of the positives, it is also important to look ahead and address the avalanche of regulations that is rapidly picking up steam.

Our industry is about to face one of its most challenging years, from a legislative and regulatory perspective. Aside from the rules we know are in the process of being actively implemented - such as the Qualified Mortgage (QM) and Qualified Residential Mortgage (QRM) provisions - it seems as though new bills and ideas are being floated every day.

The impact of all these hands in the cookie jar is immeasurable. Each time an idea, proposed rule from an agency, or piece of legislation is introduced, it creates a ripple effect. It creates a tremendous amount of work for our industry groups, and each individual lender has to meet as well to gauge its position on the idea, rule or legislation, determine how it wants to respond and ultimately how it will implement the rules should they go into effect.

There is only so much time in a day, and unfortunately the time that could be devoted to innovation is squeezed by the time we must spend dealing with all the things that could impact our businesses. We all know how we got here, and this is part of the price we are paying.

As I was looking at my children's Christmas lists the other day, I jotted down a list of my own. It was a list of the regulations coming down the pike that we all will be trying to get our arms around in 2012. After writing them down, I checked the list twice - and 1 can assure you the work involved will not be nice.

In no particular order, here are 15 pressing issues and lingering questions we will be watching and working on in 2012.

* 1. Qualified Mortgages; What will the "ability to pay" standard look like? Will we be successful in making it workable? Will QM restrict lending even more?

* 2. Qualified Residential Mortgage: How will the riskretention guidelines take shape?

* 3. Government-Sponsored Enterprise (GSE) Reform: How far will we get in the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac debate? When will private capital come back into the market?

* 4. HARP 2.0: Let's finalize what was agreed to, implement things on time and help responsible homeowners enjoy the benefits of a lower rate.

* 5. Privacy Issues: While privacy and protecting data is a good thing, which of the ideas out there will gain steam?

* 6. Servicing Standards: Can the agencies and states work together to standardize rules and guidelines for servicers?

* 7. Servicer Compensation: Do the servicer compensation rules even need to change?

* 8. Flood Insurance Reform: How will the National Flood Insurance Program take shape in the year ahead?

* 9. Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) Requirements: How many people will we need to employ to make sure we are reporting exactly what is required of us?

* 10. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB): What new rules is it going to send our way? What will the audits be like?

* 11. Appraisal Issues: Will we be able to update standards and ensure enforcement of state and federal regulations?

* 12. Repurchases: Can we stem the tide of senseless put-back demands and work together as an industry? The consequences if we don't will be more-restrictive credit guidelines and burdensome documentation requests.

* 13. Loan Originator Licensing: How can non-banks level the licensing playing field? Why is there no uniformity in testing requirements among the states?

* 14. Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Changes: With guidelines constantly tightening, where do these programs fall in the mortgage mix?

* 15. Credit Standards: Will we see increased tightening, and how will that impact consumers?

This list is far from complete, and we have no idea how things will shape up.

Next year will sort itself out, just as 2011 did. Let's keep our eye on the future, and work together to present a unified front in the year ahead. We all want to see the housing market recover and to see sustainable, responsible lending for all. Together, we can affect the outcome.

I wish all of you - my peers and friends - a truly enjoyable holiday season and warm wishes for a happy, successful new year.

Our industry is about to face one of its most challenging years, from a legislative and regulatory perspective.

Bill Emerson is chief executive officer of Detroitbased Quicken Loans Inc.. the nation's largest online lender. He can be reached at [email protected].