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May 18, 2011 – NAFCU reviewed two prototype forms for mortgage disclosures that combine requirements under the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act during a meeting Tuesday with the Consumer Financial Protection Agency.

NAFCU Associate Director of Regulatory Affairs Dillon Shea, who attended the meeting along with Dan Berger, NAFCU's executive vice president of government affairs, and other industry representatives, said the association views this first look at the combined disclosures as a positive first step.

The CFPB held the meeting to gather feedback on its attempts to streamline mortgage disclosures. Elizabeth Warren, assistant to the president and special advisor to the Treasury secretary on the CFPB, said the bureau wants to ensure the new mortgage disclosures will help consumers ascertain whether they can afford mortgage products being offered and if such products fit best with their finances.

Today, the bureau is slated to release the draft forms to the public. In addition, the CFPB is soliciting consumer feedback through its website. It will also conduct consumer testing of the prototype forms in six cities between now and September. The forms will be modified as the bureau analyzes input from industry stakeholders, consumer groups and the public.

Shea said the two-page prototypes were identical in terms of content. The style of the forms was slightly different, he added. The fact that draft forms comprise two pages, he said, is a step in the right direction.