At the end of last week, I posted If House Bill 3915 Passes, Find a New Career! about a House Bill that was not in the best interest of the REAL ESTATE & MORTGAGE INDUSTRY.   PLEASE, PLEASE take the time to read the previous post.  I have made many updates to that post since I originally wrote it.  So I decided to make this call to action in its own post but  will also included it into the orignal.

Although our congressmen are trying to do the right thing they will in fact end up hurting every sector of the indutry as well as the consumer whom they are trying so hard to protect.  The National Association of Mortgage Brokers has been trying vigourously to amend some of the legislation simply because the language is vauge and WILL have interpretation problems.  Their talks with the congressman have yielded some results but NAMB is asking REAL ESTATE & MORTGAGE PROFESSIONALS to take the following ACTION immeadiately as this vote happens tomorrow morning:

********Please forward the following to as many Industry Professionals as possible*********** 

The U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee is considering a bill that will fundamentally change the way we are paid.  While we agree that consumers should not be steered into a particular loan, the bill leaves unclear whether consumers can finance their origination fees and other costs inside the interest rate.  Therefore, it is unclear whether you can be paid YSP.  Additionally, we fear that all subprime lending will cease to exist due to the increased scope of the high-cost mortgages section (Title III) of this bill.

We are calling upon our Industry Professionals to respond as never before.  To save our industry, we are asking you to IMMEDIATELY contact your Congressman.

TIME IS CRITICAL.  The bill became public last week.  We have been working with Congressional offices in good faith, but our concerns have not been fully addressed in the newly, revised version released just hours earlier today.  The U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee will be debating and voting on this bill on the morning of Tuesday, November 6, 2007.

YOU MUST ACT NOW! 

We are asking you to call your Congressman and to communicate with their Congressional office by letter. 

• A.     To call your congressional office, click here and enter your zip code or other search options.  The phone number will be listed to Washington DC.  Please call and express your concern as follows:
• I am an Mortgage and Real Estate Industry Professional.  House Bill 3915 is being considered on the morning of Tuesday, November 6th. We support licensing and improved standards for all originators. We oppose outlawing the way we earn our living, and urge that indirect compensation be allowed as part of the interest rate. Consumers should be able to finance fees and costs and creditors or investors should be able to pay such fees and costs to mortgage brokers as is industry practice today.
• We do not support Title III.  The standards are so strict and the liability so great that it will prohibit loans being made in the subprime market.  It will act as a federal usury statute denying access to credit for deserving borrowers.
• B.     Please write your Congressman by e-mail.  The vote is scheduled for the morning of November 6th.  Please customize your message (see above) or send our pre-posted letter.  Whatever message you wish to send, please respond with your concerns. 
  
• C.     You can also sign the following online petition to vote NO for HR 3915.

Now is the time that you can individually participate in saving your livelihood, saving your business, and protecting your industry.  It is only through your efforts and answering this call-to-action that we can avert disaster. 

AGAIN, PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO YOUR FRIENDS AND CO-WORKERS THROUGHOUT THE INDUSTRY.

Update 11/07/2007:

COMMITTEE PASSES H.R. 3915 45 - 19; GOES TO FULL HOUSE NEXT WEEK.
Check back soon for more details! 

Your mortgage partner for life,