When the Fed Goes from Whatever-It-Takes to Anything-We-Can-Think-Of
On Thursday, the Washington Post included an article on all the ways in which inflation hurts middle-income families, the acute shortage of baby formula, and the cooking-oil shortage’s cost impact in places ranging from a D.C. shop selling doughnuts to sub-Saharan Africa. Other articles chronicled stablecoins’ instability even as stock markets wobbled precariously above going so deeply into correction that investors are not just chastened, but also cudgeled.
CFPB Warns Wayward Mortgage Servicers
The CFPB released a report today showing that only a relatively small number of homeowners – about 330,000 – are struggling with mortgage modification after forbearance ended late last year.
White House Recasts Old Housing Policy for New Political Problem
Reflecting continuing political pressure from rising costs, the White House this morning announced what it calls new programs to increase housing supply in ways it says would lower costs. Little in the plan is new, with much of it recounting ongoing work to, for example, reduce NPL sales to investors in favor of those to owner-occupants and community groups.
CFPB Takes to Circulars to Extend, Expand Jurisdiction
Following up on his announcement (see Client Report CONSUMER40) that the CFPB plans to rewrite consumer-protection standards promulgated by other agencies, Director Chopra today took the unusual step of describing processes by which the CFPB will determine key enforcement criteria via circulars to promote enforcement consistency and fair competition.