North Carolina

SB 1015, the Homeowner and Homebuyer Protection Act, was passed in 2010. This legislation addressed a number of predatory real estate practices that took advantage of families having trouble paying their home loan or finding a decent loan to buy a home. These abuses included foreclosure rescue scams, as well as lease option and contract for deed agreements. HB 654 introduced in 2011 is an attempt to gut these recently enacted protections. After considerable discussion in committee and on the floor, the House passed the bill by a vote of 66 to 48. The Senate held a hearing on the bill in the...

HB 717 bill excludes certain mortgage insurance premiums from our NC definition of "points and fees" in high cost home loans, weakening our predatory mortgage lending protections. The NC Commissioner of Banks (NCCOB) persuaded the bill sponsors to allow NCCOB to investigate these issues further and recommend to the legislature what action, if any, should be taken. Since the bills did not pass either House, they are technically ineligible for consideration, but legislative leadership could insert language in many other places.

HB 814 and its companion SB 559, Fair Compensation for Mortgage Broker/Lender would have rolled back mortgage lending protections in our state including: Weakening our predatory mortgage lending protections by raising the limits on allowable fees and discount points, Cutting broker bond requirements in half, a serious problem for borrowers who have been harmed by a broker, and Reducing the oversight of mortgage brokers who are having personal financial problems, as reflected in their credit reports. The NC Commissioner of Banks (NCCOB) persuaded the bill sponsors to allow NCCOB to investigate...

More Information: Summary of HB 810 Text of HB 810 Why Oppose HB 810? Background on Consumer Finance Loans in NC Who Opposes HB 810 ? How Did Your Representative Vote on HB 810 in 2011? House Bill 810, after barely passing the House in 2011, died in the Senate Rules Committee in 2012. And, for the first time in five years, there is no study commission appointed to "study" this industry. HB 810 would have significantly increased the rates and fees that consumer finance companies can charge on installment loans0. CRL estimates that this bill would have cost NC borrowers $50-70 million per year...

Why Did We Oppose HB 810? Read entire bill >> Read our summary of the bill >> What's happened with HB 810? >> Rates on small loans in NC are already too high. With families struggling, making these loans more expensive will be a disaster for NC consumers. 25 to 54% interest is enough. Consumer finance companies can already charge up to 54% annual interest on the smallest of these loans. They can also charge about 25% annual interest on loans up to $10,000. This is more than enough. The companies are profitable already. The NC Commissioner of Banks has studied this industry in depth and...

Read entire bill >> See our talking points >> What's happened with HB 810? >> The Consumer Finance Act lets non-bank lenders make small loans of $10,000 or less. The current law creates two tiers of lenders: "53-173" lenders who can make loans up to $3000 and "53-176" lenders who can make loans up to $10,000. If HB 810 had passed, it would have: Increased the Loan Size Increased the maximum loan size from $10,000 to 15,000. Increased the Interest Charged on Loans Read the entire bill Under Section 173 (for loans up to $3000) Would have allowed 36% interest on loans up to $1500. Current law...

SB 1015 protects NC homeowners from a range of predatory practices. The law addresses three main issues: foreclosure rescue scams, abusive lease-option contracts, and abusive contract for deed/land installment sales. Foreclosure Rescue Scams The law cracks down on foreclosure rescue scams where the scammer takes title to the property without taking any responsibility for the mortgage. The law requires that if the homeowner is in foreclosure, the title to the property is transferred to someone else, representations are made that the transaction will save the home from foreclosure, and the...

SB 1216 has two major components. First, it continues the State Home Foreclosure Prevention Project (SHFPP) through May 31, 2013 and expands the program to cover all NC home loans not just subprime loans. Second, it modifies the points & fees trigger for determining if a mortgage is high-cost. State Home Foreclosure Prevention Project Continued & Expanded This law continues and expands the State Home Foreclosure Prevention Project (SHFPP), which the NC Office of the Commissioner of Banks (NCCOB) and the NC Administrator of the Courts have administered since November 2008. This program provides...

SB 974, SB 974, which had the strong support of Attorney General Roy Cooper, includes important new consumer protections in two distinct areas: Greater protections for homeowners during the foreclosure process; and greater protections for consumers against abusive debt buying activities. Foreclosure protections: This new law allows a clerk of court to continue (delay) a foreclosure hearing for up to 60 days for owner-occupied residential property if the clerk believes that additional time will increase the likelihood of resolving the delinquency without foreclosure. This delay gives homeowners...

H1057 prohibits deficiency judgments on predatory home loans in North Carolina. A deficiency judgment can be pursued by the lender if a foreclosed home sells at auction for less than the mortgage on the home. For the increasing number of homeowners who owe more on their loan than their home is worth (upside down in their mortgage), deficiency judgments add tremendously to the hardship of losing their home. This law prohibits deficiency judgments for first-lien subprime or non-traditional loans (like payment option adjustable rate mortgages) made on or after January 1st, 2005, unless the lender...