MBA’s Robert Broeksmit on what Biden’s win means for housing

This week, Robert Broeksmit, the president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association, joins the Housing News Podcast to discuss the association’s regulatory priorities for 2021 and what goals it hopes to achieve under a Biden administration.

During the interview, Broeksmit also discusses what could happen if the Biden administration replaces Kathy Kraninger, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

According to Broeksmit, if a new director is appointed, outside of mortgage regulation, they’re likely to focus on policies related to fair lending and affordable housing.

“I’d first like to say the MBA is very grateful for the tenure of Director Kraninger,” Broeksmit said. “We’ve worked very closely with her and think she’s done a really good job at the bureau.”

“If she is replaced, we think there are a lot of areas outside of mortgage lending that the CFPB will focus on because it has a very wide scope, it’s not just mortgages,” Broeksmit said. “There were things the current administration decided not to focus on that I think a Biden appointee would have more interest in pursuing like student loan servicing, regulating debt collectors and payday lending regulations.”

Broeksmit also addresses the Biden administration’s housing agenda and what it means for affordable housing.

“President Biden wants to introduce a $15,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, but unless lightning strikes twice in Georgia and Republicans lose both runoffs, I think we’ll have a divided government where a proposal like that won’t get much traction,” Broeksmit said. “While the MBA is generally supportive of something like that, we don’t think the chances are very high.”

The Housing News Podcast is a weekly wrap of the top news stories by HousingWire Editor in Chief Sarah Wheeler. Each week, HousingWire interviews financial services experts who can help make sense of the latest headlines, sponsored by our partners at Freddie Mac.