§1456 Immunity of Corporation; Audits and Reporting Requirements; Data Collection; Housing Advisory Council

Summary

Keeps the Corporation’s legal rights tied to mortgages and related obligations safe from being weakened by any state law or other rule that takes effect after the Corporation buys the property, unless Congress clearly says otherwise. Lets the Corporation do business without following state qualification rules. Requires the Government Accountability Office (Comptroller General) to be allowed to audit the Corporation’s programs, money, and records, to see all books and audit papers as needed, and to send a report to Congress. The Corporation must pay the full cost of those GAO audits. The Corporation must also send regular financial reports to the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) — annual and quarterly — in the form the Director asks for. Each annual report must include GAAP financial statements, any extra information the Director requires, and a year-end review signed by the chief executive officer and the chief accounting or financial officer about internal controls and compliance with safety-and-soundness rules. An officer designated by the board must also declare the reports are true. The Corporation must get an annual independent audit by a public accountant under generally accepted auditing standards, and that auditor must report whether the financial statements are fair and meet any disclosure rules the Director requires. Must collect and give to the FHFA data about mortgages the Corporation buys. For 1–4 unit homes, data must include mortgagor income, census tract, race, gender, loan-to-value at origination, whether the loan is new or seasoned, number of units and owner-occupancy, and any other practical items the Secretary thinks appropriate. For properties with more than 4 units, data must include census tract, tenant income info when practical, rent levels, mortgage and mortgagor characteristics, use of funds, type of lender, and other practical items the Secretary wants. These rules apply only to mortgages the Corporation buys after December 31, 1992, and may apply to older-originated loans bought later if the data exist. The Corporation must also report to two congressional committees (the House Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs and the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs) and to the FHFA Director about its activities. Those reports must include aggregated statements about mortgage volumes versus annual housing goals; families served and their income, race, and gender; tenant income and neighborhood info; use of public subsidies; first-time homebuyer activity and special programs; loan-to-value data; securitization versus holding loans in portfolio; assessments of underwriting and business practices that affect low- and moderate-income families or may cause racial disparities; multifamily market trends; delinquency and default trends and impacts; seller and servicer networks including activity with minority- and women-owned lenders; work with nonprofits, governments, and housing agencies; and any other FHFA-required items. Reports must be available at the Corporation’s main and regional offices, though the Director can allow removal of proprietary information. Within 4 months after October 28, 1992, the Corporation must appoint an Affordable Housing Advisory Council of 15 people from nonprofits, for-profits, community groups, and state or local agencies that work on housing for low- and moderate-income families.