Mortgage Law

Introduction

Mortgage law is governed by both state and local law, so make sure your research covers your local jurisdiction and applicable federal law. The resources listed below will get you started.

Treatises

The following books discuss concepts relevant to mortgage law, some general and some subject-specific.

Banking Law in the United States, Alfred M. Pollard and Joseph P. Daly
Research Alcove (KF 974 B38 2003).
A general treatise on banking law, including a chapter on failing and failed banks.

California Real Estate Finance Practice : Strategies and Forms, Michael T. Andrew ... [et al.] ; edited by Janis LaRoche Blanchette, Bonnie C. Maly, Donald R. Briggs
Research Alcove (KFC175 .C35 2000).

The Cost of Credit: Regulation, Preemption, and Industry Abuses, Elizabeth Renuart
Research Alcove (KF 1040 K43 2009).

Credit Discrimination, Alys I. Cohen
Research Alcove (LF6276.622008 F72 2009).

Creditors' Rights In California, 4th ed., Harold Marsh
Research Alcove (KFC175 .B4722).

Foreclosures – Defenses, Workouts, and Mortgage Servicing, John Rao
Research Alcove (KF697 F6 R36 2007).
Information on rights and alternatives, from the National Consumer Law Center. Summaries of state laws can be found in the Appendices.

The Law and Regulation of Financial Institutions, Milton R. Schroeder
Research Alcove (KF975 S35).

Mortgage and Asset Backed Securities Litigation Handbook, Talcott J. Franklin
Research Alcove (KF 696 F73 2008).

Practicing Law Institute, Credit Market and Subprime Distress: Responding to legal Issues
Research Alcove (KF1050 C74 2008).

Real Estate Finance in a Nutshell, Jon W. Bruce
Circulation Desk (KF695 B78 2009).

Real Estate Mortgages, Robert W. Wood
6th Stacks (KF6287 A1 T35 no. 592, 2007).

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California and U.S. Statutes and Regulations

Search LexisNexis for Deering's California Codes Annotated for statutes, annotations and references and Barclays Official California Code of Regulations for regulations.

Search Westlaw for West’s Annotated Codes and Barclay's Official California Code of Regulations for regulations.

For free access to California codes, try Official California Legislative Information. U.S. statutes can be found for free on FindLaw.

SB 1137 Perata Mortgage Relief Bill (PDF fact sheet here).

Although mortgage law is primarily government by state law, there are applicable federal regulations. The following is a list of important federal banking regulations from the FDIC with some links to sources at the Library of Congress.

Important Banking Legislation – A list of important federal banking regulations from the FDIC with links to Library of Congress sources.
12 U.S.C. (U.S. Code, Title 12): Banks and Banking.
Title 12 C.F.R.: Banks and Banking.

For an online overview, and links to primary law, try Cornell University Law School’s Legal Information Institute site on Money and Financial Problems.

The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC/the Code), is one of several uniform acts that has the goal of harmonizing state law to facilitate interstate sales and commerce. UCC search and Uniform and Model Acts are available through the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws or the NCCUSL in conjunction with the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

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California and Current Topic Links

BankersOnline offers topical banking resources such as "Alphabet Soup," a user-friendly listing of Federal Reserve banking regulations.
California Consumer Home Mortgage Information.
California State Assembly Issues web page on the Home Mortgage Crisis.
California Department of Real Estate and Mortgage Loan Bulletin.
Foreclosure Law in California and Related Matters by William A. Markam, San Diego Attorney.
The U.S. Dept of Housing and Urban Development has a page on California Foreclosure Avoidance, including consumer guidance and local information clearinghouse.
For current awareness, try the Bank Lawyer's Blog or the Banking Law Prof Blog.
The Brookings Institute has a page on the mortgage crisis.

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U.S. Oversight Institutions and Central Banks

Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) - Interstate banking regulation and links to all state banking regulators.

The Consumer Price Index, monthly data on changes in consumer prices, is available from the Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Check the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for localized information on foreclosure avoidance.

The Department of the Treasury has current news on the banking world and offers subscriptions to a number of treasury e-mail lists.

Corporate Directories - Searchable directories of financial institutions and information about them.
Financial Management Service (FMS) includes the Treasury Bulletin.
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) charters and supervises banks. This site provides information on nationaland US branches of foreign banks and has a laws-and-compliance section.
Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) provides information on thrifts, also known as savings and loans.

FBI white Collar Crime Reports - including U.S. Money Laundering Threat Assessment, Financial Crimes Report to the Public, and Financial Institution Fraud and Failure reports.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). The FDIC is an independent agency created by Congress.

Find current and historical statistics on U.S. banks including Regional Economic Conditions and Statistics on Depository Institutions.
Search a list of failed banks and find information on filing a claim, or find information on purchasing assets such as loans and real estate from the FDIC.
Trace the corporate history of a bank to determine the correct entity to serve with process through the Bank Finder.
Access databases to find a variety of industry analyses for banking and economic trends.

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council provides Home Mortgage Disclosure Act Data.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) includes surveys of interest rates, loan terms, and house prices.

Federal Reserve System – The Federal Reserve Board was created by Congress and serves as the central bank of the United States. Federal Reserve resources include:

Federal Reserve Beige Book - Regional (District and sector) anecdotal information on economic conditions published eight times per year. The Beige Book is sourced from reports from banks, key business contacts, economists, market experts and others.
Federal Reserve Economic Data: FRED - Contains downloadable historical data.
Federal Reserve Statistical Releases.
Fed in Print - A search for and index to Federal Reserve economic research from the FRB of San Francisco.
Other economic research and data.
FRB Selected Interest Rates - Published weekly.
Federal Reserve Districts: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Kansas City, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Richmond, St. Louis, San Francisco.

Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

Government Accountability Office - Formerly the General Accounting Office (GAO). Offers searchable reports from the GAO from 1995 to the present.

House Committee on Financial Services - The Committee oversees the nation's houseing and financial services sectors including banking, insurance, real estate, public and assisted houseing, and securities. They also review legislation relating to other financial oversight and mortgage companies.

National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is an independent federal agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions throughout the United States and its territories. Also see the full texts of their newsletters to January 2006.

National Information Center (NIC) is a publicly searchable central repository of comprehensive information on banks for which the Federal Reserve has a supervisory, regulatory or research interest. Includes both domestic and foreign banking organizations operating in the United States.

Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs - This committee has broad jurisdiction over the operation of financial institutions, housing and mass transit programs.

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Banks and Credit Unions

American Bankers Association.
American Credit Union Mortgage Association.
Banks in the United States (Qualisteam) by state.
BankSITE U.S.A. Directory.
California Credit Union League.
Conference of State Bank Supervisors.
Credit Union Directory (registration required) from CreditUnions.com.
Credit Union Service Center financial network.
National Association of Federal Credit Unions.
National Credit Union Administration, including the Credit Union Directory.
World Council of Credit Unions.

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Mortgage Companies

Fannie Mae (formerly the Federal National Mortgage Association).
Freddie Mac (Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation) includes the Primary Mortgage Market Survey, current mortgage rates and historical 1971-2007 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rates.
Ginnie Mae - Government National Mortgage Association.
HomePath - Fannie Mae's home financing information center.
Interest.com - Mortgage interest rate information.

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International Banking

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Prepared by Susan Nevelow Mart, Faculty Services Librarian and Adjunct Professor of Law and Miriam Mueller, Library Assistant. Contact | 415-565-4759 | Office: 435 - 200 Building | Last updated October 21, 2010