Letter From AIME Leadership 6-26-23

Hello Broker Family,

The Trigger Lead reform bill that we’ve been waiting for has been introduced. On June 16th, Rep. John Rose (R-TN), introduced HR 4198 — The Protecting Consumers from Abusive Mortgage Leads Act of 2023. This remarkable bill aims to eliminate invasive trigger leads, while preserving their use in appropriate or consensual circumstances.

These exceptions are what set HR 4198 apart from the previous trigger lead reform bill, HR 2656, recently introduced in April by Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY); HR 2656 was a blanket ban, whereas HR 4198 proposes a ban on trigger leads with select, yet vital, exceptions. Importantly, this would permit companies who already have established relationships with consumers to utilize trigger leads. This is particularly important to companies that service mortgages. Trigger leads allow them to protect their portfolio from runoff, thereby preserving the value of their assets.?

Without HR 4198’s provisions, the value of mortgages as an asset would decline, and this drop in value would be passed along to the consumer in the form of higher mortgage transaction costs. This exception ensures a limited amount of outreach to the consumer from an entity that already possesses their personal data and more importantly, their requisite consent. While this exception is most relevant for mortgage servicing companies, it would also allow Mortgage Brokers to monitor their past client base as interest rates begin to decline.

We all know the blight that trigger leads have been on our industry. From the moment we pull a buyer’s credit report, they get bombarded with calls, text messages, and emails. This can last days, and even weeks on end. The worst-case scenario is that you lose your confused client because they thought this other lender was offering better terms, or they get upset with their Broker because they mistakenly believed their broker sold their information. The best case scenario, is the process that we spent a lot of time refining to ensure a smooth and positive experience, just got off to a rocky start.

This is a problem that AIME has been dedicated to resolving, and our hard work to reform trigger leads has begun to show true promise. HR 4198 addresses all of the issues we had with HR 2656. It effectively eliminates the misuse and abuse of Trigger Leads while still protecting both our industry, and the clients we serve.

HR 4198 represents the comprehensive Trigger Leads reform we've been waiting for; we strongly urge all AIME and BAC members to take less than a minute out of your day, and click here to send a pre-generated letter, already addressed to your federal representatives; urging them to co-sponsor HR 4198.?

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead. Remember, Brokers are Better, Together.

Katie Sweeney Brendan McKay

Chairman and CEO President of Advocacy