12 CFR 1024.40 – Continuity of contact
(a) In general. A servicer shall maintain policies and procedures that are reasonably designed to achieve the following objectives:
Terms Used In 12 CFR 1024.40
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- Foreclosure: A legal process in which property that is collateral or security for a loan may be sold to help repay the loan when the loan is in default. Source: OCC
- Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
- Mortgage loan: A loan made by a lender to a borrower for the financing of real property. Source: OCC
- Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
(1) Assign personnel to a delinquent borrower by the time the servicer provides the borrower with the written notice required by § 1024.39(b), but in any event, not later than the 45th day of the borrower’s delinquency.
(2) Make available to a delinquent borrower, via telephone, personnel assigned to the borrower as described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section to respond to the borrower’s inquiries, and as applicable, assist the borrower with available loss mitigation options until the borrower has made, without incurring a late charge, two consecutive mortgage payments in accordance with the terms of a permanent loss mitigation agreement.
(3) If a borrower contacts the personnel assigned to the borrower as described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section and does not immediately receive a live response from such personnel, ensure that the servicer can provide a live response in a timely manner.
(b) Functions of servicer personnel. A servicer shall maintain policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure that servicer personnel assigned to a delinquent borrower as described in paragraph (a) of this section perform the following functions:
(1) Provide the borrower with accurate information about:
(i) Loss mitigation options available to the borrower from the owner or assignee of the borrower’s mortgage loan;
(ii) Actions the borrower must take to be evaluated for such loss mitigation options, including actions the borrower must take to submit a complete loss mitigation application, as defined in § 1024.41, and, if applicable, actions the borrower must take to appeal the servicer’s determination to deny a borrower’s loss mitigation application for any trial or permanent loan modification program offered by the servicer;
(iii) The status of any loss mitigation application that the borrower has submitted to the servicer;
(iv) The circumstances under which the servicer may make a referral to foreclosure; and
(v) Applicable loss mitigation deadlines established by an owner or assignee of the borrower’s mortgage loan or § 1024.41.
(2) Retrieve, in a timely manner:
(i) A complete record of the borrower’s payment history; and
(ii) All written information the borrower has provided to the servicer, and if applicable, to prior servicers, in connection with a loss mitigation application;
(3) Provide the documents and information identified in paragraph (b)(2) of this section to other persons required to evaluate a borrower for loss mitigation options made available by the servicer, if applicable; and
(4) Provide a delinquent borrower with information about the procedures for submitting a notice of error pursuant to § 1024.35 or an information request pursuant to § 1024.36.