As seen on MortgageOrb, Dec 2012: Marcy J. Ford Takes The USFN Steering Wheel By Phil Hall Excerpt: PERSON OF THE WEEK: Last month, Marcy J. Ford began a two-year term as president of the USFN, a 50-state trade association serving the mortgage banking industry. At the risk of editorializing, the USFN could not have found a better president - in her work as a partner and executive vice president of Trott & Trott, P.C., a Farmington Hills, Mich.-based law firm, Ford has been one of the most prominent experts in mortgage banking, especially in regard to servicing issues. MortgageOrb spoke with Ford about her new duties.

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Marcy J. Ford Takes The USFN Steering Wheel
Phil Hall, Tuesday 18 December 2012 - 13:55:59
PERSON OF THE WEEK: Last month, Marcy J. Ford began a two-year term as president of the USFN, a
50-state trade association serving the mortgage banking industry. At the risk of editorializing, the USFN
could not have found a better president - in her work as a partner and executive vice president of Trott &
Trott, P.C., a Farmington Hills, Mich.-based law firm, Ford has been one of the most prominent experts in
mortgage banking, especially in regard to servicing issues. MortgageOrb spoke with Ford about her new
duties.
Q: Congratulations on becoming USFN president. What are your goals for USFN in the next two years?
Ford: Thank you, it is certainly a special honor, and I feel extremely privileged, particularly because I'm a big
believer in the mission of the USFN. I have many goals for my term as president, all of which focus on increasing the viability
and sustainability of our member firms through this challenging time of transition in the industry.
Specifically, I will look to ensure that USFN remains the go-to organization for regulators, agencies, insurers, clients and
investors as both a national and local resource for industry knowledge and insight. Another goal is to help USFN members and
their partners - including the government-sponsored enterprises, agencies like the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and servicers - enhance adaptability to the constantly evolving legal
and regulatory landscape through active participation in the formulation and implementation of change initiatives.
Another significant focus will be continued work toward a unified audit process. Standard expectations across audits would
yield consistencies and process efficiencies that would make a significant positive impact for member law firms and on
mortgage servicers. This focus will extend to other legal issues, including Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) rule
applicability and the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act.
Q: Looking ahead to 2013, what do you see as the greatest challenges and concerns facing mortgage banking in general
and servicers in particular?
Ford: The servicing clients of USFN member firms have committed to changes of their models, perceptions and practices. In
2013 and beyond, ensuring that the technology is in place to support these changes will be a significant hurdle for servicers,
law firms and vendors alike. Technology and process automation, however, will be critical to maintaining viable operations for
all parties.
Partnership among entities throughout the mortgage servicing industry will be required to affect change, achieve consistency
and realize constancy.
Q: To date, what kind of an impact has the CFPB had on the industry?

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Ford: The CFPB's proposed rules will essentially take the National Mortgage Settlement requirements, which have specifically
impacted the "Big Five" servicers to date, and make them "law of the land" across all servicers and banks. Compliance matters
that were previously viewed as best practices will now be mandates with strict penalties in place for violations.
While the proposed rules won’t be finalized until January 2013, many servicers have studied them - particularly compared to
those of the settlement - and have already been building some rules into servicing practices. Preparations will certainly ease
the transition, but both lenders and servicers will experience significant process and compliance implications early in the new
year.
Q: The Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities (RMBS) Working Group that was convened by the Obama administration
earlier this year has yet to make a formal report. When do you believe this group will make its findings public, and what
impact could their findings have on mortgage banking?
Ford: The RMBS Working Group, which is co-chaired by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, was formed to
coordinate legal investigations across federal and state jurisdictions. I am not sure that the group will be releasing reports.
Rather, what is expected, and has now occurred, is the filing of legal actions charging corporations with fraudulent
misrepresentation and omissions for the purpose of promoting the sale of RMBS to investors.
The end result will likely be more rigorous enforcement of the rules and, perhaps, further regulation. Greater regulation could
lead to further constriction of the market.
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