[Adam] Hi, I’m Adam DeSanctis. This is the Mortgage Minute. The latest news from the Mortgage Bankers Association, MBA expressed concern in a letter to the VA with the implementation timeline of the recently released Veterans Affairs servicing Purchase Program, or VASP. VASP is VAs lost mitigation response to today’s high interest rate environment in which servicers can provide distressed borrowers with a below market 2 ½% interest rate reduction with VA purchasing. The loan execution of VASP requires a complex servicing transfer process and new loss mitigation guidance, and there are key operational and technical questions that remain. Servicers are concerned with the lack of guidance available to implement the vast program by the October 1^st mandatory compliance deadline, particularly guidance for servicing transfers and loss mitigation, our letter makes two recommendations, one, to set clear expectations with veterans that servicers are working diligently to implement the vast program, and two, extend the mandatory compliance deadline beyond October 1^st of this year to provide six months once complete guidance is available, MBA will remain engaged with the VA team to ensure that servicers receive the necessary information to successfully transfer vast loans to VAs contractor and carry out new required loss mitigation guidance to limit the operational gaps that still exist. We continue to pursue regularly scheduled meetings to discuss the necessary details for implementation. That’s it for this week. Thank you for listening!

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As a strategic public affairs and communications executive with nearly two decades of experience,  Adam has deep expertise in strategy, management, and media relations.

He is widely considered to be an expert in a variety of communications, including advocacy, brand, executive, crisis, grassroots, and social media.

In his career, he has been the MBA spokesperson on a wide variety of real estate research and advocacy-related issues, promoted MBA research and advocacy efforts to financial, political, and trade industry media and on MBA’s social media channels, and secured media opportunities for MBA leadership on key real estate trends and issues, generated media coverage for MBA’s research and data on mortgage applications, credit availability, homebuilder applications, mortgage forbearance/delinquencies, commercial real estate originations, and forecasts, and other industry analysis, developed key strategic initiatives for MBA’s organizational public affairs plan, media relations and member communications support for mPower, MBA’s Opens Doors Foundation and MBA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs.