Following two years of uncertainty, the U S. Senate confirmed Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by a 66-34 vote. While an outstanding lawsuit questions the original recess appointment of Cordray to the post by President Barack Obama, the confirmation solidifies the director’s position as a host of new rules affecting the marketplace is set to take affect in Jan. 2014. Today’s vote eases concerns over what might have happened if Cordray had been forced to step down regarding current and past examinations, nonbank supervision and rules finalized during his term. Allyson Baker, a partner at Venable law firm who once worked for the CFPB, says “I think you now have some certainty that the work the agency has done so far will continue.” As for lenders and servicers, as MHProNews has learned from HousingWire, she adds, “It allows them to say this is what it’s going to look like, and now we can move forward because we have some certainty in the marketplace. Certainty is useful if you are trying to structure your business operations and working with fairly new paramaters.”
