A recent RESPA enforcement action by the Consumer Financial Protection
Bureau has caused concerns about the
Bureau's interpretation of RESPA, including the section 8 (c)(2) exemption that allows fair market
value payments to settlement service providers for services provided.
The Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, sitting en banc, upheld an earlier determination that the Consumer Financial Protection
Bureau had incorrectly rejected a long - standing RESPA interpretation that
payments made to settlement service providers are permissible so long as those
payments are for goods or services actually provided and are for fair market
value.