Riddled throughout California’s Homeowner Bill of Rights are the words “repealed” effective “Jan. 1, 2018.” Unfortunately, many loan servicers assume that means the entire HOBR will be repealed and that all they have to worry about going forward is complying with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Loss Mitigation Rules.

Unfortunately, that is not the case. Many sections of HOBR are being replaced by new rules that automatically go into effect Jan. 1, 2018. In many instances, the new provisions are less onerous than their predecessors.

But, in some very key areas, the new provisions can cause servicers more problems. The key is to understand what provisions are being changed and how they impact your compliance procedures.

For starters, “HOBR II” attempts to remove the distinction between servicers conducting more or less than 175 annual foreclosures. In most respects, all servicers are treated the same going forward.

Civil Code Section 2923.55 will be history in 2018. Going forward, Section 2923.5 sets forth the pre-NOD contact requirements for Servicers of all sizes. The two statutes are substantially similar, except that the written notice regarding service members and the statement that the borrower may request a copy of the note, deed of trust, assignment, or payment history will no longer be required starting in 2018.

Read the rest HERE