The CFPB Wednesday released new FAQs for the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and Regulation X related to gifts, promotional activities, and marketing services agreements (MSAs). In addition, the bureau rescinded a 2015 compliance bulletin related to MSAs.

The FAQs are meant to address RESPA’s prohibition against kickbacks – providing anything of value for a referral relating to a settlement service in a mortgage transaction – and are broken out into four topics:

• general RESPA Section 8 provisions, including explanations of Sections 8(a) and 8(b), and what individuals, entities, and transactions are covered by the section;
• what activities are prohibited under Section 8(a);

 

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