Rule2026-00085
Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z) Adjustment to Asset-Size Exemption Threshold
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
January 7, 2026
Effective
January 7, 2026
Issuing agencies
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Abstract
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) is amending the official commentary to its Regulation Z in order to make annual adjustments to the asset-size thresholds exempting certain creditors from the requirement to establish an escrow account for a higher-priced mortgage loan (HPML). The exemption threshold for creditors and their affiliates that regularly extended covered transactions secured by first liens is adjusted to $2.785 billion and the exemption threshold for certain insured depository institutions and insured credit unions with assets of $10 billion or less is adjusted to $12.485 billion.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 4 (Wednesday, January 7, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 7, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 447-452]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-00085]
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CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU
12 CFR Part 1026
Truth in Lending Act (Regulation Z) Adjustment to Asset-Size
Exemption Threshold
AGENCY: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
ACTION: Final rule; official interpretation.
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SUMMARY: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) is amending
the official commentary to its Regulation Z in order to make annual
adjustments to the asset-size thresholds exempting certain creditors
from the requirement to establish an escrow account for a higher-priced
mortgage loan (HPML). The exemption threshold for creditors and their
affiliates that regularly extended covered transactions secured by
first liens is adjusted to $2.785 billion and the exemption threshold
for certain insured depository institutions and insured credit unions
with assets of $10 billion or less is adjusted to $12.485 billion.
DATES: This rule is effective on January 7, 2026.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dave Gettler, Paralegal Specialist,
Office of Regulations, at (202) 435-7700 or at: <a href="https://reginquiries.consumerfinance.gov">https://reginquiries.consumerfinance.gov</a>. If you require this document in an
alternative electronic format, please contact
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4605001604190725252335352f242f2a2f323f062520362468212930"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="094a4f594b56486a6a6c7a7a606b6065607d70496a6f796b276e667f">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Section 129D of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) generally requires
creditors to establish escrow accounts for certain first-lien higher-
priced mortgage loan transactions. However, TILA section 129D also
permits the Bureau to exempt creditors from this higher-priced mortgage
loan escrow requirement if they meet certain requirements, including
any asset-size threshold that the Bureau may establish.
In the 2013 Escrows Final Rule,\1\ the Bureau established an asset-
size threshold of $2 billion, to adjust automatically each year, based
on the year-to-year change in the average of the Consumer Price Index
for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for each 12-month
period ending in November, with rounding to the nearest million
dollars.\2\ In 2015, the Bureau made two general revisions to the
threshold. It revised the threshold to count the assets of the
creditor's affiliates that regularly extended covered transactions
secured by first liens during the applicable period. It also added a
grace period to allow an otherwise eligible creditor that exceeded the
asset limit in the preceding calendar year (but not in the calendar
year before the preceding year) to continue to operate as a small
creditor with respect to transactions with applications received before
April 1 of the current calendar year.\3\ For 2025, the threshold was
$2.717 billion.
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\1\ 78 FR 4726 (Jan. 22, 2013).
\2\ See 12 CFR 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C).
\3\ See 80 FR 59943, 59951 (Oct. 2, 2015). The Bureau also
issued an interim final rule in March 2016 to revise certain
provisions in Regulation Z to effectuate the Helping Expand Lending
Practices in Rural Communities Act's amendments to TILA (Pub. L.
114-94, sec. 89003, 129 Stat. 1312, 1800-01 (2015)). The rule
broadened the cohort of creditors that may be eligible under TILA
for the special provisions allowing origination of balloon-payment
qualified mortgages and balloon-payment high-cost mortgages, as well
as for the escrow exemption. See 81 FR 16074 (Mar. 25, 2016).
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During the 12-month period ending in November 2025, the average of
the CPI-W increased by 2.5 percent.\4\ As a result, the exemption
threshold is increased to $2.785 billion for 2026.\5\ Thus, if the
creditor's assets together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2025 are less than $2.785 billion on December 31, 2025, and it meets
the other requirements of Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii), the creditor will
be exempt from the escrow-accounts requirement for higher-priced
mortgage loans in 2026 and will also be exempt from the escrow-accounts
requirement for higher-priced mortgage loans for purposes of any loan
consummated in 2027 with applications received before April 1, 2027.
The adjustment to the escrows asset-size exemption threshold
[[Page 448]]
also will increase the threshold for small-creditor portfolio and
balloon-payment qualified mortgages under Regulation Z. The
requirements for small-creditor portfolio qualified mortgages at Sec.
1026.43(e)(5)(i)(D) reference the asset threshold in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C). Likewise, the requirements for balloon-payment
qualified mortgages at Sec. 1026.43(f)(1)(vi) reference the asset
threshold in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C). Under Sec.
1026.32(d)(1)(ii)(C), balloon-payment qualified mortgages that satisfy
all applicable criteria in Sec. 1026.43(f)(1)(i) through (vi) and
(f)(2), including being made by creditors that have (together with
certain affiliates) total assets below the threshold in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C), are also excepted from the prohibition on
balloon payments for high-cost mortgages.
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\4\ The non-seasonally adjusted Consumer Price Index for Urban
Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for October 2025 was not
reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Accordingly, the
Bureau excluded October 2025 from its calculation of the average
CPI-W for the 12-month period ending in November 2025.
\5\ Adjusted dollar amounts throughout this final rule are
calculated by applying the relevant consumer price index to the
previous year's unrounded dollar amount before rounding to the
nearest million dollars. Accordingly, applying the rounded consumer
price index figures to the previous year's rounded dollar amounts
may not add up to the total dollar amount shown.
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In the 2018 Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer
Protection Act (EGRRCPA),\6\ Congress directed the Bureau to, by
regulation, establish a new exemption from TILA's escrow requirement
for transactions by certain insured depository institutions and insured
credit unions.\7\ In 2021, the Bureau issued a final rule implementing
this exemption in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(vi) (2021 Escrows Rule).\8\ The
final rule exempted from the Regulation Z HPML escrow requirement any
loan made by an insured depository institution or insured credit union
and secured by a first lien on the principal dwelling of a consumer if:
(1) the institution has assets of $10 billion or less; (2) the
institution and its affiliates originated 1,000 or fewer loans secured
by a first lien on a principal dwelling during the preceding calendar
year; and (3) certain of the existing HPML escrow exemption criteria
are met. In the 2021 Escrows Rule, the Bureau established an asset-size
threshold of $10 billion or less in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(vi)(A), to
adjust automatically each year, based on the year-to-year change in the
average of the CPI-W, not seasonally adjusted, for each 12-month period
ending in November, with rounding to the nearest million dollars.
Unlike the asset threshold in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii) and the other
thresholds in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(vi), affiliates are not considered in
calculating compliance with this asset threshold. For calendar year
2025, the asset threshold was $12.179 billion.
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\6\ Public Law 115-174, 132 Stat. 1296 (2018).
\7\ EGRRCPA sec. 108, 132 Stat. 1304-05; 15 U.S.C. 1639d(c)(2).
\8\ 86 FR 9840 (Feb. 17, 2021).
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During the 12-month period ending in November 2025, the average of
the CPI-W increased by 2.5 percent. As a result, the exemption
threshold is increased to $12.485 billion for 2026. Thus, a creditor
that is an insured depository institution or insured credit union that
during calendar year 2025 had assets of $12.485 billion or less on
December 31, 2025, satisfies this criterion for purposes of any loan
consummated in 2026 and for purposes of any loan secured by a first
lien on a principal dwelling of a consumer consummated in 2027 for
which the application was received before April 1, 2027.
II. Procedural Requirements
A. Administrative Procedure Act
Under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), notice and
opportunity for public comment are not required if the Bureau finds
that notice and public comment are impracticable, unnecessary, or
contrary to the public interest. 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B). Pursuant to this
final rule, comment 35(b)(2)(iii)-1 in Regulation Z is amended to
update the exemption threshold in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii) and comment
35(b)(2)(vi)(A)-1 in Regulation Z is amended to update the exemption
threshold in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(vi). The amendments in this final rule
are technical and merely apply the formulae previously established in
Regulation Z for determining any adjustments to the exemption
thresholds. For these reasons, the Bureau has determined that
publishing a notice of proposed rulemaking and providing opportunity
for public comment are unnecessary. Therefore, the amendments are
adopted in final form.
Section 553(d) of the APA generally requires publication of a final
rule not less than 30 days before its effective date, except in the
case of (1) a substantive rule which grants or recognizes an exemption
or relieves a restriction; (2) interpretive rules and statements of
policy; or (3) as otherwise provided by the agency for good cause found
and published with the rule. 5 U.S.C. 553(d). At a minimum, the Bureau
has determined the amendments fall under the third exception to section
553(d). The Bureau finds that there is good cause to make the
amendments effective as of the date of publication in the Federal
Register. The amendments in this final rule are technical and non-
discretionary, and they merely apply the method previously established
in the agency's regulations for automatic adjustments to the
thresholds.
B. Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) does not apply to a rulemaking
where a general notice of proposed rulemaking is not required.\9\ As
noted previously, the Bureau has determined that it is unnecessary to
publish a general notice of proposed rulemaking for this final rule.
Accordingly, the RFA's requirement relating to an initial and final
regulatory flexibility analysis does not apply.
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\9\ 5 U.S.C. 603(a), 604(a).
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C. Paperwork Reduction Act
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et
seq.), Federal agencies are generally required to seek the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB)'s approval for information collection
requirements prior to implementation. Under the PRA, the Bureau may not
conduct or sponsor and, notwithstanding any other provision of law, a
person is not required to respond to an information collection unless
the information collection displays a valid control number assigned by
OMB.
The Bureau has determined that this final rule would not impose any
new or revised information collection requirements (recordkeeping,
reporting or disclosure requirements) that would constitute collections
of information requiring OMB approval under the PRA.
D. Executive Order 12866
The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs within the Office
of Management and Budget (OMB) has determined that this action is not a
``significant regulatory action'' under E.O. 12866, as amended.
E. Congressional Review Act
Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.),
the Bureau will submit a report containing this rule and other required
information to the United States Senate, the United States House of
Representatives, and the Comptroller General of the United States prior
to the rule taking effect. The Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs (OIRA) has designated this rule as not a ``major rule'' as
defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
List of Subjects in 12 CFR Part 1026
Advertising, Banks, Banking, Consumer protection, Credit, Credit
unions, Mortgages, National banks, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Savings associations, Truth-in-lending.
Authority and Issuance
For the reasons set forth above, the Bureau amends Regulation Z, 12
CFR part 1026, as set forth below:
[[Page 449]]
PART 1026--TRUTH IN LENDING (REGULATION Z)
0
1. The authority citation for part 1026 is revised to read as follows:
Authority: 12 U.S.C. 2601, 2603-2605, 2607, 2609, 2617, 3353,
3354, 5511, 5512, 5532, 5581; 15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.
0
2. In supplement I to part 1026, under Sec. 1026.35--Requirements for
Higher-Priced Mortgage Loans, 35(b)(2) Exemptions, revise Paragraph
35(b)(2)(iii) and Paragraph 35(b)(2)(vi)(A) to read as follows:
Supplement I to Part 1026--Official Interpretations
* * * * *
Subpart E--Special Rules for Certain Home Mortgage Transactions
* * * * *
Section 1026.35--Requirements for Higher-Priced Mortgage Loans
* * * * *
35(b)(2) Exemptions
* * * * *
Paragraph 35(b)(2)(iii)
1. Requirements for exemption. Under Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii),
except as provided in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(v), a creditor need not
establish an escrow account for taxes and insurance for a higher-priced
mortgage loan, provided the following four conditions are satisfied
when the higher-priced mortgage loan is consummated:
i. During the preceding calendar year, or during either of the two
preceding calendar years if the application for the loan was received
before April 1 of the current calendar year, a creditor extended a
first-lien covered transaction, as defined in Sec. 1026.43(b)(1),
secured by a property located in an area that is either ``rural'' or
``underserved,'' as set forth in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iv).
A. In general, whether the rural-or-underserved test is satisfied
depends on the creditor's activity during the preceding calendar year.
However, if the application for the loan in question was received
before April 1 of the current calendar year, the creditor may instead
meet the rural-or-underserved test based on its activity during the
next-to-last calendar year. This provides creditors with a grace period
if their activity meets the rural-or-underserved test (in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(A)) in one calendar year but fails to meet it in the
next calendar year.
B. A creditor meets the rural-or-underserved test for any higher-
priced mortgage loan consummated during a calendar year if it extended
a first-lien covered transaction in the preceding calendar year secured
by a property located in a rural-or-underserved area. If the creditor
does not meet the rural-or-underserved test in the preceding calendar
year, the creditor meets this condition for a higher-priced mortgage
loan consummated during the current calendar year only if the
application for the loan was received before April 1 of the current
calendar year and the creditor extended a first-lien covered
transaction during the next-to-last calendar year that is secured by a
property located in a rural or underserved area. The following examples
are illustrative:
1. Assume that a creditor extended during 2016 a first-lien covered
transaction that is secured by a property located in a rural or
underserved area. Because the creditor extended a first-lien covered
transaction during 2016 that is secured by a property located in a
rural or underserved area, the creditor can meet this condition for
exemption for any higher-priced mortgage loan consummated during 2017.
2. Assume that a creditor did not extend during 2016 a first-lien
covered transaction secured by a property that is located in a rural or
underserved area. Assume further that the same creditor extended during
2015 a first-lien covered transaction that is located in a rural or
underserved area. Assume further that the creditor consummates a
higher-priced mortgage loan in 2017 for which the application was
received in November 2017. Because the creditor did not extend during
2016 a first-lien covered transaction secured by a property that is
located in a rural or underserved area, and the application was
received on or after April 1, 2017, the creditor does not meet this
condition for exemption. However, assume instead that the creditor
consummates a higher-priced mortgage loan in 2017 based on an
application received in February 2017. The creditor meets this
condition for exemption for this loan because the application was
received before April 1, 2017, and the creditor extended during 2015 a
first-lien covered transaction that is located in a rural or
underserved area.
ii. The creditor and its affiliates together extended no more than
2,000 covered transactions, as defined in Sec. 1026.43(b)(1), secured
by first liens, that were sold, assigned, or otherwise transferred by
the creditor or its affiliates to another person, or that were subject
at the time of consummation to a commitment to be acquired by another
person, during the preceding calendar year or during either of the two
preceding calendar years if the application for the loan was received
before April 1 of the current calendar year. For purposes of Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(B), a transfer of a first-lien covered transaction
to ``another person'' includes a transfer by a creditor to its
affiliate.
A. In general, whether this condition is satisfied depends on the
creditor's activity during the preceding calendar year. However, if the
application for the loan in question is received before April 1 of the
current calendar year, the creditor may instead meet this condition
based on activity during the next-to-last calendar year. This provides
creditors with a grace period if their activity falls at or below the
threshold in one calendar year but exceeds it in the next calendar
year.
B. For example, assume that in 2015 a creditor and its affiliates
together extended 1,500 loans that were sold, assigned, or otherwise
transferred by the creditor or its affiliates to another person, or
that were subject at the time of consummation to a commitment to be
acquired by another person, and 2,500 such loans in 2016. Because the
2016 transaction activity exceeds the threshold but the 2015
transaction activity does not, the creditor satisfies this condition
for exemption for a higher-priced mortgage loan consummated during 2017
if the creditor received the application for the loan before April 1,
2017, but does not satisfy this condition for a higher-priced mortgage
loan consummated during 2017 if the application for the loan was
received on or after April 1, 2017.
C. For purposes of Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(B), extensions of
first-lien covered transactions, during the applicable time period, by
all of a creditor's affiliates, as ``affiliate'' is defined in Sec.
1026.32(b)(5), are counted toward the threshold in this section.
``Affiliate'' is defined in Sec. 1026.32(b)(5) as ``any company that
controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with another
company, as set forth in the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 (12
U.S.C. 1841 et seq.).'' Under the Bank Holding Company Act, a company
has control over a bank or another company if it directly or indirectly
or acting through one or more persons owns, controls, or has power to
vote 25 per centum or more of any class of voting securities of the
bank or company; it controls in any manner the election of a majority
of the directors or trustees of the bank or company; or the Federal
Reserve Board determines, after notice and opportunity for hearing,
that the company directly or indirectly
[[Page 450]]
exercises a controlling influence over the management or policies of
the bank or company. 12 U.S.C. 1841(a)(2).
iii. As of the end of the preceding calendar year, or as of the end
of either of the two preceding calendar years if the application for
the loan was received before April 1 of the current calendar year, the
creditor and its affiliates that regularly extended covered
transactions secured by first liens, together, had total assets that
are less than the applicable annual asset threshold.
A. For purposes of Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C), in addition to the
creditor's assets, only the assets of a creditor's ``affiliate'' (as
defined by Sec. 1026.32(b)(5)) that regularly extended covered
transactions (as defined by Sec. 1026.43(b)(1)) secured by first
liens, are counted toward the applicable annual asset threshold. See
comment 35(b)(2)(iii)-1.ii.C for discussion of definition of
``affiliate.''
B. Only the assets of a creditor's affiliate that regularly
extended first-lien covered transactions during the applicable period
are included in calculating the creditor's assets. The meaning of
``regularly extended'' is based on the number of times a person extends
consumer credit for purposes of the definition of ``creditor'' in Sec.
1026.2(a)(17). Because covered transactions are ``transactions secured
by a dwelling,'' consistent with Sec. 1026.2(a)(17)(v), an affiliate
regularly extended covered transactions if it extended more than five
covered transactions in a calendar year. Also consistent with Sec.
1026.2(a)(17)(v), because a covered transaction may be a high-cost
mortgage subject to Sec. 1026.32, an affiliate regularly extends
covered transactions if, in any 12-month period, it extends more than
one covered transaction that is subject to the requirements of Sec.
1026.32 or one or more such transactions through a mortgage broker.
Thus, if a creditor's affiliate regularly extended first-lien covered
transactions during the preceding calendar year, the creditor's assets
as of the end of the preceding calendar year, for purposes of the asset
limit, take into account the assets of that affiliate. If the creditor,
together with its affiliates that regularly extended first-lien covered
transactions, exceeded the asset limit in the preceding calendar year--
to be eligible to operate as a small creditor for transactions with
applications received before April 1 of the current calendar year--the
assets of the creditor's affiliates that regularly extended covered
transactions in the year before the preceding calendar year are
included in calculating the creditor's assets.
C. If multiple creditors share ownership of a company that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions, the assets of the
company count toward the asset limit for a co-owner creditor if the
company is an ``affiliate,'' as defined in Sec. 1026.32(b)(5), of the
co-owner creditor. Assuming the company is not an affiliate of the co-
owner creditor by virtue of any other aspect of the definition (such as
by the company and co-owner creditor being under common control), the
company's assets are included toward the asset limit of the co-owner
creditor only if the company is controlled by the co-owner creditor,
``as set forth in the Bank Holding Company Act.'' If the co-owner
creditor and the company are affiliates (by virtue of any aspect of the
definition), the co-owner creditor counts all of the company's assets
toward the asset limit, regardless of the co-owner creditor's ownership
share. Further, because the co-owner and the company are mutual
affiliates the company also would count all of the co-owner's assets
towards its own asset limit. See comment 35(b)(2)(iii)-1.ii.C for
discussion of the definition of ``affiliate.''
D. A creditor satisfies the criterion in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C) for purposes of any higher-priced mortgage loan
consummated during 2016, for example, if the creditor (together with
its affiliates that regularly extended first-lien covered transactions)
had total assets of less than the applicable asset threshold on
December 31, 2015. A creditor that (together with its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions) did not meet the
applicable asset threshold on December 31, 2015, satisfies this
criterion for a higher-priced mortgage loan consummated during 2016 if
the application for the loan was received before April 1, 2016, and the
creditor (together with its affiliates that regularly extended first-
lien covered transactions) had total assets of less than the applicable
asset threshold on December 31, 2014.
E. Under Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(C), the $2,000,000,000 asset
threshold adjusts automatically each year based on the year-to-year
change in the average of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage
Earners and Clerical Workers, not seasonally adjusted, for each 12-
month period ending in November, with rounding to the nearest million
dollars. The Bureau will publish notice of the asset threshold each
year by amending this comment. For calendar year 2026, the asset
threshold is $2,785,000,000. A creditor that together with the assets
of its affiliates that regularly extended first-lien covered
transactions during calendar year 2025 has total assets of less than
$2,785,000,000 on December 31, 2025, satisfies this criterion for
purposes of any loan consummated in 2026 and for purposes of any loan
consummated in 2027 for which the application was received before April
1, 2027. For historical purposes:
1. For calendar year 2013, the asset threshold was $2,000,000,000.
Creditors that had total assets of less than $2,000,000,000 on December
31, 2012, satisfied this criterion for purposes of the exemption during
2013.
2. For calendar year 2014, the asset threshold was $2,028,000,000.
Creditors that had total assets of less than $2,028,000,000 on December
31, 2013, satisfied this criterion for purposes of the exemption during
2014.
3. For calendar year 2015, the asset threshold was $2,060,000,000.
Creditors that had total assets of less than $2,060,000,000 on December
31, 2014, satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated
in 2015 and, if the creditor's assets together with the assets of its
affiliates that regularly extended first-lien covered transactions
during calendar year 2014 were less than that amount, for purposes of
any loan consummated in 2016 for which the application was received
before April 1, 2016.
4. For calendar year 2016, the asset threshold was $2,052,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2015 had total assets of less than $2,052,000,000 on December 31, 2015,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2016
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2017 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2017.
5. For calendar year 2017, the asset threshold was $2,069,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2016 had total assets of less than $2,069,000,000 on December 31, 2016,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2017
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2018 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2018.
6. For calendar year 2018, the asset threshold was $2,112,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2017 had total assets of less than $2,112,000,000 on December 31, 2017,
satisfied this criterion for
[[Page 451]]
purposes of any loan consummated in 2018 and for purposes of any loan
consummated in 2019 for which the application was received before April
1, 2019.
7. For calendar year 2019, the asset threshold was $2,167,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2018 had total assets of less than $2,167,000,000 on December 31, 2018,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2019
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2020 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2020.
8. For calendar year 2020, the asset threshold was $2,202,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2019 had total assets of less than $2,202,000,000 on December 31, 2019,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2020
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2021 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2021.
9. For calendar year 2021, the asset threshold was $2,230,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2020 had total assets of less than $2,230,000,000 on December 31, 2020,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2021
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2022 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2022.
10. For calendar year 2022, the asset threshold was $2,336,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2021 had total assets of less than $2,336,000,000 on December 31, 2021,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2022
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2023 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2023.
11. For calendar year 2023, the asset threshold was $2,537,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2022 had total assets of less than $2,537,000,000 on December 31, 2022,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2023
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2024 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2024.
12. For calendar year 2024, the asset threshold was $2,640,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2023 had total assets of less than $2,640,000,000 on December 31, 2023,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2024
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2025 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2025.
13. For calendar year 2025, the asset threshold was $2,717,000,000.
A creditor that together with the assets of its affiliates that
regularly extended first-lien covered transactions during calendar year
2024 had total assets of less than $2,717,000,000 on December 31, 2024,
satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated in 2025
and for purposes of any loan consummated in 2026 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2026.
iv. The creditor and its affiliates do not maintain an escrow
account for any mortgage transaction being serviced by the creditor or
its affiliate at the time the transaction is consummated, except as
provided in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(D)(1) and (2). Thus, the exemption
applies, provided the other conditions of Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii) (or,
if applicable, the conditions for the exemption in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(vi)) are satisfied, even if the creditor previously
maintained escrow accounts for mortgage loans, provided it no longer
maintains any such accounts except as provided in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(D)(1) and (2). Once a creditor or its affiliate
begins escrowing for loans currently serviced other than those
addressed in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(D)(1) and (2), however, the
creditor and its affiliate become ineligible for the exemption in Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii) and (vi) on higher-priced mortgage loans they make
while such escrowing continues. Thus, as long as a creditor (or its
affiliate) services and maintains escrow accounts for any mortgage
loans, other than as provided in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii)(D)(1) and
(2), the creditor will not be eligible for the exemption for any
higher-priced mortgage loan it may make. For purposes of Sec.
1026.35(b)(2)(iii) and (vi), a creditor or its affiliate ``maintains''
an escrow account only if it services a mortgage loan for which an
escrow account has been established at least through the due date of
the second periodic payment under the terms of the legal obligation.
* * * * *
Paragraph 35(b)(2)(vi)(A)
1. The asset threshold in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(vi)(A) will adjust
automatically each year, based on the year-to-year change in the
average of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical
Workers, not seasonally adjusted, for each 12-month period ending in
November, with rounding to the nearest million dollars. Unlike the
asset threshold in Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(iii) and the other thresholds in
Sec. 1026.35(b)(2)(vi), affiliates are not considered in calculating
compliance with this threshold. The Bureau will publish notice of the
asset threshold each year by amending this comment. For calendar year
2026, the asset threshold is $12,485,000,000. A creditor that is an
insured depository institution or insured credit union that during
calendar year 2025 had assets of $12,485,000,000 or less on December
31, 2025, satisfies this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated
in 2026 and for purposes of any loan secured by a first lien on a
principal dwelling of a consumer consummated in 2027 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2027. For historical purposes:
1. For calendar year 2021, the asset threshold was $10,000,000,000.
Creditors that had total assets of 10,000,000,000 or less on December
31, 2020, satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated
in 2021 and for purposes of any loan secured by a first lien on a
principal dwelling of a consumer consummated in 2022 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2022.
2. For calendar year 2022, the asset threshold was $10,473,000,000.
Creditors that had total assets of $10,473,000,000 or less on December
31, 2021, satisfied this criterion for purposes of any loan consummated
in 2022 and for purposes of any loan secured by a first lien on a
principal dwelling of a consumer consummated in 2023 for which the
application was received before April 1, 2023.
3. For calendar year 2023, the asset threshold was $11,374,000,000.
A creditor that is an insured depository institution or insured credit
union that during calendar year 2022 had assets of $11,374,000,000 or
less on December 31, 2022, satisfied this criterion for purposes of any
loan consummated in 2023 and for purposes of any loan secured by a
first lien on a principal dwelling of a consumer consummated
[[Page 452]]
in 2024 for which the application was received before April 1, 2024.
4. For calendar year 2024, the asset threshold was $11,835,000,000.
A creditor that is an insured depository institution or insured credit
union that during calendar year 2023 had assets of $11,835,000,000 or
less on December 31, 2023, satisfied this criterion for purposes of any
loan consummated in 2024 and for purposes of any loan secured by a
first lien on a principal dwelling of a consumer consummated in 2025
for which the application was received before April 1, 2025.
5. For calendar year 2025, the asset threshold was $12,179,000,000.
A creditor that is an insured depository institution or insured credit
union that during calendar year 2024 had assets of $12,179,000,000 or
less on December 31, 2024, satisfied this criterion for purposes of any
loan consummated in 2025 and for purposes of any loan secured by a
first lien on a principal dwelling of a consumer consummated in 2026
for which the application was received before April 1, 2026.
* * * * *
Russell Vought,
Acting Director, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
[FR Doc. 2026-00085 Filed 1-6-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-AM-P
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This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.