Schwarzenegger signs three CA homeowner-protection bills

Citing California's disproportionate impact on national housing market fluctuations, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) signed three bills into law in early October intended to increase protections for Californians who own or plan to purchase homes, and designed to expand affordable-housing opportunities.

The first bill, S.B. 223, now makes it a crime for licensed appraisers to engage in any appraisal activity that is connected to the purchase, sale, transfer, financing or development of property if their compensation is impacted by the final price generated by the appraisal.

The second bill, S.B. 385, permits state agencies involved with residential mortgage lending and brokering to adopt emergency measures and new policies to ensure that all mortgage lenders and brokers are subject to federal guidelines on nontraditional mortgages. This law impacts the Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), the Department of Corporations (DOC) and the Department of Real Estate (DRE).