July-Aug 2020

RM Exclusive ON APRIL 21, Reverse Mortgage magazine interviewed then-Assistant Secretary for Housing/Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner Brian Montgomery to discuss FHA’s response to the COVID- 19 emergency and actions taken to assist Home Equity Conversion Mortgage (HECM) lenders and borrowers. The following is an edited transcription of that interview. (Note: Shortly following the interview, Montgomery was confirmed by the Senate as deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Dana Wade has since assumed the role of acting FHA commissioner while she awaits Senate confirmation.) Reverse Mortgage: Commissioner Montgomery, our members thank you for your leadership during this difficult time. How did your experience in the Bush White House during the 9/11 crisis inform the strategy to respond to COVID-19? Brian Montgomery: I appreciate the question. When you come to work for any administration, Republican or Democrat, you never know how the next four years will unfold. I’ve been fortunate to serve as a political appoin- tee for four presidents dating back to 1990. Nobody could have envisioned something like September 11. I was traveling with President Bush on that day and, as you know, the entire country rallied behind the president for obvious reasons. It was a time of tragedy and national mourning. The key thing was to get several industries back up and running again, and everybody across the government was work- ing to do exactly that. I also found myself as the White House point of contact following the Shuttle Columbia disas- ter when I took over the Office of Cabinet Affairs. That was in early February 2003. Then I was FHA Commissioner dealing with the collapse of the housing market in 2007, ’08 and ’09. Here we are again facing another unimaginable calamity in the form of a global pandemic. Just when you think you’ve seen just about everything, this comes along. Yes, there have been key lessons learned along the way. There must be an unanimity of purpose, a plan to move quickly and an ability to make adjustments along the way as you see fit. That is a tried-and-true for- mula that has served me well in years past. RM: The HUD staff has moved rapidly to confront issues raised by the crisis. Emergency policy actions address projected problems and have an intended result. Can you please explain the intent of these actions? • Permitting external appraisals; • Electronic submission of case binders; and • A foreclosure moratorium until at least May 18. An Interview With FHA Commissioner Brian Montgomery By Darryl Hicks Brian Montgomery 8 REVERSE MORTGAGE / JULY-AUGUST 2020