Protecting homebuyers, one step at a time

OLYMPIA – The Legislature continues to work hard to prevent Washingtonians’ dreams of homeownership from becoming nightmares.

Today, the House passed Senate Bill 6381, sponsored by Sen. Brian Weinstein, D-Mercer Island, to regulate the mortgage broker industry — which supplies about 70 percent of today’s home loans.

“We’ve all seen ads where mortgage brokers say ‘we’re working for you – we’ll find you the best loan.’ But all too often the best loan means the best loan for the broker’s bottom line – not the borrower,” Weinstein said. “In fact, at the peak of the subprime boom the Wall Street Journal found that over half of the borrowers in subprime mortgages actually qualified for prime loans.”

SB 6381 imposes a fiduciary duty on mortgage brokers – the legal responsibility for the mortgage broker to act in the best interest of the borrower. This is the same legal duty financial advisers, accountants, and trustees owe their clients.

Weinstein praised the House for their commitment to protecting consumers and encouraged them to continue passing meaningful legislation – like Senate Bill 6385, the Homebuyers’ Bill of Rights.

SB 6385, also sponsored by Weinstein, gives homebuyers the same rights that condo buyers were given by the Legislature in 1990. The bill establishes minimum warranties that require construction professionals to adhere to industry standards, building codes and engineering requirements.

“Just like a mortgage broker’s bottom line, having to pay potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars out of their own pocket to repair their own home because of shoddy construction is not a burden Washingtonians’ should have to shoulder,” Weinstein said. “Senate Bill 6385 gives homeowners, for the first time in state history, the means to require a builder to fix defects or compensate the homebuyer for them."

SB 6385 sailed through the Senate but is being in held in the House. The House of Representatives has until the end of the week to vote on the bill.

Return to Sen. Weinstein's home page