Blog – Tuesdays with Mary

What’s the biggest problem small-business owners face? Right now, surviving the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic is probably the only thing most small-business owners are focused on, but a survey conducted by the NFIB prior to COVID-19 pointed to the cost of health insurance as their top concern. While the pandemic one day will end, as vaccines and successful treatments are developed, there seems no end to spiraling health insurance costs. “Although the government shutdowns and coronavirus pandemic have fundamentally shaken the small-business economy, we know that even during historic small-business expansions, owners consistently face many of the [...]

Dear Readers, It’s been nearly five months since I had the privilege of watching the Supreme Court in action in Seila Law vs. the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). At the time, it was difficult to tell which way the justices would go, as all four sides in the case made valid points as to whether or not the bureau’s single-director, for-cause only removal structure violates the separation of powers, and if so, what is the proper remedy to fix the flaw. As you’ve read, the CFPB has been declared unconstitutional. What do you think of the majority opinion that [...]

Dear Readers, To say that appraisers have adjusted to many changes implementing new procedures regarding how they complete their assignments over the last several months would be an understatement. From a legal standpoint, appraisers also must be cautious as to how they go about their procedures knowing that potential lawsuits stemming from the pandemic conditions could be lurking in the background. And claims can be filed by many people representing a number of organizations. “Most lawyers would likely agree that it’s legally plausible that appraisers potentially could pursue claims against homeowners in relation to the appraiser becoming ill with COVID-19 [...]

Dear Readers, This year may not look like what we planned back in January, but there are still good things happening. One of those things is the National Settlement Services Summit. This year’s show will be chock full of the education you need and the networking you’ve come to expect from this premier conference. This year’s conference will be highlighted in part by a pair of featured speakers from Washington regulators and the largest underwriter panel in the show’s history. Department of Housing and Urban Development Deputy Secretary Brian Montgomery returns to NS3 for the second consecutive year. Last year, [...]

Dear Readers, The Supreme Court’s ruling there was a constitutional defect in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) structure, but that the problem could be fixed without disbanding the agency, was a win for consumers. In a 5-4 decision, the court ruled the CFPB director must be removable by the president at will going forward, and that the agency should continue its work. Some of the CFPB’s critics argued the bureau was unconstitutional because it didn’t allow presidents to remove the agency’s director at will. The court agreed that they were right, but opted for a carving knife instead of [...]

Dear Readers, What was the real cost of redlining — the federal government’s policy of blocking Black families from obtaining loans by assigning low mortgage security ratings to predominantly Black neighborhoods and color-coding them in red on maps. In addition to fueling generations of dashed dreams and hampering upward mobility for millions, a report by Redfin said the practice that was outlawed in the 1960s remains a major factor in today’s wealth gap between Black and white families across the country. Redfin’s report said the typical homeowner in a neighborhood that was redlined for mortgage lending by the federal government [...]

Dear Readers, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson commemorated Juneteenth by touring the ENCORE! redevelopment area in Tampa, Fla. — a formerly segregated neighborhood that is prospering once again, while staying true to its African-American roots. Following race riots of the 1960s, the once-bustling business district was demolished. But in 2009, ENCORE construction began to slowly revitalize the area, which was declared an Opportunity Zone in 2018. Today, ENCORE is a 12-block downtown neighborhood with 662 completed mixed-income housing units with ground floor retail and amenity space, a state-of-the-art district chilled water plant, district storm water [...]

Dear Readers, The year was 2010, and that found me working as the business editor for a newspaper in suburban Chicago. There had been a lot of talk about financial reform at the federal level, to try and address the ills of the Great Recession, and as luck would have it, three of the legislators on the House Financial Services Committee (on both sides of the aisle) represented the small coverage area for our paper. That year, I learned more about derivatives, swaps, shadow banking, and mortgage reform than I ever wanted to know. That doesn’t even include the new [...]

Dear Readers, A few months ago, I would have flown to New Orleans for the Valuation 20/20 (formerly known as Valuation Expo) appraisal conference, reporting live on the news and notes my audience would find beneficial to their businesses. But with the arrival of the COVID-19 coronavirus resulting in a pandemic placed upon the country and stay-at-home orders by state government officials, “virtually” everything changed. And virtual is an operative word in that such a technological method would now be the safest of business practices for conference attendees; as opposed to boarding airplanes. And so, like many other business professionals, [...]

From the dairy farm to the settlement table One of the first things people tend to notice about attorney Tonia Sellers is her infectious laugh, but that doesn’t detract from her relentless determination and her willingness to roll up her sleeves to make things happen for her clients. Although her ability to wear different hats was nurtured during her early legal career, the foundation of her strong work ethic and versatile skill set was rooted at an early age growing up on a dairy farm in rural Alabama. “We didn’t take vacations,” recalls Tonia, 59. “When you grow up on a [...]