The Washington Report

On June 24, 2026, NAR submitted comments in response to the U.S. Copyright Office’s notice of inquiry on alternative fee structures for copyright registration.

The Copyright Office is considering changes to the fees it charges for registration as it modernizes the system. For real estate professionals, copyright registration is important because it helps protect MLS listings, photos, videos, and original data compilations from unauthorized scraping and use. Timely registration is generally required to bring an infringement case in federal court and to seek statutory damages and attorneys’ fees.

In its comments, NAR emphasized that MLSs have a higher burden than other copyright registrants. Because MLS databases are continuously updated, they must be registered multiple times each year to obtain the same legal protections that many other copyright owners can secure through a single filing—driving higher costs and administrative burden. NAR also noted that MLS registrations remain paper based, requiring applicants to print and mail sample listing records that the Copyright Office must manually process, adding cost and delay.

NAR urged the Copyright Office to ensure that any changes reflect these unique challenges. Specifically, NAR called on the Office to:

• Ensure MLS fees reflect principles of fairness and equity while encouraging registration
• Modernize the registration process, including moving to electronic filing for MLSs
• Ensure MLS fees are cost based, appropriate to the size of the organization, and not set above cost based on untested assumptions about large corporate price insensitivity

NAR will continue engaging with the Copyright Office as it evaluates potential changes and will advocate for a registration system that is efficient, modern, and equitable for MLSs and real estate professionals.

Read NAR’s letter: https://www.narfocus.com/file/7691.pdf

HUD has announced fourteen policy changes to its Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Single Family mortgage insurance program with the intention to lower costs, reduce regulatory burdens, and improve affordability. These changes include:

• Streamlining appraisal field review requirements to better align with conventional financing requirements, 
• Expanding flexibility under the limited 203(k) rehabilitation mortgage insurance program, 
• Modernizing FHA mortgagee approval and quality control, 
• Eliminating the duplicative requirement for lenders to use the important notice to homebuyers Form 92900-B, and
• Clarifying loss mitigation requirements governing trial payment plans.

NAR supports efforts to modernize and streamline regulations in ways that responsibly increase credit availability for qualified borrowers, reduce regulatory burden in the lending process, and help ease affordability challenges facing prospective homebuyers. These changes are especially significant for consumers and real estate professionals, as they can help streamline transactions, reduce delays and costs, and improve access to financing for qualified buyers.

Read the HUD press release here.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued its decision in Pung v. Isabella County, a case focused on tax foreclosure sales, holding that “the proper baseline under the Takings Clause is the price obtained in a tax sale, at least when the sale is fairly conducted in light of our country’s history of tax sales.”

As previously reported, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), joined by the American Property Owners Alliance, Michigan REALTORS®, and the Wisconsin REALTORS® Association, submitted an amicus brief supporting the Michigan family at the center of the case and their effort to protect home equity following a tax foreclosure.

The dispute arises from a Michigan home the Pung family purchased in 1991 for $125,000 and continuously occupied as their primary residence. Years later, a local tax assessor improperly reclassified the property as a second home, resulting in additional taxes. Although a state tax tribunal ultimately determined those taxes were not owed, the county nevertheless moved forward with foreclosure based on a disputed bill of approximately $2,242. The home was foreclosed and sold at a tax auction for $76,008, significantly below its tax assessed value of $194,400. Less than 18 months later, the home was resold on the open market for roughly $195,000. While subsequent litigation returned the surplus from the auction to the family, the family maintained that they were deprived of the full value of their home equity.

The Supreme Court’s decision builds on its 2023 ruling in Tyler v. Hennepin County, which affirmed that homeowners have a constitutional right to any surplus equity following a tax foreclosure. In Pung, the Court addressed how that equity should be measured, holding that auction sale price may serve as the benchmark in many cases, provided the sale is fairly conducted. While the decision reinforces that governments cannot take more than they are owed, it leaves open important questions about the fairness of tax foreclosure sales.

The case now returns to the Sixth Circuit, where these issues may be examined further. In the meantime, the decision keeps the conversation active for policymakers, courts, and industry stakeholders evaluating reforms to tax foreclosure systems.

NAR will continue to advocate for policies that protect property rights and ensure homeowners are not unfairly deprived of their equity, and will provide updates as the case progresses. 

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court struck down a sweeping ballot measure that would have imposed one of the nation’s most restrictive statewide rent control regimes, delivering a significant victory for housing affordability and supply. After the attorney general certified the measure for the ballot, housing providers filed suit challenging that certification as improper. The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) supported the housing providers by filing an amicus brief highlighting the measure’s legal, economic, and policy flaws.

The ballot measure sought to repeal the Massachusetts Rent Control Prohibition Act of 1994, approved by voters more than three decades ago, and replace it with a mandatory statewide rent control system with limited exemptions. As drafted, the proposal failed to provide housing providers with a viable path to maintain fair net operating income or recover rising costs such as property taxes, insurance, repairs, and capital improvements. It also lacked essential safeguards, including any mechanism for hardship relief.

In its advocacy, NAR emphasized that, despite being well intentioned, the measure would ultimately worsen housing challenges. Extensive economic research shows that rent control suppresses new development, discourages long-term investment, diminishes housing quality, and ultimately limits housing options for renters.

This victory reinforces NAR’s commitment to advancing housing policies that expand supply, support sustainable investment, and protect both property owners and renters. In collaboration with the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® and industry partners, NAR continues to champion solutions that promote long-term housing affordability.

On June 15, 2026, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) launched the VA Partial Claim Program, authorized by the VA Home Loan Program Reform Act. The program allows mortgage servicers to bring a delinquent VA loan current without increasing the borrower’s monthly payment. After a three‑month trial payment period, the servicer advances the missed payments and is reimbursed by VA; that amount is then repaid when the home is sold, refinanced, or the loan is paid off. Servicers may begin implementing the program as of June 15, 2026, and must be fully compliant by November 28, 2026. 

The Partial Claim Program is part of a new, streamlined, permanent loss‑mitigation framework that standardizes how delinquent VA loans are resolved through a structured “waterfall.” This framework includes repayment plans, traditional and extended loan modifications, including terms of up to 40 years, and disaster relief options. 

The goal of VA’s updated approach is to create a more predictable, borrower‑focused system that prioritizes home retention while providing servicers with clearer guidance and more effective tools. The result is expected to reduce forced sales and strengthen long‑term housing stability for veteran homeowners. 

FAQs: VA Partial Claims Program and Loss Mitigation Waterfall FAQs for Servicers - VA Home Loans