119 
rental counseling (as such terms are defined in sub-
section (g)(1)). 
‘‘(B) QUALIFIED ENTITIES.—The Secretary shall 
establish standards and guidelines for eligibility of or-
ganizations (including governmental and nonprofit 
organizations) to receive assistance under this para-
graph. 
‘‘(C) DISTRIBUTION.—Assistance made available 
under this paragraph shall be distributed in a man-
ner that encourages efficient and successful counseling 
programs. 
‘‘(D) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.— 
There are authorized to be appropriated $45,000,000 
for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2011 for— 
‘‘(i) the operations of the Office of Housing 
Counseling of the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development; 
‘‘(ii) the responsibilities of the Secretary 
under paragraphs (2) through (5) of subsection 
(g); and 
‘‘(iii) assistance pursuant to this paragraph 
for entities providing homeownership and rental 
counseling.’’. 
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120 
SEC. 405. REQUIREMENTS TO USE HUD-CERTIFIED COUN-
SELORS UNDER HUD PROGRAMS. 
Section 106(e) of the Housing and Urban Development 
Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701x(e)) is amended— 
(1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 
following new paragraph: 
‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT FOR ASSISTANCE.—An orga-
nization may not receive assistance for counseling ac-
tivities under subsection (a)(1)(iii), (a)(2), (a)(4), (c), 
or (d) of this section, or under section 101(e), unless 
the organization, or the individuals through which the 
organization provides such counseling, has been cer-
tified by the Secretary under this subsection as com-
petent to provide such counseling.’’; 
(2) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘and for certifying organi-
zations’’ before the period at the end of the first 
sentence; and 
(B) in the second sentence by striking ‘‘for 
certification’’ and inserting ‘‘, for certification of 
an organization, that each individual through 
which the organization provides counseling shall 
demonstrate, and, for certification of an indi-
vidual,’’; 
(3) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘organiza-
tions and’’ before ‘‘individuals’’; 
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121 
(4) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para-
graph (5); and 
(5) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol-
lowing new paragraphs: 
‘‘(3) REQUIREMENT UNDER HUD PROGRAMS.— 
Any homeownership counseling or rental housing 
counseling (as such terms are defined in subsection 
(g)(1)) required under, or provided in connection 
with, any program administered by the Department 
of Housing and Urban Development shall be provided 
only by organizations or counselors certified by the 
Secretary under this subsection as competent to pro-
vide such counseling. 
‘‘(4) OUTREACH.—The Secretary shall take such 
actions as the Secretary considers appropriate to en-
sure that individuals and organizations providing 
homeownership or rental housing counseling are 
aware of the certification requirements and standards 
of this subsection and of the training and certification 
programs under subsection (f).’’. 
SEC. 406. STUDY OF DEFAULTS AND FORECLOSURES. 
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 
shall conduct an extensive study of the root causes of default 
and foreclosure of home loans, using as much empirical 
data as are available. The study shall also examine the role 
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122 
of escrow accounts in helping prime and nonprime bor-
rowers to avoid defaults and foreclosures. Not later than 12 
months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary shall submit to the Congress a preliminary report 
regarding the study. Not later than 24 months after such 
date of enactment, the Secretary shall submit a final report 
regarding the results of the study, which shall include any 
recommended legislation relating to the study, and rec-
ommendations for best practices and for a process to iden-
tify populations that need counseling the most. 
SEC. 407. DEFINITIONS FOR COUNSELING-RELATED PRO-
GRAMS. 
Section 106 of the Housing and Urban Development 
Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701x), as amended by the preceding 
provisions of this title, is further amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
‘‘(1) 
NONPROFIT
ORGANIZATION.—The 
term 
‘nonprofit organization’ has the meaning given such 
term in section 104(5) of the Cranston-Gonzalez Na-
tional Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12704(5)), 
except that subparagraph (D) of such section shall not 
apply for purposes of this section. 
‘‘(2) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means each of the 
several States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the 
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123 
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the North-
ern Mariana Islands, Guam, the Virgin Islands, 
American Samoa, the Trust Territories of the Pacific, 
or any other possession of the United States. 
‘‘(3) UNIT OF GENERAL LOCAL GOVERNMENT.— 
The term ‘unit of general local government’ means 
any city, county, parish, town, township, borough, 
village, or other general purpose political subdivision 
of a State.’’. 
SEC. 408. UPDATING AND SIMPLIFICATION OF MORTGAGE 
INFORMATION BOOKLET. 
Section 5 of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act 
of 1974 (12 U.S.C. 2604) is amended— 
(1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘SPECIAL’’ 
and inserting ‘‘HOME BUYING’’; 
(2) by striking subsections (a) and (b) and in-
serting the following new subsections: 
‘‘(a) PREPARATION
AND DISTRIBUTION.—The Sec-
retary shall prepare, at least once every 5 years, a booklet 
to help consumers applying for federally related mortgage 
loans to understand the nature and costs of real estate settle-
ment services. The Secretary shall prepare the booklet in 
various languages and cultural styles, as the Secretary de-
termines to be appropriate, so that the booklet is under-
standable and accessible to homebuyers of different ethnic 
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