The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has proposed a standardized mortgage statement that sets out to make it easier to understand the information about your loan on one page. 

The proposed mortgage statement, released last week, includes a breakdown of such items as the amount paid from the monthly payment toward the principal, interest, escrow, the outstanding principal, maturity date, and any prepayment penalties. For adjustable-rate mortgages, the prototype also shows when the interest rate on the loan will begin to reset. 

“This information will help consumers stay on top of their mortgage costs and hold their mortgage servicers accountable for fixing errors that crop up,” Richard Corday, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said in a statement. “Given the widespread mortgage servicing problems we’ve seen over the past few years, consumers need clear disclosures they can count on.” 

Currently, the industry does not have an industrywide standard for monthly mortgage statements. 

You can view the proposed form at ConsumerFinance.gov. The agency currently is soliciting public and industry comment. The form is to be formally proposed this summer. 

Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Realtor Magazine