The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Friday unveiled anew online search engine that assists consumers with finding localhousing counseling agencies to advise them on housingdecisions.

Mortgage lenders must provide applicants with a list of localhousing counselors under the CFPB's new mortgage rules set to take effect in January 2014.

“Consumers need and deserve the best guidance when making thedecision to purchase a home,” said CFPB Director Richard Cordray ina statement. “Buying a home may easily be the largest investment aconsumer makes, and we want to make it easier for them to find ahousing counselor that is a good fit for them.”

Housing counselors can advise consumers on home purchases orrentals, foreclosure, defaults and credit issues.

“Housing counselors can offer independent advice, often atlittle or no cost to consumers,” said the CFPB release.

Some of the tool's features include a search box and mappingfunction to show the consumer the ten closest counseling agenciesto his or her zip code and a list of the languages each housingcounseling agency offers. The tool, housed on the CFPB's website,is also able to find contact information for HUD-approvedcounselors and it displays which services are available at eachcounseling location.

“The Bureau's 2013 final rule on the Home Ownership and EquityProtection Act implemented a requirement of the Dodd-Frank WallStreet Reform and Consumer Protection Act that lenders provideconsumers with a list of homeownership counseling organizations,”said the CFPB.

“Consumers should receive the list shortly after they apply fora mortgage so they know where to get help when deciding what loanis best for them. Lenders may fulfill that requirement by usingCFPB-developed housing counseling lists, which are availablethrough today's tool, or by generating their own lists using thesame HUD data that the CFPB uses to build its lists,” CFPBadded.

In addition, the CFPB said it recognizes that lenders may beunable to provide the lists in time for the rule's Jan. 10effective date.The bureau assured lenders it will not raise anysupervisory or enforcement concerns if lenders direct borrowers tothe new CFPB tool while building their systems.

A group of 112 Republicans and 6 Democrats wrote a letter toCordray this week requesting a delay of the mortgage rules set to take effectnext year.

“The mortgage rules released in January combined with theamendments released in May and September present financialinstitutions with over 4,000 pages of new regulations that theymust be in compliance by January 2014,” said their letter. “Thistask is especially difficult for community financial institutionsthat may only have one or two compliance officers. Furthermore,many financial institutions rely on software systems for managingtheir operations.”