NC Report Finds Converting Criminal Financial Obligations to Civil Judgments Results in Heavy Costs and Low Recovery Rate

DURHAM, NC - North Carolinians involved in the criminal justice system are assessed financial obligations that can add up to thousands of dollars—and most are poor and cannot pay them. The practice of converting these fines and fees to civil judgments has become increasingly common in the state, finds a report released today by the Center for Responsible Lending, Forward...
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Consumer Finance

Waiving Criminal Court Fees Prevents Harms of Civil Debt

Many people involved in the criminal legal system live on the economic margins. Most defendants are unable to hire their own lawyer due to indigency. In North Carolina, the average person in prison doesn’t have a high school diploma. The cost of involvement in the criminal legal system can quickly add up to thousands of dollars, but the people expected...
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Research
Consumer Finance

Amicus Brief: North Carolina Supreme Court - Townes v. Portfolio Recovery Associates (PRA)

The Center for Responsible Lending, Legal Aid of North Carolina, North Carolina Justice Center, National Association of Consumer Advocates, Charlotte Center for Legal Advocacy, Financial Protection Law Center and Pisgah Legal Services partnered to filed this amicus brief in the North Carolina Supreme Court in Townes v. Portfolio Recovery Associates (PRA). Townes v. PRA is principally about the interpretation of...
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Amicus Brief
Debt Collection & Settlement

OCC Proposed Rule Encourages Predatory Lending and Threatens to Eviscerate North Carolina’s Lending Laws

In a September 3 letter to Acting Comptroller of the Currency, Brian Brooks, the Coalition for Responsible Lending wrote: We oppose the OCC’s proposed rule to permit lenders to use the rent-a-bank model to avoid North Carolina’s rigorously enforced interest rate cap. The OCC’s proposed rule will let predatory lenders off the hook for charging interest and fees in excess...
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Letters to Congress
Payday and Other Small Dollar Loans

North Carolina's Student Debt: Dimensions of a Crisis

While pursuing higher education is still a pathway to higher incomes over a person’s lifetime, student loan debt threatens to undermine this promise in North Carolina and nationwide. Outstanding student loan amounts have risen at an alarming rate over the past decade, and North Carolina has not been immune from this trend. Today, students and their families face a difficult...
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Research
Student Loans

GOP Rep. Patrick McHenry takes on ‘Auntie Maxine’ in Congress

Source
Robin Bravender | NC Policy Watch
WASHINGTON – Rep. Patrick McHenry has been representing western North Carolina in the U.S. House since he was 29 years old. The 10th District Republican, now 43, has long been considered a rising star among House GOP lawmakers. He’s worked in leadership as Republicans’ chief deputy whip, and he’s often labeled as an aspiring Speaker of the House. He’s got...
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Payday and Other Small Dollar Loans

Kelly Tornow of the Center for Responsible Lending

Source
Clayton Henkel | NC Policy Watch
Kelly Tornow of the Center for Responsible Lending discusses a new study on the shortcoming of for-profit colleges and the debt-load those students face versus those who attend traditional public four-year institutions. Learn more about the failings of for-profit colleges.
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Student Loans

Liz Weston: How debt ‘solutions’ could dig you in deeper

Source
Liz Weston | The Charlotte Observer
Americans are slipping ever deeper into hock. To cope, many people turn to debt consolidation loans, cash-out mortgage refinancing and retirement plan loans that promise relief but could leave them worse off. Paying off high-rate debt such as credit cards with lower-rate loans may seem like a no-brainer. Unfortunately, many of these loans have hidden costs and drawbacks. And consolidation...
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Mortgage Lending

Kelly Tornow: Cold, hard facts about for-profit colleges

Source
Kelly Tornow | Winston-Salem Journal
At a recent hearing on Capitol Hill about higher education, Rep. Virginia Foxx of North Carolina complained about the attention given to problems with for-profit colleges. She said, "To sit here and grind a tired old ax against certain types of institutions you don't like is just disgraceful." But for-profit colleges have a bad reputation for good reason. And in...
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Student Loans