State of Lending outlines predatory lending practices in various fields of consumer lending, and explains why protecting fair, affordable access to credit is vital for both consumers and the U.S. economy. It also describes the regulatory and legislative actions needed to halt the predatory lending practices that exist today and prevent the rise of new abuses. Read the Foreword Return to Index Next Chapter
Consumer Finance

CRL monitors developments across the consumer finance sector and acts to protect people’s pocketbooks from financial misconduct so families can build financial stability. This includes advocating for enforcement of laws banning discrimination based on race, national origin, sex, and other protected characteristics. CRL also fights to defend the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a crucial government watchdog that was established in the wake of the 2008 Financial Crisis to stop predatory practices.
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This latest report by the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy found that in 2007 nearly $13 million were lost by working West Virginians through refund anticipation loans. Out of the nearly 77,000 West Virginians that used a RAL in 2007, nearly 60 percent of them were recipients of the Earned Income Tax Credit, a federal program designed to help low-to-moderate income working families with their tax burden. Despite the state's strong laws protecting consumers from other forms of predatory lending, the report also found that nearly 5 percent of the federal EITC funds coming into the state...