Blog: Customers Want Transparency, Not Hidden Overdraft Fees

Earlier this week, Bank of America (BoA) announced that it is discontinuing its free checking product for customers with low balances and switching them to BoA Core Checking accounts that charge an upfront $12 monthly fee. The fee can be waived if the customer maintains a daily minimum balance of $1,500 or has a monthly direct deposit of $250. Further, if you are a student under the age of 24, the fee is also waived. If a BoA customer wants a more affordable option with some penalty protection, the bank does offer their lowest-fee option—a Safe Checking account, which charges a monthly fee of

Racism in Car Buying?

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Nisa Iislam Muhammad | The Final Call
“This report is disheartening but not surprising. Years of data show that unfair, racially discriminatory treatment of consumers is a growing problem in the auto lending industry. This is especially true for low-income families of color, where a car is often one of the biggest purchases made by a household,” said Mike Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending.

The Trump Administration Just Gutted Payday-Lending Regulations

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Michelle Chen | The Nation
The “checks cashed” storefronts that line the main drags of poor communities across the country are largely linked to large banking monopolies, sucking assets from poor communities to pad multinational capital flows. According to the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), average interest rates for payday loans are nearly 400 percent APR. The CFPB’s rule was long overdue, after five years of deliberations in rulemaking, during which the financial-industry lobbyists complained that it would ruin a system that was the only pathway to credit for 30 million consumers. But activists say that

Mick Mulvaney doesn’t think the CFPB needs more money

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Kai Ryssdal and Sean McHenry | Marketplace
Debbie Goldstein, executive vice president at the Center for Responsible Lending: So I think this is shocking and disappointing but maybe not surprising…. However, what the CFPB's intent was was to set up a reasonable cushion for reserves for unexpected expenses, just like any of us might do to make sure we have enough for our expenses. In the CFPB's case, that cushion is to make sure it has enough funds to pay its personnel but also for important things like the Consumer Complaint Database, handling direct contact from consumers, who the CFPB is supposed to help, and for important enforcement

CFPB to reconsider payday lender regulation that protects consumers

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Mark Huffman | Consumer Affairs
Rebecca Borné, Senior Policy Counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) blasted the move, saying payday loans with triple digit interest rates need stronger regulation. "For more than five years, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau studied the issue, welcomed public input, and crafted a rule to help stop the payday loan debt trap," Borné said in a statement to ConsumerAffairs.

CFPB will take another look at the payday lending rules

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Sabri Ben-Achour | Marketplace
Last year, the Obama administration enacted new rules regarding payday lending. They haven't yet come into effect. Now, the Consumer Financial Protection Board says it will reconsider the tighter regulation that would have required payday lenders to make sure the people they lend to can actually repay their loans. The rule was bitterly opposed by some in the lending industry who say it would cut off credit to potential borrowers. Many consumer advocates, however, said the rule would have prevented people from being taken advantage of.

Consumer protection bureau changes direction, will reconsider rule that sets stricter limits on payday lending

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Renae Merle | Washington Post
“Today’s announcement is a big deal and could become a terrible deal for consumers,” said Rebecca Borné, senior policy counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending. “The human devastation caused by payday loans, which average nearly 400 percent APR, has been extensively documented.”