May 8, 2020
| By Ann Carrns | The New York Times
Many of the suits end in automatic victories for collectors, the report found. That’s probably because consumers sued for debts rarely have lawyers. And for various reasons, debtors often fail to show up for hearings. People may not be able to afford a lawyer, may be unable to take time off work or may not have been properly notified, said Lisa Stifler, state policy director at the Center for Responsible Lending.
May 4, 2020
| By Conor McCue | CBS Denver
A recent survey by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) found the odds are against businesses owned by people of color. A report done by the group estimates “roughly 95% of Black-owned businesses, 91% of Latino-owned businesses, 91% of Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander-owned businesses, and 75% of Asian-owned businesses stand close to no chance of receiving a PPP loan through a mainstream bank or credit union.”
May 4, 2020
| By Annie Lowrey | The Atlantic
They are, and it is. Although the government is not collecting or releasing data on the racial makeup of SBA-aid recipients—leaving think tanks and advocacy groups to fill in the gaps—the Center for Responsible Lending has estimated that 95 percent of black-owned businesses, 91 percent of Latino-owned businesses, 91 percent of businesses owned by Native Hawaiians or Pacific Islanders, and 75 percent of Asian-owned businesses have “close to no chance” of getting an emergency loan through a mainstream financial institution.
April 30, 2020
| By Joe Biden | Medium
The Trump administration’s economic response has been a disaster too. They’ve done exactly what we feared from the beginning: bailed out the wealthy and well-connected while leaving worthy small businesses out in the cold. A publicly-traded real-estate trust that owns a Ritz Carlton got $38 million in the initial round of “small business” funding. Meanwhile, the Center for Responsible Lending estimates that more than 90 percent of small businesses owned by people of color will get nothing.
April 14, 2020
This also affects the 24.2 million “underbanked” individuals who keep their money outside traditional banks as well as those dependent on services like payday loans. Lisa Stifler, who leads debt collection work at the Center for Responsible Lending, said that “payday lenders in many states have access to bank accounts and can seize that money as well.”
April 14, 2020
| By Jason Stoogenke | wsoctv.com
The average person in North Carolina owes more than $36,000 in student loans and nearly 17% haven't made a payment for 90 days or more. That was before the pandemic hit, according to the Center for Responsible Lending. About 1.2 million people are in student loan debt totaling $44 billion in North Carolina.
April 13, 2020
Economic downturns always give rise to businesses offering loans to those in urgent need — and at a high premium, said Ellen Harnick, an executive vice president at the Center for Responsible Lending. But unlike car-title or payday loans, pawn customers don’t risk falling further into debt if they can’t make a payment.
April 10, 2020
| By Michael Calhoun, CRL | CNN Business Perspectives
Congress recently did the right thing by giving Americans suffering under the economic impact of the coronavirus a big break on their mortgage payments. If you've lost your job or seen a drop in your income because of the virus, and your mortgage is backed by the government, you can get up to six months of forbearance on your mortgage. If at the end of that period you are still under financial stress, you can get six more.
April 1, 2020
| By Kery Murakami | Inside Higher Ed
Complaints about student debt cancellation being regressive doesn’t acknowledge there are very big differences in terms of income and wealth.
March 30, 2020
| By Joel Lyons | Good Morning America
With the coronavirus pandemic spreading throughout the United States and crippling the economy, Congress moved quickly to approve a $2 trillion relief bill, which President Donald Trump soon signed. Included in the bill is relief for borrowers of certain types of student loans -- they'll see their interest frozen and payments suspended through at least Sept. 30.
