In Mississippi, this quick way out of a financial hole often leads to bankruptcy

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KEVIN G. HALL AND PAUL HAMPTON | Sun Herald
“Not only has the legislature not done anything to reduce the harm, it has taken affirmative steps to expand the harm,” said Diane Standaert, executive vice president and director of state policy for the Raleigh, N.C.-based advocacy group Center for Responsible Lending. Consumer advocates in Mississippi agree. “I’ve heard it said that any business is a good business in Mississippi, even if it hurts its citizens,” said Charles Lee, consumer protection director for the Mississippi Center for Justice, adding this lending targets the “least capable of being able to defend themselves.”

Kamala Harris's Trump-Sized Tax Plan

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Annie Lowrey | The Atlantic
Senator Kamala Harris, a California Democrat and potential 2020 presidential contender, has a Trump-size tax plan of her own. There are two other related issues the proposals would target. The first, as Harris said, is the persistence of payday lending in depressed neighborhoods and among lower-income families. Even given the good economy, and even given the passage of the Dodd-Frank bill, strip-mall lenders and tax preparation services continue to target the financially distressed, offering loans with annual interest rates higher than 300 percent and tax-refund advances that come with obscene

How Banks Slid Into the Payday Lending Business

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Pat Garofalo | TalkPoverty
"They claim that these loans are different, are safer, are more affordable, but the reality is they carry all the same markers of predatory loans," said Diane Standaert, director of state policy at the Center for Responsible Lending. These markers include their high cost, the ability of lenders to access borrowers’ bank accounts, and that they are structured to keep borrowers in a cycle of debt. "We see all of those similar characteristics that have plagued payday loans," Standaert said.

How a Subprime Auto Lender Consumed Detroit With Debt and Turned Its Courthouse Into a Collections Agency

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Ryan Felton and Ishaan Jhaveri | Jalopnik
It’s unclear exactly what led to the situation in Detroit, although the tough economic situation for the city and its residents in recent years has certainly contributed. The company has been investigated by regulators for potential wrongdoing, and it has faced accusations in cases across the U.S. of duping car buyers into taking on untenable loans, however no current probes in Michigan against Credit Acceptance appear to exist. But what’s clear is that, in recent years, Credit Acceptance has sharply increased the number of debt collection cases it has filed in the Motor City—and in a state

Pentagon, others baffled by CFPB plan to cease military lending exams

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Kate Berry | American Banker
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's decision to stop examining financial firms for compliance with the Military Lending Act has sparked pushback not only from lawmakers and consumer advocates but also from the Defense Department and every major group representing military service members. Acting CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney's claim that the Dodd-Frank Act does not give the bureau statutory authority to enforce the Military Lending Act is a major reversal from the Obama administration. As reported by several news outlets, Mulvaney has argued further legislation is needed to provide that

Marriott Workers Struggle to Pay Bills, and Credit Union Fees

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Noam Scheiber | New York Times
Thousands of Marriott workers around the country are on strike, complaining that stagnant wages and unsteady hours have made it difficult to stay afloat. At a time when they are under particular pressure, the credit union may be adding to their struggles. Overdraft fees in particular have provoked controversy within the credit union world. “We have a hard time taking seriously any depository institution claim to trying to serve the underserved, making credit available to financially distressed people and charging those same people $30 to $35 for overdraft,” said Rebecca Borné, senior policy

Consumer groups blast CFPB over proposed 'disclosure sandbox'

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Rachel Witkowski | American Banker
Fifty consumer groups are calling on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to withdraw a plan allowing fintech firms to test financial disclosures on consumers. The groups argue the CFPB’s "disclosure sandbox" proposal, which would provide certain legal safe harbors to participating companies, exceeds the CFPB’s statutory authority and would put consumers at greater risk.

Is the Housing Market Prepared for the Next Crisis?

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JS Khan | DS News
How much has the market learned from the financial crisis a decade back? And are we prepared for the next crisis? Looking specifically at the housing market, Michael Calhoun, President of the Brookings Center for Responsible Lending said in a recent paper that while regulatory safeguards that were put in place subsequent to the crisis have made today’s housing market much safer and resilient, “more could have been done to aid homeowners in the crisis and work remains to provide families with sufficient affordable, sustainable housing for today and in the coming years.”

A Year Later, Predatory Lenders Still Want to Kill the CFPB Payday Lending Rule

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REBECCA BORNÉ | Morning Consult
Last October, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its payday and car-title lending rule. The agency, under the leadership of Richard Cordray, spent five years developing these safeguards, which included input from lenders, faith leaders, veteran and military organizations, civil rights groups, consumer advocates, and constituents from across the country. This was the first time that a federal agency rolled out substantive protections to help stop payday lenders from trapping families in unaffordable debt. But over the past year, predatory payday lenders have spearheaded an effort

150% interest on a loan? Consumer advocates hope the threat of a ballot measure will get lenders to ease up

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James Rufus Koren | Los Angeles Times
When LendMark started offering subprime loans to California residents a few years ago, it noticed something odd: a vast and growing number of big loans offered by rival firms at interest rates of 100% or higher, and relatively few smaller, cheaper loans. To executives at the suburban Atlanta company, which entered the state by buying loan storefronts from a competitor, it didn’t make sense. Though discussions are still in the early stages, Graciela Aponte-Diaz of the Center for Responsible Lending said she’d like to see the measure include a cap of 36% for loans of up to $5,000 and a lower cap