CRL in the News

The Center for Responsible Lending’s (CRL) research report entitled, “A Loan Shark in Your Pocket: The Perils of Earned Wage Advance,” is another resource showing the dangers of predatory lending. “By offering predatory credit with just a few taps on your cell phone, cash advance apps are a loan shark in your pocket. This report shows many cash advance app...

There’s additional risk because unlike getting approved for a credit card,” there’s no requirement for a buy now, pay later to assess whether you have an ability to repay the loan,” said Nadine Chabrier at the Center for Responsible Lending. “That may lead to consumers taking out unaffordable amounts of debt.”

Critics warn the decision will have severe consequences for students and families. Mitria Spotser, vice president and federal policy director at the Center for Responsible Lending, called the move detrimental. “Today’s decision does not serve the interests of students or families,” she said in a statement. “It weakens public education, abandons civil rights enforcement, and prioritizes corporate interests over the...

“Today’s decision does not serve the interests of students or families,” said Mitria Spotser, vice president and federal policy director at the Center for Responsible Lending, in a statement. “It weakens public education, abandons civil rights enforcement and prioritizes corporate interests over the fundamental right to a quality education,” Spotser said.

“The Administration’s shutdown of the Consumer Bureau is wildly out of step with Americans, across the political spectrum, who want this consumer watchdog agency doing its job,” Mike Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending, said in a statement. “Consumer Bureau rules to lower the cost of overdraft fees, lessen the burden of medical debt, and track gaps in...

Car title lending. Thankfully, a lot of North Carolinians have never heard of this particular business because it’s long been prohibited under state law. Unfortunately, many residents of other states are all too familiar with these frequently predatory loans in which borrowers sometimes pay interest rates of as high as 300% and face repossession of their vehicle if they miss...

This effort addresses the challenges faced by many borrowers who, due to complex regulations and mismanagement by loan servicers, have continued making payments beyond the 20 or 25-year forgiveness threshold set by income-driven repayment plans. Nadine Chabrier from the Center for Responsible Lending highlights that financial disincentives for loan servicers have contributed to a lack of transparency about these forgiveness...

While housing affordability challenges rightly dominate current headlines, recent improvements in loss-mitigation processes for federal mortgage programs have been an unmitigated success for distressed homeowners as well as taxpayers, notwithstanding comments made in a recent op-ed.

Incomes have not kept up with inflation, and that is often reflected in consumers' bank accounts. Working class consumers often bear the brunt of this, paying financial institutions overdraft and nonsufficient fund fees, said Mitria Spotser, vice president and federal policy director at Center for Responsible Lending.

While the apps say they're helping cash-strapped people pay bills in a tough economy, critics call them "payday lending on steroids" that cater to the financially vulnerable as an affordable alternative to predatory lenders and faceless banks. The apps' triple-digit annual interest rates lead to frequent overdraft fees and keep users in a cycle of debt, according to the Center...