Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a final rule on mortgage servicing under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA). Many families are experiencing long-term income disruptions due to the pandemic and economic crisis – particularly families of color. Over two million homeowners are in payment forbearances scheduled to end this fall and winter. Forbearance...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), under Secretary Marcia Fudge’s leadership, released a proposed rule that would restore the power of the “disparate impact” standard, a crucial legal tool used to identify and eliminate discrimination. Center for Responsible Lending Senior Policy Counsel Melissa Stegman issued the following statement: Housing discrimination is a stain...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the U.S. House of Representatives – following the Senate’s lead – passed, on a bipartisan basis, legislation that will curb the spread of predatory loans carrying annual interest rates near or above 100 percent. The bill, S.J. Res. 15, does this by rescinding a rule, issued late last year by the Office of the Comptroller of...

SCOTUS rules that the FHFA leadership structure is unconstitutional WASHINGTON, D.C. – This morning, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued a decision affecting housing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) that financially back every other mortgage in America. The SCOTUS decided, in Collins v. Yellen, that the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which is part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), has updated and corrected how student debt is calculated for FHA-insured mortgages. This move will expand access to homeownership for more potential mortgage borrowers, especially for borrowers of color, first-time homebuyers, millennials, and low-income Americans. “This change removes an...

Today, Ally Bank announced a complete end to its overdraft fees. In response, Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Senior Policy Counsel Rebecca Borné issued the following statement: The evidence is clear that overdraft fees are levied most frequently on families who can least afford it, disproportionately harming low-income and Black and Latino Americans. Abusive overdraft practices are causing people who...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, as the country reflects on the one-year anniversary of George Floyd’s murder, the U.S. Senate is voting to confirm Kristen Clarke as head of the U.S. Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Ms. Clarke, who is president of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, will be the first woman, first woman of color, and first...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States House of Representatives today passed the Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act (H.R. 2547). Introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters, the Act is comprised of eight bills that would collectively enact critical debt collection reforms aimed at protecting vulnerable consumers. If passed into law, the Act would, in part, prohibit the collection...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In a 52 - 47 vote tonight, the U.S. Senate voted to overturn the OCC’s “fake lender” rule, which allows predatory lenders to evade state interest rate laws by putting a bank’s name on the paperwork. S.J. Res. 15, a resolution under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), was introduced by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Sherrod...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Senate has begun consideration of legislation (S.J. Res. 15) to rescind a federal bank agency rule that facilitates predatory lending. A vote is expected around 5:30 pm et. The rule, issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), makes it easier for lenders to charge high interest rates, in violation of state...