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Michael Calhoun ‌

Mike Calhoun Dec2016

President

Mortgage Lending

Mike Calhoun is president of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), the policy affiliate of Self-Help, the nation's largest community development lender. He considers himself "fortunate to work with an extraordinarily talented staff and a dedicated coalition of organizations fighting to provide economic opportunity and advancement for low- and moderate-income families and families of color."

For more than 30 years, Mike has been on the front lines of working for economic justice. At CRL, he provides management and policy leadership. Based in DC, he often testifies in Congress and appears frequently in national media as an expert on financial issues. Prior to joining CRL in 2002, Mike led several lending divisions at Self-Help, providing responsible consumer loans, mortgages and small business loans, and heading an innovative program to provide national capital for affordable home loans. He has represented families to secure civil rights and consumer protections, including working for ten years as a legal aid attorney. He is a former member and chair of the Federal Reserve’s Consumer Advisory Council.

Mike received his BA degree in economics from Duke University, and his JD degree from the University of North Carolina. When he is not advocating on behalf of fair lending and civil rights, Mikes loves time with family, gardening, sailing and playing basketball.

Research & Policy

Quick Take Video on Supreme Court Case that Imperils Financial System

Friday, September 29, 2023

Quick Take Video on Supreme Court Case that Imperils Financial System

In September, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for a lawsuit that could abruptly and permanently close the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – which would not only harm consumers and businesses but would also cause economic chaos.
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Policy & Legislation
Consumer Finance

Cash-Out Refinancing: The Pitfalls of Cash-Out Refinancing in a Rising Interest Rate Environment

Monday, March 20, 2023

Cash-Out Refinancing: The Pitfalls of Cash-Out Refinancing in a Rising Interest Rate Environment

Cash-strapped borrowers are being enticed into using the home equity they have accumulated as an ATM and cash-out refinance loans will damage their long-term financial health.
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Research
Mortgage Lending

Testimony: Mike Calhoun on Boom and Bust: Inequality, Homeownership, and the Long-Term Impacts of the Hot Housing Market

Wednesday, June 29, 2022

Testimony: Mike Calhoun on Boom and Bust: Inequality, Homeownership, and the Long-Term Impacts of the Hot Housing Market

On June 29, 2022, Mike Calhoun, CRL's president, testified before the House Committee on Financial Services for a hearing entitle, “Boom and Bust: Inequality, Homeownership, and the Long-Term Impacts of the Hot Housing Market.” His written testimony is available for download. Watch a recording of the hearing:
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Testimony
Mortgage Lending

Civil Rights Groups Push for Housing Investment and Equity in Human Infrastructure, Reconciliation Bill

Thursday, September 9, 2021

Civil Rights Groups Push for Housing Investment and Equity in Human Infrastructure, Reconciliation Bill

From the opening paragraph of the letter: On behalf of the undersigned civil rights, consumer protection, and housing policy organizations, we write to urge your continued prioritization of the housing-related provisions in the upcoming reconciliation package. These provisions are a down payment on this Administration's commitment to addressing long-standing inequities in our housing system and addressing the worsening racial wealth...
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Letters to Congress
Mortgage Lending

Comments to FDIC on Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Industrial Loan Companies

Thursday, July 2, 2020

Comments to FDIC on Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Industrial Loan Companies

The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) joined with a coalition of civil rights, community, consumer, and faith organizations in two public comment letters warning the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) that its proposed rule for chartering additional underregulated Industrial Loan Companies (ILCs) would expand predatory, high-interest lending. The plan would grant the predominantly online non-bank companies that are approved for...
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Comment Letter
Payday and Other Small Dollar Loans

A Smarter Qualified Mortgage Can Benefit Borrowers, Taxpayers, and the Economy

Monday, July 8, 2019

A Smarter Qualified Mortgage Can Benefit Borrowers, Taxpayers, and the Economy

In the Dodd-Frank Act, Congress required lenders to make a reasonable and good faith determination that the borrower has the ability to repay a mortgage loan (ATR) before the loan is made. It also created a category of loans, called Qualified Mortgages, or QM, that are presumed to comply with the ATR requirement given product and borrower credit characteristics that...
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Research
Mortgage Lending

Testimony: Ensuring Access to Safe and Affordable Mortgage Loans for All Creditworthy Borrowers

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Testimony: Ensuring Access to Safe and Affordable Mortgage Loans for All Creditworthy Borrowers

Our Housing Finance System and the GSEs provide essential services to families and lenders across the country. Rural borrowers, small lenders and lower wealth borrowers particularly benefit from these services because the GSEs provide access to a national market, making home loans more affordable overall. The GSEs, though, had critical flaws leading up to the crisis. Since then, fundamental reforms...
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Testimony
Mortgage Lending

Lessons from the financial crisis: The central importance of a sustainable, affordable and inclusive housing market

Wednesday, September 5, 2018

Lessons from the financial crisis: The central importance of a sustainable, affordable and inclusive housing market

On this tenth anniversary of the financial crisis, there have been many retrospectives on the US government’s response to that catastrophe, with more to come. The commentary to date has largely focused on the extraordinary measures taken to prevent a much deeper collapse of the American and global economies. Measures were implemented to address the immediate crisis and reduce the...
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Research
Mortgage Lending

Supporting mortgage lending in rural communities

Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Supporting mortgage lending in rural communities

Nearly 74 million people, about a quarter of the United States population, live in rural areas. That includes 15 million people of color. But according to the authors of a new paper published by the Center on Regulation and Markets at Brookings, these families are often overlooked in policy discussions on proposed changes to the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs), which...
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Research
Mortgage Lending

Mike Calhoun's Testimony "Principles of Housing Finance Reform"

Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Mike Calhoun's Testimony "Principles of Housing Finance Reform"

On Thursday, June 28th, Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) President Mike Calhoun testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs for a hearing entitled "Principles of Housing Finance Reform." In his written testimony, he stated that the "goal must be to ensure that the full universe of credit worthy borrowers – regardless of where they live, including...
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Testimony
Mortgage Lending

Mike Calhoun's Testimony "The State of Bank Lending in America"

Tuesday, March 28, 2017

Mike Calhoun's Testimony "The State of Bank Lending in America"

On Tuesday, March 28, Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) President Mike Calhoun testified before the House Financial Services Committee's Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit Subcommittee for a hearing entitled "The State of Bank Lending in America." He discussed recent trends in lending and how the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act has made the financial industry more accountable...
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Testimony
Consumer Finance

Who Will Receive Home Loans, and How Much Will They Pay?

Thursday, June 2, 2016

Who Will Receive Home Loans, and How Much Will They Pay?

The following blog post by Mike Calhoun and Sarah Wolff originally appeared on the Urban Institute’s Housing Policy Center: http://urbn.is/29rYamw Any housing finance system’s ability to provide broad access and affordability is predicated on two factors: how prices are set and, equally importantly, how costs are distributed. Price is important to focus on for many reasons; chief among them is...
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Research
Mortgage Lending

Support for Post-crisis Lending Rules and the Elimination of Abusive Financial Products

Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Support for Post-crisis Lending Rules and the Elimination of Abusive Financial Products

In a Statement for the Record to the Hearing of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Assessing the Effects of Consumer Finance Regulations, CRL expresses its support for post-crisis lending rules that have made the financial system safer by eliminating abusive financial products, reining in reckless behavior, and encouraging more effective oversight.
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Comment Letter
Mortgage Lending

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Field Hearing: Limit Payday Loan Debt Trap

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Field Hearing: Limit Payday Loan Debt Trap

On March 26, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau offered a first look at proposals under consideration to curb the payday loan debt trap. The consumer agency released information outlining their deliberations at a field hearing in Richmond, VA – at which the agency also heard from a panel of consumer and civil rights advocates, as well as payday industry representatives...
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Policy & Legislation
Payday and Other Small Dollar Loans

News

Thursday, May 1, 2025

Abrupt End of VASP Program Leaves Veterans, Families at Risk of Home Loss

Wednesday, March 5, 2025

New Poll Shows Strong, Bipartisan Support for Consumer Bureau and Rules for Overdraft Fees, Medical Debt, Small Business Loans

Wednesday, March 5, 2025

Two-thirds of Americans support CFPB: Poll

Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Attacks on CFPB Continue as New CFPB Director is Nominated

Saturday, February 8, 2025

Let Them Eat Debt: The Trump Administration Continues its Attack on Working Class Families by Undermining the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

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Building on Over 40 Years of Lending Experience

CRL’s expertise gives it trusted insight to evaluate the impact  of financial products and policies on the wealth and economic stability of Asian, Black, Latino, rural, women, military, low-wage, low-wealth, and early-career workers and communities.

CRL is an affiliate of Self-Help, one of the nation’s largest nonprofit community development financial institutions. Our work leverages the strength of partnerships with national and local consumer and civil rights organizations.

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