Research

Survey confirms public support for cracking down on high-cost lending As Congress debates various financial reforms designed to revive the economy, the Center for Responsible Lending has conducted a national survey to measure public support for one strategy on the table: a 36 percent cap on annual interest rates for consumer loans. The survey found high levels of support for...

New CRL analysis finds that California's payday lenders overwhelmingly locate in African-American and Latino neighborhoods, even after controlling for income and other factors, draining $247 million in the process Payday loans trap working households in long-term debt at annual interest rates of over 400 percent. In California and elsewhere, African Americans and Latinos make up a disproportionate share of payday...

The Federal Reserve Board is considering implementing a new rule that would require financial institutions to get explicit permission before enrolling their account holders in an overdraft system that automatically approves debit card and ATM transactions, and assesses an average $34 fee if there is a negative balance in the account. A Center for Responsible Lending survey conducted by market...

Overdraft lending: the problem Our nation's major banks and credit unions are making unsolicited, high-cost loans to their checking account holders when their account balance dips below zero, generating enormous fees for the banks and frequently driving their customers deeper into the negative. Financial institutions never have to reveal that customers pay triple- and quadruple-digit interest rates. They make overdraft...

Fremont case touted as a model for other states State shows that business as usual in subprime lending amounted to unfair and deceptive practices. CRL is encouraged by the recent success of the Massachusetts Attorney General (AG), who used longstanding consumer protection laws to stop foreclosures on unfair subprime loans. CRL believes the AG's approach could serve as an effective...

Read CRL CEO Martin Eakes' statement on the Housing Plan >> Hope for Stopping the Foreclosure Epidemic On February 18, 2009, the President announced a new, comprehensive plan for addressing the housing crisis. The plan, which called for more funding than anticipated, includes a range of incentives that will encourage lenders to modify loans. The plan recognizes that stopping foreclosures...

Payday loans create a cycle of debt that diminishes the income of vulnerable households Marketed as short-term relief for a cash crunch, payday loans carry annual interest rates of 400 percent and are designed to catch working people – or those with a steady source of income such as Social Security or a disability check – in a long-term debt...

Recent industry projections are that over eight million families will lose their homes to foreclosure over the next four years. That's one in every six homeowners with a mortgage. If the economy enters a deep recession, the number of homes lost could exceed 10 million. With the housing sector responsible for one in eight U.S. jobs, the flood of new...

Allow qualified homeowners to restructure mortgages under court supervision (H.R. 1106/S. 61) Restore confidence in the housing market by strengthening mortgage lending practices and correcting perverse business incentives to make bad loans (H.R. 1728) Reduce tax burdens related to loan modifications that undermine foreclosure prevention Reduce or eliminate key obstacles to constructive loan modifications (S. 376) Increase modifications by providing...

Judicial modifications would save hundreds of thousands of families from foreclosure. "We [Credit Suisse] expect the bankruptcy plan will provide about a 20% reduction in foreclosures." (p. 1) "[T]he new plan adds an important new tool in the foreclosure avoidance arsenal…" (p.4) The ability to modify mortgages in bankruptcy will also increase voluntary loan modifications. "We [Credit Suisse] expect the...