Research

For-profit colleges are big businesses, primarily funded by taxpayers. Many deliver poor instructional quality at high cost, causing a high proportion of students to drop out. Even for those students who do graduate, gainful employment in the field that they trained for is frequently elusive. Both non-completers and graduates bear high burdens of debt relative to their post college earnings and default on that debt in large numbers relative to those students who attended public and private non-profit colleges. Interactive Map Many for-profit students are nontraditional students, making...

Enacted by Congress in 1975, the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) requires an annual public accounting of the nation’s mortgage lending. Its data provides critical information for both the public and financial sectors by alerting the nation to trends on the groups of Americans that are actually receiving mortgage loans from financial institutions. For the third straight year, CRL’s HMDA analysis finds that mortgage lending overall has not been affected by lending rules like the Ability-to-Repay and Qualified Mortgages, also known as QM. Instead, lending trends show incremental increases...

This poll conducted by Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting shows overwhelming support among likely voters for policy proposals that assist those with education debt, with particularly high support for proposals that permit borrowers to refinance existing loans2 and to create flexible repayment options. 91 percent of voters favor permitting borrowers to refinance their existing student loans at a lower interest rate. 90 percent of voters favor creating flexible options for people with education debt to make affordable payments depending on their income. 70 percent of voters...

Higher education can be the gateway to a better life. Yet the rising costs of a college education and poor oversight of student loans have left some graduates and former students deep in debt—especially when enrolled in for-profit colleges. The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) found that students of color enroll more frequently in for-profit colleges than other students, graduate at lower rates, and are left with more debt. Some schools have been accused of deliberately targeting students of color for enrollment in their predatory programs. Download the student debt factsheet. View the...

Although marketed as quick cash for financial emergencies, payday and car-title loans typically become long-term debt that drains hundreds of dollars—if not thousands—from consumers. These small dollar loans carry average annual percentage rates of 391% that make it very difficult to escape a cycle of debt that can last months or years. Either through direct access to borrower bank accounts or threats to repossess a borrower’s car, lenders gain extreme leverage over borrowers who come to later understand how unaffordable the loans really are. Besides owing more money for fees than for the loan...

Financial institutions drain billions of dollars annually from their customers through abusive overdraft fee practices. Frequently marketed as a “customer service,” overdraft fees are charged when a customer’s account lacks sufficient funds to cover a transaction and the institution pays the transaction anyway. The institution then repays itself the value of the overdraft transactions and all accompanying fees from the consumer’s next incoming deposit. In doing so, the institution jumps ahead of any other planned transactions. Banks typically charge these fees on debit card point-of-sale (POS)...

A home is more than just where families come at the end of the day—it is also where children are raised and memories are created. Homeownership is the primary way families of modest means build wealth, which can be passed on to the next generation. In recent years, most mortgages approved for lower wealth families and consumers of color were government-sponsored loans: FHA, VA, and USDA. Were it not for these programs, few consumers of color would know the pride—and realize the financial benefits—of homeownership. If America’s housing market is to truly recover, all credit-worthy borrowers...

Although debt collection plays an important role in how credit markets function, it can also expose American households to unnecessary abuses, harassment, and other illegal conduct. Unscrupulous debt collectors sometimes use incorrect data and illegal collection tactics to file lawsuits or pressure consumers into making payments on debt they may not owe. Even worse, millions of consumers become aware of lawsuits having been filed against them only after courts have reached judgments on cases frequently based on inaccurate information. Communities of color as well as low and middle-income...

A car purchase can expand economic mobility; but tricks and traps in auto financing can lead to harm and abuse. Among those tricks and traps is dealer interest rate markup. Car dealers can add extra interest to a car loan, and keep some or all of the difference. This practice has a long history of unfair and discriminatory impact. CRL research also suggests that borrowers of color are sold more add-on products and are more likely to be told misleading information about their loan. Recent data and settlements show that many auto loans are made without due consideration of ability to repay...

Payday lending involves small‐dollar, high‐interest loans that trap consumers into a long‐term cycle of debt and fees. Payday lenders tout themselves as a needed service providing access to emergency credit. However, with weak underwriting and ability to repay standards, the payday loan model creates a debt trap that is easy to get into, but extremely difficult to escape. Each year, payday loans strip $4.2 billion in fees from consumers across the country. In Colorado, payday lenders cost consumers over $50 million in fees for 2015. Majority‐minority areas in Colorado (over 50% African...