CRL in the News

As the Brookings report authors — Robin Howarth and Lisa Stifler of the nonprofit Center for Responsible Lending — note, a 1998 change to the Higher Education Act opened the door to colleges enrolling more than half of their students in online programs. Seeking cost-efficiency, scale and the chance to reach more adult students, for-profits were early adopters. Today for-profits...

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Debt is a major challenge for some Washington families, and measures moving through the Legislature could give them a bit of relief. House Bill 1602 would cap the interest rate companies can charge on consumer debt collection after winning a court judgment at 9 percent. The current rate is 12 percent – the highest in the nation...

This report addresses the trend of for-profit colleges going exclusively online or contracting with non-profit (mostly public) colleges to run their online programs. Using results from focus groups of for-profit student borrowers, Robin Howarth and Lisa Stifler explore the risks that this rapid shift entails for students already vulnerable to poor outcomes. The Department of Education is seeking to weaken...

We all have heard the numbers about escalating student loan debt across the country. Maine is no exception. Residents of our state carry more than $6 billion in education debt. Excessive student debt takes money out of Maine’s economy. MECEP’s analysis indicates that education debt held by Mainers could support 6,000 jobs and three-quarters of a billion dollars in consumer...

The question of who is the worst member of President Trump’s administration could keep a dinner party entertained for hours. Is it Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, the multimillionaire who felt impelled to lie about being a billionaire? Former Environmental Protection Agency administrator and schnorrer extraordinaire Scott Pruitt? Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta, who, when he was a U.S. attorney, let billionaire...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — (RealEstateRama) — Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) President Mike Calhoun testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs for a hearing on “Chairman’s Housing Reform Outline: Part 2.” In his testimony, Calhoun discussed that any reform of the U.S. housing system must ensure access to safe and affordable mortgage loans for all creditworthy...

The Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee held the second part of its hearing on Committee Chairman Mike Crapo’s Housing Finance Reform outline on Wednesday. Testimonies by mortgage banking and housing experts gave further insights into the best way forward to strengthen and implement this outline. “Today, the Committee continues the conversation about the state of our housing finance...

WASHINGTON — Senators dove deeper Wednesday into the fight over which housing finance reform plan will work for lenders of all sizes, just as the Trump administration moved closer to crafting its own reform plan. The second Senate Banking Committee hearing this week on reforming the government-sponsored enterprises touched on whether Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac should be converted into...

Payday loans can be a welcome rescue for people without credit or who are hit with an unexpected emergency, but small, short-term loans can accumulate debt in weeks due to interest rates that can reach 500 percent or higher. What does it take to pay off a loan secured by the promise of a future paycheck? What are the risks...

Payday loans are marketed as quick cash to help people get to their next paycheck, but they come at a great cost with an average interest of 300 percent and people getting multiple loans over time, according to a 2016 report. The Community Financial Services Association of America, which lobbies on behalf of payday lenders, held their annual conference in...