Press Releases

The timing of the OCC’s embrace of predatory lenders could not be worse. We are in the midst of an unprecedented health crisis and a severe economic crisis, with both crises impacting communities of color more heavily than white communities.  WASHINGTON, D.C. - A proposal by the regulator of the nation’s largest banks would allow predatory lenders to do an...

In public comment letter, civil rights, consumer, and housing groups warn of proposal’s harm and its “acute impact on low- to moderate-income families and families of color” Groups offer recommendations for the housing regulator to fulfill its and the Government-Sponsored Enterprises’ (GSEs) statutory public mission Washington, D.C. – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) along with a broad coalition...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - On Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 2:00 p.m. ET/ 11:00 a.m. PT, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) will host a virtual panel of housing experts to discuss how the COVID crisis has impacted housing. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Mark Calabria will share the agency’s response to the current public health crisis, followed by a panel...

Washington, D.C. – The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced yesterday that a fee from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which FHFA previously approved and which makes refinancing more expensive for mortgages backed by those companies, will be delayed until December 1. FHFA also said the fee will not apply to refinance loans with balances below $125,000. The fee is...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - A broad coalition of organizations representing the housing, financial services industries as well as public interest groups issued the following statement on the GSEs’ new adverse market fee: Wednesday night’s surprise announcement by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the GSEs) conflicts with the Administration’s recent executive actions urging federal agencies to take all measures within their authority...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Trump Administration issued four executive orders Saturday related to the COVID-19 pandemic that fail to recognize and adequately address the magnitude of the ongoing crisis and the need for massive reform. The orders are weak and inadequate, and they leave out millions who are struggling to survive in grim circumstances. We need comprehensive legislation that rises...

WASHINGTON, DC – The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, NAACP, National CAPACD, and UnidosUS  submitted a joint comment to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in response to the agency’s Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (Supplemental NPRM) that fails to protect consumers against stale, time-barred “zombie” debt, for which the statute of limitations has...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Center for Responsible Lending, National Consumer Law Center, and National Community Reinvestment Coalition filed an amicus brief in Lacewell v. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), in support of the plaintiff, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), against the OCC’s plan to issue “special purpose national bank” charters to nonbank lenders...

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, State Attorneys General from California, Illinois, and New York filed a lawsuit challenging the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) recently announced final rule that encourages online nonbank lenders to launder their loans through banks so they can offer high-cost triple-digit loans in states where such loans are illegal. The rule was strongly opposed...

Washington, D.C. — The Bank Policy Institute (BPI), Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) today urged Congress to impose a three-year moratorium on industrial loan company licensing applications. The moratorium on Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation approvals would provide Congress time to close the ILC loophole and ensure ILCs and their parent companies don’t pose...