Press Releases

Even as 50,000 new foreclosures start every week, the House Financial Services Committee votes tomorrow on four bills to dismantle programs aimed at helping homeowners. Industry figures show that more households than ever are in some stage of foreclosure, with over five million mortgage holders now at risk of losing their homes. Avoiding unnecessary foreclosures and encouraging loan modifications will...

Oakland, Calif.—According to a recent poll of registered San José voters, liquor stores and check-cashers are more popular than payday lenders, with payday lenders' unfavorable rating reaching 52 percent while liquor stores and check-cashers had unfavorable ratings of 34 and 46 percent, respectively. Payday lenders make small, short-term loans secured by a borrower's post-dated personal check that carry interest rates...

Washington, D.C. --- The latest figures from the Mortgage Bankers Association show that reported mortgage delinquency rates moved down slightly in fourth quarter 2010, but more than five million homeowners remain at risk of losing their home to foreclosure. The number of homeowners currently in some stage of the foreclosure process actually increased 5% from third quarter. Meanwhile, Hope Now...

New credit card rules mandated by the Credit CARD Act of 2009 have resulted in significantly greater price transparency for consumers, a new research report by the Center for Responsible Lending finds. The report, "Credit Card Clarity: CARD Act Reform Works," also finds that—contrary to industry claims—the price consumers pay for credit cards has remained stable and access to credit...

Related: Wall Street, Not Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Led the Toxic Market While Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac need serious reform, we must get these reforms right. Among the Administration's several proposals, only one—the one that maintains a limited role for the GSEs—even has potential for ensuring all families have access to home loans and achieving stability in the...

The Financial Crisis Inquiry report rejects the notion that the financial crisis was inevitable. Instead, based on extensive evidence and 19 days of public hearings, the report points squarely at preventable actions and inactions by the "captains of finance and the public stewards of our financial system." Aided by oversight that was weak and permissive, the reckless practices of Wall...

Washington, D.C.--- Proposed changes to home lending rules from the Federal Reserve Board not only exceed its authority, but could actually encourage predatory lending targeted at the elderly. In response to the flawed proposals, the Center for Responsible Lending, the National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients), the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the California Reinvestment Coalition...

The Department of Justice $2 million settlement with PrimeLending spotlights serious problems on loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). The case found inconsistent and abusive pricing on loans to African-American borrowers, revealing that it's far too easy for lenders making government-backed loans to overcharge home buyers. (For the DOJ announcement, go to http://bit.ly/gINlMk.) The FHA insures mortgages that...

Statement by CRL President Mike Calhoun: "Today the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. set a standard other regulators should follow when it issued guidelines advising banks to stop reordering transactions to maximize overdraft fees, particularly on debit cards. Unfair transaction posting—especially the practice of reordering checks and debit card transactions to deduct the largest checks and charges first—significantly increases the number...

Montana yesterday became the third state in two years to reject payday loans carrying triple-digit interest rates. Citizens in the state overwhelmingly approved a ballot initiative to limit annual interest rates on small consumer loans to 36 percent. With nearly all precincts counted, 72 percent of voters backed the measure, thus rejecting industry arguments intended to conceal that payday lenders'...