A Syracuse nonprofit steps in to give mortgages to Black homeowners neglected by banks

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Tim Knauss | Syracuse Post-Standard
Mitria Spotser, federal policy director at the nonprofit Center for Responsible Lending, said small minority-owned banks, credit unions and nonprofit organizations are increasingly important mortgage providers in minority and low-income neighborhoods. Policymakers and bank regulators should encourage their work, both with increased federal CDFI funding and with continued pressure on larger banks to buy mortgages from them, she said. “We...

Katko, Democrats: Student loan debt should be eligible for bankruptcy relief

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Mark Weiner | Syracuse.com
WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. John Katko has joined with some ideological foes – Elizabeth Warren and Jerrold Nadler – to help some of the 44 million Americans trying to repay $1.5 trillion in student loan debt. The Democrats and Katko, R-Camillus, introduced a bill Thursday that would give borrowers who declare bankruptcy the option of having their student loan debt...

Credit card debt-settlement services are risky and could affect your credit score

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Gregory Bresiger | New York Post
You’re hopelessly in credit card debt and considering bankruptcy. Wait — you don’t have to pay it all back, a television announcer claims. There’s “a secret that the credit card companies don’t want you to know.” This “secret” will wipe out card debts for a fraction of what you owe, promises the ad, which is for CreditAssociates, a credit card...

Testimony: For-Profit College Accountability Act

For-profit schools target students of color, low-income students, women, and veterans for enrollment, while failing to provide a quality education enabling students to obtain gainful employment. As is described below, New York for-profit students are more likely to have higher debt loads, lower graduation rates, and higher default rates than other students in the state. Consequently, an inordinate number of...

States without Payday and Car‐title Lending Save $5 Billion in Fees Annually

Payday and car title loans are small-dollar, high-cost products that thrive on keeping consumers in a cycle of debt. With lenders doing essentially no underwriting, consumers find it easy to obtain these loans, often marketed as a solution to financial emergency. However, the unaffordability of the loan and the lenders extreme leverage over the borrowers – either through direct access...