“The Community Reinvestment Act has created jobs, supported responsible homeownership, and expanded opportunities for saving by investing trillions of dollars in low- and moderate-income communities,” said Rand. “Nonetheless, the rapidly-changing and complex financial landscape of today bears little resemblance...
Growth in the number of permanent modification continues to slow, while August saw the fifth straight month of double-digit decreases in active trial modifications. Chicago region permanent loan modifications rose by 6.6 percent from July to August, compared to...
By Justin Saper September 28, 2010 Advocates say programs designed to curb the number of foreclosures in Illinois aren’t working because of dishonest practices by mortgage servicers. Despite the passage last year of the federal Home Affordable Modification...
The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act is a critical tool that allows the public to hold lenders and regulators accountable for the types of loans available in our communities. Congress passed the HMDA in 1975 to identify discriminatory lending...
fed_r-1386_august2010_mod_0.pdfDiscusses the types of financial institutions that should have reinvestment responsibilities and the geographies where those responsibilities are assessed. Also includes recommendations to improve the services test portion of the CRA and improve the ratings and incentive structure of...
fed_OP-1388_sept2010_hmdareform_0.pdf While HMDA data have been a valuable tool in fighting discrimination and redlining and improving access to credit to underserved markets, there are substantial opportunities to improve the data collected to make it even more effective. One of...
By Mary Ellen Podmolik September 24, 2010 How easy is it for someone to learn all about you from your mortgage loan application? To hear mortgage lenders and community groups tell it, it’s easier than you might think. Some...
The Illinois Asset Building Group (IABG) is a coalition of organizations who are working to build and protect financial assets so that individuals throughout the state have a cushion to fall back on in the case of emergency,...
By Will Buss September 20, 2010 A new report shows a disparity in credit scores between metro-east communities that have predominantly white residents and towns with predominantly black residents. In its report, called “Bridging the Gap,” the Woodstock Institute...
In “Bridging the Gap: Credit Scores and Economic Opportunity in Illinois Communities of Color,” our researchers found that Illinois communities of color had high concentrations of individuals with very low, “non-prime” credit scores. For example, in highly African-American communities,...