On January 23, 2013 the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the settlement of a case that alleged that the bank required a loan applicant with disabilities to provide unnecessary documentation to establish he would continue receiving disability income for three years before they would approve his mortgage loan. The applicant submitted documentation from the Social Security Administration as part of his mortgage application. Additional documentation was not needed because Social Security award […]
Category: Fair Lending
MATERNITY DISCRIMINATION CASE
On February 6, 2013 the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the settlement of a case that alleged that the lender violated the Fair Housing Act by requiring a home loan applicant on paid maternity leave to return to work before the lender would approve a home loan. HUD’s complaint alleged that because the lender required the woman, a Navy veteran, to return to work before approving the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)- […]
HUD LGBT AGREEMENT WITH BANK OF AMERICA
Recently the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced an agreement with Bank of America (BOA) to settle a claim that the mortgage lender refused to provide financing to a lesbian couple. The agreement is the first enforcement action taken against a lender involving HUD’s recent rule ensuring that the Department’s core housing programs be open to all eligible persons, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status. HUD’s rule, Equal Access to Housing […]
HOW UNEARNED DISCOUNT POINTS MAY RESULT IN FAIR LENDING VIOLATIONS
This is the third part of a five part series that explores issues related to discount points. The previous article explored UDAAP concerns resulting from unearned discount points. This article considers how unearned discount points may result in fair lending violations. Almost any lending practice may result in an disparate impact violation under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), as implemented by Regulation B, and the Fair Housing Act (FHA). Charging unearned discount points is […]
ANOTHER DOJ DISCRIMINATION SETTLEMENT
On July 12, 2012, Wells Fargo, the nation’s largest mortgage lender, agreed to settle with the Justice Department to resolve allegations that it steered black and Hispanic borrowers into subprime loans when similarly qualified white borrowers received mortgages with lower rates. The settlement requires Wells Fargo to provide $125 million to borrowers, $50 million in down-payment assistance in hard-hit regions where Justice found evidence of discrimination, and additional compensation to blacks and Hispanics who were […]