Sunday, October 11, 2015

Consumer, Civil Rights Feds Reach Settlement With NJ Bank Resolving Allegations That It Discriminated Against Blacks, Latinos When Making Home Loans

From the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (via Public Citizen's Consumer Law & Policy Blog):
  • [T]he Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a joint action against Hudson City Savings Bank for discriminatory redlining practices that denied residents in majority-Black-and-Hispanic neighborhoods fair access to mortgage loans.

    The complaint filed by the CFPB and DOJ alleges that Hudson City illegally provided unequal access to credit to neighborhoods in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania. The bank located branches and loan officers, selected mortgage brokers, and marketed products to avoid and thereby discourage prospective borrowers in predominantly Black and Hispanic communities.

    If the proposed consent order is approved by the court, Hudson City will pay $25 million in direct loan subsidies to qualified borrowers in the affected communities, $2.25 million in community programs and outreach, and a $5.5 million penalty. This represents the largest redlining settlement in history to provide such direct subsidies.
For more, see CFPB and DOJ Order Hudson City Savings Bank to Pay $27 Million to Increase Mortgage Credit Access in Communities Illegally Redlined (Bank Illegally Denied Black and Hispanic Neighborhoods Fair Access to Mortgages).