Federal Reserve: Do Minorities Pay More for Mortgages?
Read the full paper here. Abstract: We test for racial discrimination in the prices charged by mortgage lenders. We construct a unique dataset where we observe all three dimensions of a mortgage’s price: the interest rate, discount points, and fees. While we find statistically significant gaps by race and ethnicity in interest rates, these gaps…
Federal Reserve: Evaluating the Success of President Johnson’s War on Poverty
Revisiting the Historical Record Using a Full-Income Poverty Measure Read the full report here. Abstract: We evaluate progress in President’s Johnson’s War on Poverty. We do so relative to the scientifically arbitrary but policy relevant 20 percent baseline poverty rate he established for 1963. No existing poverty measure fully captures poverty reductions based on the…
Federal Reserve: Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council Members Announced for 2020
The Federal Reserve Board on Tuesday announced the members of its Community Depository Institutions Advisory Council (CDIAC) and the president of the council for 2020. The CDIAC advises the Board on the economy, lending conditions, and other issues of interest to community depository institutions. Members are selected from representatives of commercial banks, thrift institutions, and…
Federal Reserve: Gov. Brainard Gives Speech on Strengthening the CRA by Staying True to Its Core Purpose
By: Governor Lael Brainard At the Urban Institute, Washington, D.C. Good morning. I am pleased to be here at the Urban Institute to discuss how to strengthen the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), which is a key priority for the Federal Reserve. The CRA plays a vital role in bringing banks together with community members, small…
Interagency Release: Agencies Release CRA Asset-Size Threshold Adjustments for Small and Intermediate Small Institutions
The federal bank regulatory agencies today announced the annual adjustment to the asset-size thresholds used to define small bank, small savings association, intermediate small bank, and intermediate small savings association under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations. The annual adjustments are required by the CRA rules. Financial institutions are evaluated under different CRA examination procedures…
Federal Reserve: New Report Assesses Information Presented to Prospective Borrowers on Small Business Online Lender Websites
The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday released Uncertain Terms: What Small Business Borrowers Find When Browsing Online Lender Websites, a report that examines the information that prospective small business borrowers encounter when researching and comparing credit products offered by online lenders. Nonbank online lenders are becoming more mainstream alternative providers of financing to small businesses. In…
Federal Reserve: New Twitter Account Launched to Highlight Research, Conferences, and More
The Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday launched a new Twitter account aimed at increasing access to the research done by the more than 400 economists and other research staff at the Board. The new account—@FedResearch—will highlight research published in the Board’s working papers and notes series, other staff articles, and conferences. Staff members at the…
FFIEC: Federal Banking Agencies Announce Availability of 2018 Small Business, Small Farm, and Community Development Lending Data
The three federal banking agency members of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) with Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) responsibilities today announced the availability of data on small business, small farm, and community development lending reported by certain commercial banks and savings associations, pursuant to the CRA. The agencies releasing the data are the Board…
CFPB: Federal Regulators Issue Joint Statement on the Use of Alternative Data in Credit Underwriting
Five Federal financial regulatory agencies today issued a joint statement on the use of alternative data in underwriting by banks, credit unions, and non-bank financial firms. The statement from the Federal Reserve Board (Federal Reserve), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency…
FFIEC: Agencies Release List of Distressed or Underserved Nonmetropolitan Middle-Income Geographies
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency today announced the availability of the 2019 list of distressed or underserved nonmetropolitan middle-income geographies, where revitalization or stabilization activities are eligible to receive Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) consideration under the community…