The Conservative Cave
Current Events => Economics => Topic started by: thundley4 on May 12, 2011, 09:10:04 AM
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In the wake of the subprime implosion, the Obama Administration has stepped up its scrutiny of disadvantaged neighborhoods' credit access
Community activists in St. Louis became concerned a couple of years ago that local banks weren't offering credit to the city's poor and African American residents. So they formed a group called the St. Louis Equal Housing and Community Reinvestment Alliance and began writing complaint letters to federal regulators.
Apparently, someone in Washington took notice. The Federal Reserve has cited one of the group's targets, Midwest BankCentre, a small bank that has been operating in St. Louis's predominantly white, middle-class suburbs for over a century, for failing to issue home mortgages or open branches in disadvantaged areas. Although executives at the bank say they don't discriminate, Midwest BankCentre's latest annual report says it is in the process of negotiating a settlement with the U.S. Justice Dept. over its lending practices.
BusinessWeek (http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_20/b4228031594062.htm)
Isn't this what cause the housing bubble and subsequent bust?
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Pretty much--I mean, hell, isn't it SUPPOSED to be racist when a person with a 400 FICO score can't get a car loan, but CAN get a mortgage for a house which has a payment double the applicant's GROSS income?