Reinvestment Works: Summer 2011
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CRA
Reinvestment Works: Spring 2011
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Advocates and New Yorkers Demand Banks Be Held Accountable
Call for Swift Passage of Responsible Banking Act (Intro. 485)
Council members, advocates and community residents gathered on the steps of City Hall today to demand that banks be held accountable, and to call for the passage of the recently introduced Responsible Banking Act (Intro. 485 – Vann, Recchia). The press conference followed a hearing on the legislation in the New York City Council Committees on Community Development and Finance, also held today.
The Responsible Banking Act is important new proposed legislation that will create a ranking system of banks seeking city deposits based on how responsive they are to the needs of New York City’s neighborhoods. By holding banks that store the city’s money more locally accountable, the bill would incentivize these financial institutions to engage in practices that are beneficial to all New Yorkers and strengthen their community development efforts in New York City. An evaluation of how these banks contribute to the needs of the City and its communities would be a transparent and important tool of the city in determining which banks it deposits its funds.
The bill is not only a response to the aftermath of predatory lending and other harmful bank practices that contributed to the national financial crisis, but also to continued disengagement by banks within underserved communities. As the effects of this continue to be felt in our city, it is imperative that New York City take affirmative steps to rebuild and strengthen its partnerships with the banking community. The Responsible Banking Act creates the transparency and oversight necessary to achieve this. The bill would require the Department of Finance, in its role on the NYC Banking Commission, to collect important information related to community development activities performed by banks wanting to be city depositories. These would include whether they provide: mortgage loan restructuring for struggling homeowners; financing for the construction of affordable housing; and/or credit and financial services for small businesses, among other criteria.
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John Taylor: Foreclosures Are the Mortal Enemy to Economic Recovery
By: Lori Ann LaRocco CNBC Sr. Talent Producer Published: Monday, 29 Nov 2010 | 10:17 AM ET The foreclosure crisis still divides us into two camps. There are those who believe that foreclosing rapidly on homes subject to defaulted mortgages is vital to clearing the market. Others believe we should do everything we can
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Rev. Jesse Jackson, Faith Leaders Call For Congressional Action on Foreclosure Crisis, Bank Lending
Impact from Foreclosure Crisis Expanding, Churches Feeling the Pain As Thanksgiving Comes Washington, DC – Dozens of faith leaders today joined Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr., in calling for congressional action to address the foreclosure crisis and to strengthen and enforce the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), in order to stabilize communities nationwide that have been
Rebuilding Communities in Economic Distress (REO Report)
NCRC released its latest report: “Rebuilding Communities in Economic Distress: Local Strategies to Sustain Homeownership, Reclaim Vacant Properties, and Promote Community-Based Employment.” This report will be of interest to local community, housing and economic development entities and their stakeholders, as well as to policy makers at every level looking to replicate best practices in community
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Improving HMDA Data can be the Answer to Averting another Foreclosure Epidemic
Washington, DC–On Friday, September 24th, NCRC will testify before Federal Reserve Board on making critical improvements to HMDA data, so that lenders can be held accountable for the types of loans they are issuing to communities.
“We are in an era of some of the most complicated mortgage products to-date and given the strain that bad mortgage loans have put on our economy, lenders should be examined with a microscope now more than ever. In the era of reckless and corrupt lending, it is crucial that HMDA actually does what it was enacted to do, which is identify discriminatory lending patterns and determine if financial institutions are meeting local housing needs,” said John Taylor, president and CEO of NCRC, in reaction to the Federal Reserve’s 2009 HMDA data report.
The recently enacted Dodd-Frank bill mandates significant improvements to HMDA data. NCRC calls upon the Federal Reserve Board and the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to expeditiously implement these improvements. In today’s release, the Federal Reserve Board states that the current HMDA data lacks information on credit scores, property values, and other factors necessary to fully account for disparities in racial access to affordable loans.
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NCRC Releases Safe & Sound Lending in Neighborhoods Study (Sept 2010)
Community Reinvestment Act Mitigates Damage to Communities Caused by Financial Crisis A new study by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition finds that Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulated lenders avoided significant decreases in lending accompanied by the current foreclosure crisis and severe recession. The study compared home and small businesses lending and bank branching in two
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Sign-On Letter to Chairman Frank – Aug. 16, 2010
Dear Chairman Frank:
First, we would like to congratulate you and thank you for your leadership in enacting financial regulatory reform that will go a long way towards leveling the playing field for consumers, increasing the safety and soundness of our financial system and helping to curb the worst abuses that caused the economic collapse. We want to thank you in particular for including enhancements to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act and small business lending data in financial reform.
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Congressman Luis Gutierrez Remarks – July 30, 2010
Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) has issued this video call to action, calling on his colleagues to support our efforts to strengthen and expand the Community Reinvestment Act. We’re working with the Congressman and his colleagues to move legislation expanding and strengthening CRA in the coming months, and we thank him for his leadership on this
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Community Organizations Weigh in on the Community Reinvestment Act
Hundreds of NCRC members expected to comment and testify before bank regulators this summer Atlanta, GA – Today, eight members of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition testified before the bank regulatory agencies regarding ways to improve the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to leverage hundreds of billions of dollars more in private investments for job creation
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Wall Street Pulling Out All the Stops to Maintain Veil of Secrecy
Wall Street Pulling Out All the Stops to Maintain Veil of Secrecy and Avoid Accountability Brought by Financial Reform Bill
Senate bill needs to get stronger to protect consumers
Washington, DC — As the Wall Street reform debate opens in the Senate, the financial services lobby is pulling out all the stops to weaken or even kill the financial reform bill. On a mission to fight off oversight and accountability, Wall Street banks have already poured in millions of dollars, deployed over a thousand lobbyists, including former members of congress, all in efforts to fight off the bill and guard their lofty profits. The National Community Reinvestment Coalition urged the Senate today to fight on behalf of the American people for strong reform that ensures that the financial system is fair, transparent, and accountable.
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Community Reinvestment Act Q & A
How to Use the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to Promote Housing and Economic Opportunity in Your Community Why is the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) important? CRA is a federal law that imposes an affirmative obligation on banks to serve the credit needs of low- and moderate-income communities and to take steps to provide equal
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