§__.42(c)(1)(iv) – 3
Q: When collecting the gross annual income of consumer borrowers, do institutions collect the gross annual income or the adjusted gross annual income of the borrowers?
A3. Institutions collect the gross annual income, rather than the adjusted gross annual income, of consumer borrowers. The purpose of income data collection in connection with consumer loans is to enable examiners to determine the distribution, particularly in the institution’s assessment area(s), of the institution’s consumer loans, based on borrower characteristics, including the number and amount of consumer loans to low-, moderate-, middle-, and upper-income borrowers, as determined on the basis of gross annual income.
The regulation does not require institutions to request or consider income information when making a loan; however, if institutions do gather this information from their borrowers, the Agencies expect them to collect the borrowers’ gross annual income for purposes of CRA. The CRA regulations similarly do not require institutions to verify income amounts; thus, institutions may rely on the gross annual income amount provided by borrowers in the ordinary course of business.
Source: Interagency Questions & Answers Regarding Community Reinvestment | July 2016