CFPB: Request for Information on Small Business Lending
We have issued a Request for Information on the small business lending marketplace. We aim to learn more about how small businesses engage with financial institutions, with a particular focus on women-owned and minority-owned small businesses. Your responses will enhance our current expertise of the small business lending space, and help us as we work…
CFPB: Exploring Ways to Assess the Availability of Credit for Small Business
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today launched an inquiry into ways to gather and use new and existing information to identify the financing needs of small businesses, especially those owned by women and minorities. Small businesses typically need access to credit to take advantage of growth opportunities, yet public information on this…
SBA: Critical Data and Best Practices Report Released in Evaluating Federal Business Assistance Program
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Small Business Administration, on behalf of the Evaluating Business Technical Assistance Program working group, today released a report on “Building Smarter Data for Evaluating Business Assistance Programs – A Guide for Practitioners”. The report is authored by program practitioners, economists, statisticians, and evaluation and policy…
ABA: Report | Farm Banks Increase Ag Lending 5% in 2016
Strong performance, asset quality and capital levels in 2016 WASHINGTON — Farm banks increased agricultural lending by 5.3 percent in 2016 and held $103.4 billion in farm loans at the end of the year, according to the American Bankers Association’s annual Farm Bank Performance Report. Asset quality remained healthy at the nation’s 1,912 farm banks…
FHFA: Index Shows Mortgage Rates Decreased in March
Washington, D.C. – Nationally, interest rates on conventional purchase-money mortgages decreased from February to March, according to several indices of new mortgage contracts. The National Average Contract Mortgage Rate for the Purchase of Previously Occupied Homes by Combined Lenders Index was 4.12 percent for loans closed in late March, down 15 basis points from 4.27…
HUD: New Residential Sales in March 2017 Report
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau today jointly announced the following new residential sales statistics for March 2017: NEW HOME SALES Sales of new single-family houses in March 2017 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 621,000, according to estimates released jointly today by…
FHFA: House Price Index Up 0.8 Percent in February
Washington, D.C. – U.S. house prices rose in February, up 0.8 percent from the previous month, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) seasonally adjusted monthly House Price Index (HPI). The previously reported lack of change in January was revised upward to a 0.2 percent increase. The FHFA monthly HPI is calculated using home sales…
HUD: New Residential Construction Activity for March Announced
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Census Bureau jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for March 2017: BUILDING PERMITS Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in March were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,260,000. This is 3.6 percent (±2.8 percent) above the revised…
CFPB: Safeguarding Against Credit Discrimination | 2016 Fair Lending Report
It is against the law for a lender to discriminate in any aspect of a credit transaction based on certain reasons. Despite this prohibition, we hear from consumers who believe they have been treated differently because of these reasons, including characteristics such as their age, race, national origin, or sex. That’s where the CFPB’s Office…
ABA: New Survey – Americans Confident in Their Financial Literacy Skills
ABA Foundation offers questions to help consumers see how they stack up WASHINGTON — Nearly two-thirds of adults (62 percent) consider their own financial literacy to be good or excellent, according to a new survey conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association. However, their perception of the average American isn’t quite…