The Department of Justice issued a final rule eliminating disparate impact liability from Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, ending five decades of civil rights protections that allowed enforcement against policies producing racially discriminatory outcomes without proof of discriminatory …
Pam BondiHarmeet DhillonDepartment of Justicecivil-rightsdojlegaldiscriminationregulation+6 more
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to block the Biden administration’s CDC eviction moratorium covering areas with high COVID transmission, finding the agency exceeded its statutory authority. The Court held that ‘[i]f a federally imposed eviction moratorium is to continue, Congress must …
Supreme CourtCDCJoe BidenAlabama Association of Realtorsexecutive-overreachemergency-powerssupreme-courtcovid-19housing
Bank of America announces a nationwide halt to foreclosures after revelations that employees signed thousands of foreclosure affidavits without reviewing the underlying documents, a practice dubbed “robo-signing.” The scandal exposes systematic fraud in the foreclosure process, with …
Bank of AmericaJPMorgan ChaseWells FargoGMAC MortgageOffice of the Comptroller of the Currency+1 moreforeclosure-fraudrobo-signinghousing-crisisregulatory-failurehousing
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson announces that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored enterprises backing $5 trillion in home mortgages, will be placed into conservatorship under the newly created Federal Housing Finance Agency. The seizure represents the largest government …
New Century Financial Corporation, the nation’s second-largest subprime mortgage lender, files for bankruptcy protection after its stock loses 90 percent of its value in weeks, marking the beginning of the subprime mortgage crisis. The company had originated $60 billion in subprime loans in …
New Century FinancialBrad MorriceKPMGWall Street investment banksFannie Mae+1 morehousing-crisissubprime-mortgagesbankruptcyregulatory-failurehousing
The U.S. housing bubble reaches its peak in mid-2006, with national home prices having risen 124 percent since 1997. Subprime mortgage originations hit $600 billion, representing 23 percent of all mortgage originations, up from 8 percent in 2003. The bubble’s apex represents the culmination of …
Countrywide FinancialNew Century FinancialWashington MutualAmeriquestFederal Reserve+1 morehousing-bubblepredatory-lendingsubprime-mortgagessystemic-riskhousing
The Securities and Exchange Commission votes unanimously to allow the five largest investment banks to dramatically increase their leverage ratios, removing a 1970s-era rule that limited debt to 12 times capital. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, and Bear Stearns …
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)William DonaldsonGoldman SachsMorgan StanleyMerrill Lynch+2 moreregulatory-capturehousing-policyleverageinvestment-bankshousing
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, led by Comptroller John Hawke Jr, issues a preemption determination blocking enforcement of the Georgia Fair Lending Act against national banks, marking a turning point in federal regulators’ campaign to shield predatory lenders from state …
Office of the Comptroller of the CurrencyJohn Hawke JrGeorgia State LegislatureNational City BankAmerican Bankers Associationregulatory-capturepredatory-lendingpreemptionhousing-policyhousing
Subprime mortgage lending reaches $160 billion annually by 2000, a tenfold increase from 1993, as predatory lenders systematically target minority communities with high-cost loans. Rather than expanding homeownership, research shows that subprime lending at this scale actually causes net losses in …
Household Finance CorporationAssociates First CapitalCitigroupAmeriquestNational Association of Mortgage Brokerspredatory-lendinghousing-policyracial-discriminationsubprime-mortgageshousing
President Clinton signs the Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act, removing Depression-era restrictions that prevented banks from operating across state lines. The law enables massive consolidation in the banking industry, with the number of commercial banks declining from over …
President Bill ClintonSenator Donald RiegleRepresentative Stephen NealAmerican Bankers AssociationNationsBank+1 morebanking-deregulationhousing-policyconsolidationregulatory-capturehousing
President Carter signs the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), requiring banks to meet the credit needs of their entire communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods previously redlined by lenders. The law responds to decades of documented discriminatory lending that drained deposits …
President Jimmy CarterSenator William ProxmireAmerican Bankers AssociationFederal ReserveFDIC+1 moreregulatory-responsehousing-policybanking-regulationcivil-rightshousing
Congress passes two major housing consumer protection laws in 1974: the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) prohibiting discrimination in lending based on sex and marital status (race added in 1976), and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) requiring disclosure of closing costs. …
U.S. CongressPresident Gerald FordAmerican Bankers AssociationMortgage Bankers AssociationFederal Reservefair-lendingconsumer-protectionhousing-policyindustry-lobbyinghousing
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Fair Housing Act (Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968) into law one week after Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination, prohibiting discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing based on race, religion, national origin, or sex. The …
President Lyndon B. JohnsonMartin Luther King Jr.National Association of Real Estate BoardsNational Association of RealtorsHouse Rules Committeehousingcivil-rightsinstitutional-racismreal-estate-industrycorporate-opposition
President Johnson signs legislation creating the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as a Cabinet-level agency, consolidating federal housing programs under one roof. Robert C. Weaver becomes the first HUD Secretary and the first African American Cabinet member. However, HUD inherits …
President Lyndon B. JohnsonRobert C. WeaverNational Association of Home BuildersNational Association of Real Estate Boardshousing-policyinstitutional-capturecivil-rightshousing
President Roosevelt signs the Home Owners’ Loan Act, creating the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) as an emergency response to the mortgage crisis of the Great Depression. Between 1933 and 1936, HOLC refinances approximately one million mortgages (one-tenth of all urban homes with …
Home Owners' Loan CorporationFranklin D. RooseveltFederal Home Loan Bank BoardReal estate appraisersinstitutional-captureracial-oppressionhousing-policyeconomic-strategyhousing