Fair Lending
Justice Department and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Reach Settlement with Hudson City Savings Bank to Resolve Allegations of Mortgage Lending
Settlement Provides Over $27 Million to Ensure Equal Lending Services to Predominantly Black and Hispanic Communities
The Justice Department and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a consent order today to resolve allegations that Hudson City Savings Bank (Hudson City) engaged in a pattern or practice of "redlining" predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in its residential mortgage lending practices. "Redlining" is the discriminatory practice by banks or other financial institutions to deny or avoid providing credit services to a consumer because of the racial demographics of the neighborhood in which the consumer lives. This resolution represents the Justice Department's largest residential mortgage redlining settlement in its history.
| Institution | Regulator(s) | Violation | Penalty | Period covered | HMDA/fair-lending data field involved |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hudson City Savings Bank | Justice Department; Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) | Redlining predominantly Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in residential mortgage lending, in violation of the Fair Housing Act and Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) | $25 million loan subsidy fund; $2.25 million for advertising, outreach, financial education, and community partnership efforts; two new full-service branches; $5.5 million civil monetary penalty (total over $27 million) | At least 2009 to 2013 | — |
CFPB Orders RPM Mortgage to Pay $19 Million for Steering Consumers Into Costlier Mortgages
RPM CEO Erwin Robert Hirt to Pay Additional $1 Million Civil Penalty
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a complaint in federal district court against RPM Mortgage, Inc. and its CEO, Erwin Robert Hirt, for illegally paying bonuses and higher commissions to loan originators to incentivize them to steer consumers into costlier mortgages. The CFPB also filed a proposed order that, if entered by the court, would require RPM to pay $18 million in redress to consumers and a $1 million civil penalty, and would require Hirt to pay an additional $1 million civil penalty.
| Institution | Regulator(s) | Violation | Penalty | Period covered | HMDA/fair-lending data field involved |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RPM Mortgage, Inc. | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) | Violated the Loan Originator Compensation Rule and the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) by paying bonuses and higher commissions to loan originators to incentivize them to steer consumers into costlier mortgages | $18 million in redress to consumers; $1 million civil penalty (RPM); Hirt to pay an additional $1 million civil penalty | April 2011 through December 2013 | Loan officer compensation / steering |
Justice Department and CFPB Reach Settlement with Provident Funding Associates to Resolve Allegations of Mortgage Lending Discrimination
Settlement Provides $9 Million in Compensation to African-American and Hispanic Borrowers
The Justice Department and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) filed a consent order today to resolve allegations that Provident Funding Associates (Provident) engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination that increased loan prices for African-American and Hispanic borrowers who obtained residential mortgages between 2006 and 2011 from Provident's nationwide network of mortgage brokers.
| Institution | Regulator(s) | Violation | Penalty | Period covered | HMDA/fair-lending data field involved |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provident Funding Associates | Justice Department; Consumer Financial Protection Bureau | Pattern or practice of discrimination that increased loan prices for African-American and Hispanic borrowers, in violation of the Fair Housing Act and Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) | $9 million into a fund for the benefit of victims of the alleged discrimination | 2006 to 2011 | — |
U.S. Justice Department and North Carolina Attorney General Reach Settlement to Resolve Allegations of Auto Lending Discrimination
Settlement Requires Substantial Improvements to Dealerships' Policies and Provides $225,000 in Relief to Affected Customers
The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Justice today announced a settlement of the federal government's first-ever discrimination lawsuit involving "buy here, pay here" auto lending. The settlement, which is subject to court approval, was filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.
| Institution | Regulator(s) | Violation | Penalty | Period covered | HMDA/fair-lending data field involved |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Fare Inc. and Southeastern Auto Corp. | U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division; U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of North Carolina; North Carolina Department of Justice | Pattern or practice of "reverse redlining" by intentionally targeting African-American customers for unfair and predatory credit practices in financing used car purchases, in violation of the federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act; also alleged violation of North Carolina's Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act | $225,000 settlement fund to compensate victims of past discriminatory and predatory lending | — | Disproportionately high sales prices, down payments, and interest rates compared to other subprime used-car dealers |
Justice Department Reaches Settlement Agreement With First United Bank Over Allegations of Discrimination on the Basis of National Origin
The Justice Department announced today that First United Bank, of Dimmitt, Texas, will maintain uniform pricing policies, conduct employee training and pay $140,000 as part of a settlement to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination on the basis of national origin.
| Institution | Regulator(s) | Violation | Penalty | Period covered | HMDA/fair-lending data field involved |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First United Bank | Justice Department (Civil Rights Division); referred by the FDIC | Pattern or practice of discrimination on the basis of national origin — charging higher prices on unsecured consumer loans made to Hispanic borrowers, in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) | $140,000 total, to compensate hundreds of victims of discrimination | — | National origin discrimination in loan pricing (unsecured consumer loans) |
The settlement, which is subject to court approval, was filed in conjunction with the Justice Department's complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. The complaint alleges that First United Bank charged higher prices on unsecured consumer loans made to Hispanic borrowers in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).
- 2025 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Small Business, Small Farm and Community Development Lending Data: What Changed and What to Do Next
- The CFPB's Semiannual Report: What Narrower Federal Enforcement Means for Fair Lending, HMDA and Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Programs
- How to Choose Section 1071 Software: What to Test Before Your First Filing
- The Regulation B Lawsuits: What Your Fair Lending Program Should Keep Doing While the Rule Is in Court
- California's New Fair Lending Exam Law: What State-Chartered Banks, Credit Unions and Mortgage Licensees Should Have Ready
- November 2026
- October 2026
- September 2026
- August 2026
- March 2026
- February 2026
- January 2026
- 2025
- 2022
- 2021
- 2020
- 2017
- HMDA vs CRA vs Section 1071: What Each Rule Collects and Who Has to File
- 2026 HMDA Data: Your Filing Checklist for the March 1, 2027 Deadline
- HMDA Plus: What It Actually Changed in the LAR Workflow
- Fair Lending Regression Analysis: What It Controls For and How to Explain a Pricing Disparity
- How to Evaluate Fair Lending and CRA Software: What to Test Before You Sign
- What a Fair Lending Exam Actually Asks For
- What Actually Counts as a Small Business Loan Under Section 1071
- Section 1071 in 2026: What Lenders Need to Know About Small Business Lending Data
- How to Benchmark Your CRA and HMDA Lending Against Peer Data
- Special Report: Geocoding - Achieving the Highest Accuracy
