1. California anti-discrimination law is enforced by: Show a. the Department of Business Oversight (DBO). b. the Department of Fair Employment and Housing. c. the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). d. Fannie Mae. b. the Department of Fair Employment and Housing. 2. Until __________ was added to the anti-discrimination laws in 1992, it was legal to exclude minors under the age of 18 from housing accommodations. a. implicit discrimination b. familial status c. religious preference d. senior citizen housing 3. __________ practices are those which are not openly discriminatory, but result in discriminatory effects. a. Overtly discriminatory b. Harmlessly prejudiced c. Conflict of interest d. Implicit discriminatory d. Implicit discriminatory 4. Failing to provide financing in certain communities is called: a. redlining. b. redevelopment. c. panic selling. d. subordination. 5. The __________ is a 1974 federal enactment prohibiting lenders from discriminating against borrowers from a protected class. a. Credit Reporting Act b. Truth-in-Lending Act c. Equal Credit Opportunity Act d. Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act c. Equal Credit Opportunity Act 6. A lender may lawfully consider ___________ when determining the applicant’s creditworthiness. a. a mortgage applicant’s age b. the religious preference of the mortgage applicant c. whether the mortgage applicant intends to bear children d. whether an applicant’s income is derived from alimony a. a mortgage applicant’s age 7. Consumers may request a free copy of their credit report _________ to review it for errors. a. once every month b. once every quarter c. twice every year d. once every year 8. The __________ requires lenders to compile and submit their home loan origination data to their respective supervisory agencies. a. Equal Credit Opportunity Act b. Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) c. Home Affordable Modification Plan (HAMP) d. Federal Fair Housing Act (FFHA) b. Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) 9. The printing or publishing of an advertisement for the sale or rental of residential property that indicates a wrongful discriminatory preference is a violation of the: a. Unruh Civil Rights Act. b. Federal Fair Housing Act (FFHA). c. American with Disabilities Act (ADA). d. Equal Credit Opportunity Act. b. Federal Fair Housing Act (FFHA). 10. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issues guidelines that require real estate brokers selling or renting single family residences (SFRs) display a(n): a. code of ethics. b. copy of the broker’s driver’s license. c. inspirational poster. d. fair housing poster. Skip to main content
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT CLYDE HARGRAVES, et al., v. Civ. Action No. 98-1021 (JHG/AK) CAPITAL CITY MORTGAGE CORP., ______________________________ BRIEF OF THE UNITED STATES AS AMICUS CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF I INTEREST OF THE UNITED STATES This case raises the novel question of whether the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) prohibit certain racially targeted predatory lending practices, typically referred to as "reverse redlining." Congress enacted the Fair Housing Act "to provide, within constitutional limitations, for fair housing throughout the United States." 42 U.S.C. §
3601. ECOA prohibits certain forms of discrimination with respect to all credit transactions. 15 U.S.C. § 1691(a). Through various federal agencies, the United States has responsibility for enforcing both statutes. In particular, the United States Department of Justice has the authority to commence an action under either the Fair Housing Act or ECOA. 42 U.S.C. § 3614; 15 U.S.C. § 1691e(h). Accordingly, the United States has a substantial interest in resolution of the legal issue raised
by Defendants, and an interpretation of the Fair Housing Act and ECOA by the United States may assist this Court in applying those statutes to the facts of this case. II BACKGROUND Plaintiffs filed a complaint in federal district court on April 24, 1998, later amended, alleging that Defendants have engaged in a pattern or practice of predatory lending targeting African American communities in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area (Compl.
2).(1) Plaintiffs are six individuals, Greater Little Ark Baptist Church, and the Fair Housing Council of Greater Washington (Compl. 3-4). The two Defendants are Capital City Mortgage Corporation and its sole stockholder and president Thomas Nash, who are in the business of mortgage lending and real estate sales (Compl. 5). Plaintiffs allege that Defendants' discriminatory
lending practices violate the Fair Housing Act and ECOA, as well as 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 and 1982, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and local laws prohibiting unfair and deceptive lender practices, fraud, and breach of contract (Compl. 29-44). The Federal Trade Commission has also filed a complaint against Capital City Mortgage and Nash alleging violations of ECOA's reporting requirements, as well as the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA), the Truth In Lending
Act (TILA), and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). See FTC v. Capital City Mortgage Corp., No. 98-237 (JHG/AK) (D.D.C. filed Jan. 29, 1998). The FTC does not have jurisdiction to enforce the Fair Housing Act and did not bring any discrimination claims under ECOA against Defendants. However, its ECOA, FTCA, TILA, and FDCPA claims are based on the same types of illegal lending practices that form the predicate for Plaintiffs' discrimination claims. The FTC alleges that
Defendants deceived borrowers about various loan terms; about contrived charges based on inflated monthly payment amounts, overdue balances, arrears, service fees, and advances; and about amounts owed to pay off the loans. The FTC further alleges that Defendants withheld some loan proceeds while requiring monthly payments for the entire loan amount, foreclosed on borrowers who were in compliance with their loan terms, and failed to release liens on borrowers' homes after the loans were paid off.
III DISCUSSION
IV CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons, Defendants' Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings or in the Alternative Summary Judgment should be denied. BILL LANN LEE JOAN A. MAGAGNA WILMA
A. LEWIS 1. "Compl. __" refers to the page number of Plaintiffs' First Amended Complaint. 2. Defendants also filed a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings or in the Alternative Summary Judgment against the FTC. The FTC filed its opposition on February 11, 2000. 3. "Mem. __" refers to the page number of the Memorandum of Points and Authorities in Support of Motion of Defendants for Judgment on the Pleadings or, in the Alternative, for Summary Judgment. 4. Reverse Redlining; Problems in Home Equity Lending: Hearings Before the Senate Comm. on Banking, Hous., and Urban Affairs, 103d Cong. 243-471 (Feb. 17, 1993) [hereinafter Hearings: Reverse Redlining]; To Protect Home Ownership and Equity through Enhanced Disclosure of the Risks Assoc. with Certain Mortgages: Hearings on The Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1993, S. 924, Before the Senate Comm. on Banking, Fin. and Urban Affairs, 103d Cong. (May 19, 1993); Hearings on H.R. 3153, The Home Equity Protection Act of 1993, Before the Subcomm. on Consumer Credit and Ins. of the House Comm. on Banking, Fin. and Urban Affairs, 103d Cong. (Mar. 22, 1994). 5. Equity Predators: Stripping, Flipping and Packing Their Way to Profits: Hearings Before the Senate Special Comm. on Aging, 105th Cong. (1998) [hereinafter Hearings: Equity Predators]. 6. Quoted in Dunn v. Midwestern Indemnity Mid-Am. Fire & Cas. Co., 472 F. Supp. 1106, 1109 (S.D. Ohio 1979). 7. HUD's interpretations of the Fair Housing Act are entitled to considerable deference. Trafficante, 409 U.S. at 210; Gladstone Realtors v. Village of Bellwood, 441 U.S. 91, 106 (1979). 8. Hearings: Equity Predators, note 4, supra, at 65 (Prepared Statement of FTC); Hearings: Reverse Redlining, note 4, supra, at 246 (Statement of Sen. Alfonse M. D'Amato); id. at 307 (Report of Mass. Attorney Gen.); id. at 254 (Statement of Mass. Attorney Gen.). 9. Every circuit that has examined the issue agrees that the Fair Housing Act prohibits "'not only direct discrimination but practices with racially discouraging effects.'" Jackson v. Okaloosa County, 21 F.3d 1531, 1543 (11th Cir. 1994); accord Huntington Branch, N.A.A.C.P. v. Town of Huntington, 844 F.2d 926, 933-40 (2d Cir.), aff'd per curiam, 488 U.S. 15 (1988); Resident Advisory Bd. v. Rizzo, 564 F.2d. 126, 149-50 (3d Cir. 1977), cert. denied, 435 U.S. 908 (1978); Smith v. Town of Clarkton, 682 F.2d 1055, 1065-66 (4th Cir. 1982); Mitchell, 580 F.2d at 791 (5th Cir. 1978); Arthur v. City of Toledo, 782 F.2d 565, 574-575 (6th Cir. 1986); Metropolitan Hous. Dev. Corp. v. Village of Arlington Heights, 558 F.2d 1283, 1287-1290 (7th Cir. 1977), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 1025 (1978); United States v. City of Black Jack, 508 F.2d 1179, 1184-1185 (8th Cir. 1974), cert. denied, 422 U.S. 1042 (1975); Keith v. Volpe, 858 F.2d 467, 482-484 (9th Cir. 1988), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 813 (1989); Mountain Side Mobile Estates v. HUD, 56 F.3d 1243, 1250-1251 (10th Cir. 1995). 10. "Pl. Mem. __" refers the page number of "Plaintiffs' Opposition to Defendants' Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings, or in the Alternative, Summary Judgment." 11. Defendants made the same argument in their motion for summary judgment in FTC v. Capital City Mortgage Corp., No. 98-237. The position in this brief is the same argument made by the FTC in its Memorandum in Opposition. 12. Section 805(b) defines "residential real estate-related transaction" to means any of the following: (1) The making or purchasing of loans or providing other financial assistance -- (A) for purchasing, constructing, improving, repairing, or maintaining a dwelling; or (B) secured by residential real estate. (2) The selling, brokering, or appraising of residential real property. 13. Plaintiffs do not press a Fair Housing Act claim with respect to the Little Ark transaction. That transaction is covered by ECOA, which applies to all types of credit. See Section III.A.6., supra. > > Updated August 6, 2015 Was this page helpful?Was this page helpful? What does redlining mean in real estate?Redlining. Redlining is the practice of denying a creditworthy applicant a loan for housing in a certain neighbor hood even though the applicant may otherwise be eligible for the loan.
What is mortgage redlining?Primary tabs. Redlining can be defined as a discriminatory practice that consists of the systematic denial of services such as mortgages, insurance loans, and other financial services to residents of certain areas, based on their race or ethnicity.
What is a violation of fair lending?Fair lending prohibits lenders from considering your race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or disability when applying for residential mortgage loans. Fair lending guarantees the same lending opportunities to everyone.
What is an example of discrimination in lending?Examples of Lending Discrimination
Providing a different customer service experience to mortgage applicants depending on their race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), familial status, national origin or disability.
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