NCRC Statement on CFED and IPS Racial Wealth Gap Report, CRA, and Affordable Housing Goals
Washington, DC — (RealEstateRama) — Today, in reaction to the new report from the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) and the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS), “The Ever-Growing Gap: Without Change, African-American and Latino Families Won’t Match White Wealth for Centuries,” the National Community Reinvestment Coalition’s (NCRC) President and CEO John Taylor made the following statement:
“The findings in ‘The Ever-Growing Gap’ report highlight the need for policies that promote economic fairness, and increase homeownership opportunities for communities of color. We need to ensure that the Community Reinvestment Act is expanded, modernized and better enforced, to increase investments and opportunities for wealth building in predominantly minority neighborhoods. Another important measure to increase the availability of responsible credit for underserved communities is to preserve and strengthen the affordable housing goals of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Democratizing the availability of responsible mortgage and small business credit is not just the right thing to do and of benefit for communities of color, it also benefits the economy at large.”
“There can be no mistaking the role that the private financial sector and government-sponsored enterprises play in building wealth. Lack of access to credit and investments coupled with inflexible lending standards and the economic devastation resulting from the financial crisis continue to disproportionately impact communities of color.”
In July of this year, NCRC released a report on home mortgage lending in St. Louis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, and surrounding areas.
In November of 2015, NCRC released a report on home mortgage and small business lending in Baltimore and surrounding areas.
In June of this year, NCRC released “The Community Reinvestment Act: Vital for Neighborhoods, the Country, and the Economy,” which includes a number of legislative and regulatory recommendations for modernizing and strengthening CRA.
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About NCRC
NCRC and its grassroots member organizations create opportunities for people to build wealth. We work with community leaders, policymakers and financial institutions to champion fairness in banking, housing and business development.
