Industry Education Lending personnel of financial institutions may need additional information and training about fair lending laws, and greater sensitivity to cultural and racial differences among applicants for credit. In this regard, the agencies believe that additional efforts to expand and intensify educational programs for both lenders and consumers will be required. The agencies themselves will continue to develop informational materials and participate in conferences and seminars for financial-institution representatives concerning their responsibilities. The agencies have distributed a guide for financial institutions, Home Mortgage Lending and Equal Treatment . The guide highlights lending standards and practices that may adversely impact the capacity of institutions to serve minorities and other protected classes of borrowers, and alerts them to subtle forms of discriminatory behavior that should be avoided.
Copies are available from each of the agencies.
Understanding the Process and Your Rights , is available from the agencies to assist borrowers in knowing what to expect in applying for a loan and what their rights are if they suspect mistreatment. The agencies call on financial institutions and their trade associations to intensify their equal credit opportunity education programs for management, lending personnel, and consumers. This should include efforts to identify and promote examples of successful techniques used by institutions to ensure equal treatment of loan applicants. These techniques might include use of internal systems to conduct independent second reviews of applications from minorities initially recommended for denial to ensure equal treatment with nonminorities. One lender recently reported making loans to 35 percent of initially rejected applicants after instituting such a review procedure.