Ending predatory lending has become a morass of litigation, legislation, public hearings and, lately, conflicting reports. That could mean plans to tighten regulations to weed out predatory lenders needs sharper honing and more time to develop.
Critics say the loans target older people, borrowers with lower incomes and minorities.
Class action suits have begun to thwart some predatory lenders and state legislation has done the same, with mixed reviews. Most agree, however, a broad-based federal solution is the best answer, but that's been a much slower process largely because current data gathering techniques makes it difficult to pinpoint where regulations need tightening. Just before the last of four Federal Reserve hearings last week to determine how the Fed should stiffen regulations to combat predatory lending, CRC fired off a release that said the Fed wasn't moving fast enough. The Board has been silent on the devastating impacts predatory lenders are having on California's communities. It's a matter of figuring out what is unaffordable.