I will become chairman of CSBS in May and I will continue my pledge to move forward with coordinated reviews of mortgage companies that operate across state lines. This is a process that reduces regulatory burden and also increases consumer protection. I am very proud of the role the Banking Department plays in New York State. We are setting the tone for how a regulator should address abuses of the law. I spend a great deal of my professional time involved with issues related to encouraging people to become part of the financial mainstream by opening checking and savings accounts and by hopefully helping people to avoid falling prey to predatory lenders.
Interest rates are lower and good opportunities are ripe for the taking.
Many sub-prime lenders provide valuable services to their customers who do not qualify for credit from a mainstream lender. And, yet deceptive and abusive lending practices that rob consumers of the many opportunities available to them continue to occur. Like everyone here today, we want to prevent the sale and approval of loans that are too expensive for the consumer, that contain unnecessary and unjustified fees and other costs, and that result in homeowners losing equity and ultimately possession of their homes. To come full circle, I've talked about how the environment in which the industry operates is constantly changing, the supervisory role regulators play, and the multi-pronged approach we are taking in New York to combat predatory lending. I want to reiterate why we are doing this.