Recently released Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data indicates that mortgage lenders improved their performance when it came to loan denials for minorities.
The HMDA data indicate that loan originations were 12 percent lower in 2010 than in 2009.
Higher-priced loans accounted for 4 percent of last year’s originations.
Those findings were reported Monday by TruPoint Partners.
The report said that minorities were denied a mortgage at a rate of 20 percent. But non-Hispanic whites had a denial rate of just 14 percent.
However, despite the disparity, “the denial gap between minorities and white males decreased almost 5 percent in 2010,” TruPoint said.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based consulting firm says that it will provide a free Fair Lending comparison report to each HMDA reporting institution.
TruPoint Chief Executive Officer Trey Sullivan said in the announcement that with the 2010 HMDA data, compliance officers will be better able to gauge their performance both nationally and locally.
“Passing fair lending examinations are not optional,” Sullivan stated in the announcement. “Negative outcomes can compromise reputation and impact growth.”
