Chicago Tops Metro Areas in High-Cost Loans

The Chicago metropolitan area led the nation in high-cost loans in 2006, according to an analysis of federal data by The Chicago Reporter, a bimonthly publication focused on race- and poverty-related issues.The analysis was based on Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data recently released by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council. The Chicago-Naperville-Joliet metro area ranked highest in the nation with 88,315 high-cost loans last year, the Reporter said. "High-cost loans have become a national problem, and if you want to understand more about high-cost loans, the first place you should look is Chicago," said Alden Loury, senior editor of the publication. "For three years running, Chicago has led the nation in high-cost loans." Ranking just behind Chicago were the metro areas of Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario (Calif.), Phoenix, and Washington, D.C., according to the Reporter. The publication can be found online at http://www.chicagoreporter.com, and the FFIEC, which sets uniform standards for the examination of financial institutions by federal regulators, can be found at http://www.ffiec.gov.