Coalition Cites 'Problematic Brokers'

The National Community Reinvestment Coalition is "extremely troubled" about the mortgage originations market and "problematic brokers," NCRC executive vice president David Berenbaum testified at the Fed hearing in Philadelphia.Mr. Berenbaum said that in 90% of the cases where the group found a problematic situation, there was a problematic broker involved. The NCRC conducted a "mystery shopping" campaign, sending out qualified minority testers and less-qualified white testers. Among the results he shared at the hearing was that 74% of whites were given details regarding fees, while only 31% of minorities were. Whites were offered, on average, 2.6 products, while brokers discussed only 1.3 products with minorities, he reported. Brokers met for an average of 38.6 minutes with the white testers, and just 27.4 minutes with minority testers.