Report: Most B&C Loans Went to Nonminorities

The majority of subprime loans originated in 2006 were made to non-Hispanic whites and upper-income borrowers, according to ComplianceTech, an Arlington, Va.-based provider of technology and business intelligence. The report concluded that a disproportionate share of loans to minorities and low-income borrowers were subprime loans, but that non-Hispanic whites received 56.2% of the more than 1.9 million subprime loans originated in 2006. Upper-income borrowers got 39.4%, while only 7.6% went to low-income borrowers. Maurice Jourdain-Earl, co-founder and managing director of ComplianceTech, said the problem with portraying the foreclosure crisis as a minority and low-income issue is that it affects the development of possible solutions. "There could be a tendency to write off the subprime lending debacle as a type of affirmative action gone bad," he said. "We must acknowledge that the foreclosure crisis affects broader and more demographically diverse segments of society. This politically responsible approach will likely change the tone, climate, and context of how solutions are crafted." The company can be found online at http://www.compliancetech.com.