Housing

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has reached an agreement with Citizens Bank to settle allegations that the bank discriminated against a woman on maternity leave.

The Democratic and Republican platforms adopted at this year's party conventions take a more forward-looking approach to housing issues than they did four years ago. But they have distinctly different views on the government's role in maintaining a robust mortgage industry.

Democrats will adopt a party platform this week that omits most references to a need for continued post-housing crisis reforms, and instead focuses on expanding access to mortgage credit and support for industry regulation.

Regulators sought to limit improper contact between lenders and appraisers, but policies of the two mortgage giants encourage the kind of practices that contributed to the housing crisis.

The official platform of the Republican Party has softened language calling for the end of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, while continuing to demand reform of the government-sponsored enterprises.

There were patterns of racial disparities in mortgage originations in the St. Louis, Milwaukee and Minneapolis metropolitan statistical areas, according to the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.

Karl "Chip" Case, the co-creator of the S&P/Case-Shiller Index of home prices, has died at 69.

The Mortgage Partnership Finance Direct program will now accept larger jumbo mortgages and a wider variety of products including hybrid adjustable rate mortgages, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago and Redwood Trust said Monday.The partners said that the program would accept jumbos of up to $2. 5 million, a boost from the previous $1.5 million limit.

The $140 billion-asset company disclosed Thursday in a regulatory filing that the Federal Reserve Board downgraded its Community Reinvestment Act rating to "needs to improve."

While many depositories do just enough mortgage lending to low- to moderate-income borrowers to meet statutory requirements, The Federal Savings Bank has made it a backbone for growth.