Mortgages

The core function of the Federal Home Loan Bank System — advances to member institutions — plummeted 20% last year to $350 billion, its lowest level in 15 years. That erosion of purpose is emboldening critics, who say the Home Loan banks need to change or face irrelevance.

The agency is conducting its first price review for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac products since 2015 to make sure they are generating viable returns. The acting director said that is just one of many questions that must be answered before the enterprises can be privatized.

Wells Fargo won an early round in a lawsuit accusing the bank of running a predatory mortgage lending scheme in the Atlanta area before the 2008 financial crisis and continuing to discriminate against minorities for more than a decade afterward.

On Dec. 31, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

On Dec. 31, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

Wells Fargo, which approved fewer than half of mortgage refinancings sought by Black homeowners in 2020, prompting calls for regulatory investigations, greenlighted a larger share of applications from such borrowers last year.

Home prices have increased at their fastest rate since the mid-2000s housing boom and driven skyrocketing inflation. Fed Gov. Christopher Waller says lenders are better prepared for a shock than in 2007 but still need to be monitored — especially nonbank lenders.

JPMorgan Chase said it will do a third-party audit of its $30 billion racial-equity commitment, following Citigroup and BlackRock in agreeing to such a review.

Banking and credit union regulators are expected to respond to a White House call to root out discrimination in the predominantly white appraisal business. They will likely step up enforcement and data collection, reclaiming authority long ceded to the industry's governing body.

A handful of snafus, some a decade old, shouldn’t tar an entire line of payment products that are a lifeline for many consumers and have helped millions of Americans access and manage their finances during the COVID-19 pandemic.