Black and Hispanic Groups Call for Foreclosure Moratorium in Sub-Prime Market

Louisiana Foreclosure & Real Estate News

(Taylor Media Services) National civil rights groups yesterday (Wednesday) called for mortgage lenders and investors to institute an immediate six-month moratorium on sub-prime home foreclosures which they suggested are resulting from the fact that the industry saddled many Black and Hispanic homebuyers with "reckless and unaffordable loans." Sub-prime mortgage loans are usually those given to people with low incomes and/or poor credit.

Durham, North Carolina's Center for Responsible Lending estimates that nationally over half of the home loans to African Americans and 40 percent of those to Hispanics in recent years have been the so-called sub-prime loans.

One result has been that since 1995, the number of Black homeowners is up by about 35 percent while the number of Hispanic homeowners has shot up by nearly 70 percent. But in recent months there has been an unprecedented level of defaults in the sub-prime loan markets because the loans usually come with high interest rates and balloon payments.

The civil rights organizations calling for a six month moratorium on further foreclosures include the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the NAACP, the National Fair Housing Alliance, the National Council of La Raza and the Center for Responsible Lending. They charge the lost of homes due to foreclosures is falling disproportionately on minority homeowners. Persons facing the possible lost of a home can contact the Center for Responsible Lending online at www.responsiblelending.org

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