Since launching an initiative to fight redlining in 2021, federal prosecutors have reached settlements with 13 mortgage lenders totaling greater than $137 million.
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A New Jersey-based lender accused of closing branches in minority neighborhoods operated by two rivals it acquired has agreed to pay $15.1 million to settle federal redlining allegations.
OceanFirst Financial institution’s acquisitions of Solar Nationwide Financial institution in 2018 and Two River Neighborhood in 2020 attracted the eye of federal regulators and the Division of Justice, which launched a nationwide anti-redlining initiative in 2021.
In its grievance, the Justice Division famous that earlier than these acquisitions, OceanFirst principally operated in predominantly white communities in Ocean and Monmouth counties.
Within the strategy of increasing, OceanFirst acquired 45 branches and mortgage manufacturing workplaces — and by 2022 had closed all 4 of its new branches that have been positioned in majority-Black, Hispanic and Asian neighborhoods, the Division of Justice alleged in its Sept. 18 grievance.
Along with working no workplaces in minority neighborhoods, OceanFirst’s outreach and promoting was disproportionately centered on majority-white communities, contributing to “a pattern or practice of unlawful redlining,” prosecutors alleged.
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OceanFirst didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark however stated within the consent order that it neither admitted nor denied the allegations towards it.
“OceanFirst asserts that throughout the period of time at issue in this proceeding and to the present, it has treated all of its customers fairly and without regard to impermissible factors such as race, color and national origin,” the consent order stated. “OceanFirst also asserts that it enters into this settlement solely for the purpose of avoiding contested litigation with the United States, and to instead devote its resources to providing fair and equal access to residential lending services” within the New Brunswick space.
However the Division of Justice alleged that an evaluation of Dwelling Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) knowledge confirmed that from 2018 by means of 2022, just one.9 p.c of the 4,975 mortgage functions processed by OceanFirst got here from folks looking for loans on properties positioned in majority Black, Hispanic or Asian census tracts. That compares to 17.4 p.c of functions acquired by OceanFirst’s friends, the grievance alleged.
“OceanFirst was aware of the inadequacy of its fair lending risk management as early as 2020, when an internal analysis shared with bank leadership stated that the bank’s physical expansion had increased its fair lending risk but that risk management practices had failed to keep pace,” the grievance alleged. “A 2020 internal audit shared with bank leadership identified a lack of customer diversity, deficiencies in the bank’s marketing practices, and inadequate fair lending oversight by the board. ”
In 2021, the financial institution’s federal regulator, the Workplace of the Comptroller of the Foreign money, “concluded that OceanFirst’s fair lending monitoring had failed to keep pace with the bank’s expansion,” the grievance stated.
Though the financial institution created inside committees and teams to handle the problems, many suggestions weren’t adopted and others weren’t carried out “until years after the bank had become aware of the inadequacy of its fair lending risk management,” the grievance stated.
In its consent order with the Division of Justice and a conciliation settlement with the Division of Housing and City Growth (HUD), OceanFirst agreed to:
- Make investments a minimum of $14 million in a mortgage subsidy fund to spice up mortgage lending to residents of majority-Black, Hispanic and Asian neighborhoods in Middlesex, Monmouth, and Ocean counties.
- Spend $700,000 on promoting, outreach, shopper monetary training and credit score counseling centered totally on Black, Hispanic, and Asian neighborhoods in these counties.
- Spend $400,000 on neighborhood partnerships to supply providers associated to credit score, shopper monetary training, homeownership, and foreclosures prevention.
- Open a mortgage manufacturing workplace and keep the financial institution’s just lately opened full-service department in predominantly Black, Hispanic and Asian neighborhoods, and assign a minimum of one mortgage mortgage officer to every location.
- Conduct a neighborhood credit score wants evaluation, consider truthful lending compliance administration programs and conduct workers coaching on truthful lending.
- Rent a director of neighborhood lending to supervise mortgage lending in communities of shade.
“We are committed to ensuring that everyone in New Jersey has access to the American dream of homeownership, regardless of race, color, or national origin,” Philip Sellinger, U.S. Lawyer for the District of New Jersey, stated in a assertion. “This agreement is an important step in leveling the playing field and removing illegal and discriminatory barriers in residential mortgage lending.”
The Division of Justice stated that since launching its Combating Redlining Initiative in 2021, it’s reached settlements with 13 lenders totaling greater than $137 million thus far, together with:
- First Nationwide Financial institution of Pennsylvania, which in February agreed to speculate a minimum of $11.75 million in a mortgage subsidy fund to supply higher entry to mortgages and residential enchancment loans to residents of majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods within the Charlotte and Winston-Salem, North Carolina, markets.
- Jacksonville, Florida-based Ameris Financial institution, which agreed in October 2023 to a $9 million settlement aimed toward enhancing entry to credit score in majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods.
- Newark, Ohio-based Park Nationwide Financial institution, which agreed in February 2023 to speculate a minimum of $7.75 million in a mortgage subsidy fund to extend entry to credit score in majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods within the Columbus space.
- Lakeland Financial institution, which agreed in September 2022 to speculate a minimum of $12 million in a mortgage subsidy fund for residents of Black and Hispanic neighborhoods within the Newark, New Jersey, metropolitan space, together with neighborhoods in Essex, Somerset and Union counties.
- Berkshire Hathaway-owned Trident Mortgage Firm, which agreed in July 2022 to speculate greater than $20 million to create homeownership alternatives in communities of shade round Philadelphia.
In asserting the settlement with Ameris Financial institution final fall, Lawyer Common Merrick Garland stated the Justice Division had over two dozen ongoing investigations into redlining throughout the nation.
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