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Ohio
Community Reinvestment Project (OCRP)
1) Fair Housing Choice/Predatory Lending
2) Community Reinvestment
The Ohio Community Reinvestment Project (OCRP) is a statewide collaboration
of nonprofit fair housing groups, housing development and homeless service
organizations, civil rights, community development corporations, community
based groups, and governmental agencies.
OCRP is governed by a 10-member Steering Committee representing the following
organizations:
AARP of Ohio
COHHIO
Columbus Housing Partnership
Columbus Urban League
Equal Justice Foundation
League of Women Voters of Ohio
Lorain County Reinvestment Coalition
Metropolitan Strategy Group
Ohio State Legal Services Association
Toledo Fair Housing Center
OCRP’s mission is to promote the investment in Ohio’s low-income
communities and communities of color via 6 primary vehicles:
- Increased access to affordable financial services;
- Housing credit to facilitate maintenance and production of low-income
housing;
- Housing credit to low-income individuals;
- Credit for community economic development;
- Small business lending; and
- Direct investments in and partnerships with organizations addressing
the survival and community development needs of low-income and minority
Ohioans.
Fair Housing Choice/Predatory Lending
The overall growth of the subprime market as evidenced by the explosion
of loans made between 1993 and 1998, combined with the almost hyper-segmentation
of mortgage lending markets by race and neighborhood, has created opportunities
for abuse. This dual finance system has fueled the rise of subprime firms
and has increased the “room for abuse” within the market,
especially for less sophisticated homeowners. Abusive mortgage lending,
or what has been dubbed “predatory lending,” often leaves
homeowners with substantial debt that they cannot afford or are unwise
to take on.
The State of Ohio is third in the country with respect to the number,
and fifth in the country with respect to the percentage of refinancing
loans originated by subprime lenders. According to 1998 Home Mortgage
Disclosure Act (HMDA) data, more than 52,000 refinancing loans were made
by subprime lenders within the state. The vast majority of these loans
were made in substantially minority census tracts. In some of these census
tracts, as many as 80 percent of all refinancing loans were made by subprime
lenders.
The vulnerable or underserved populations that are targeted (elderly,
low-income, and minority homeowners) by predatory lenders are the same
populations that will benefit from the activities proposed in this application.
As evidenced by the level of need just described, these underserved populations
are being singled out and taken advantage of by predatory lenders. This
is a practice that must stop. As long as predatory lenders go largely
unregulated, as long as they are allowed to take advantage of often times
elderly, low-income, and minority homeowners, and as long as we continue
to sit idly by, they will continue to destroy entire communities one block
at a time
By conducting educational seminars/forums, distributing existing fair
housing/fair lending materials, and providing support to support organizations/service
providers, COHHIO will work to address specific barriers to fair housing
choice thereby bringing about more equality in the housing market.
As
you may or may not know, the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in
Ohio (COHHIO), has been actively involved in a state-wide anti-predatory
lending campaign. Joined by representatives from several other organizations
including the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) of Ohio,
the League of Women Voters of Ohio, the Ohio State Legal Services Association
(OSLSA), the Ohio Community Development Corporation Association (OCDCA),
the Toledo Fair Housing Center, Metropolitan Strategy Group, the Coalition
for Reinvestment in Lorain County, Columbus Housing Partnerships, and
the Columbus Urban League, COHHIO is working to create a state-wide strategy
designed to put predatory lenders out of business.
As this campaign continues to take shape, we are looking for new ways
to share and exchange information. With that in mind, we will begin updating
this section of the COHHIO web page with current information on anti predatory
lending campaigns throughout the country. You will be able to find fact
sheets and reports specific to subprime and/or predatory lending within
the State of Ohio, as well as links to other sites with additional information.
As this campaign moves forward, we understand the need to have access
to accurate and up-to-date information. Hopefully, this web page will
serve that purpose. If you have questions or would like to receive additional
information on predatory lending within the State of Ohio, please contact
Cathy Johnston at cathyjohnston@cohhio.org
or Rick Taylor at ricktaylor@cohhio.org.
Fair Housing Choice/Predatory Lending Links:
Fair Housing Information
Predatory Lending Information
Community
Reinvestment
The Ohio Community Reinvestment Project (OCRP) was created to provide
assistance to local community development organizations to build profitable
and effective partnerships with local financial service institutions,
and to negotiate with Ohio’s major financial service institutions
to reach the goals for strong community development partnerships. To date,
OCRP has entered into cooperative agreements with Charter One Bank, Fifth
Third Bank, and Firstar Bank (now US Bank), resulting in more than $2
billion of investment in Ohio’s low and moderate-income communities
and communities of color. These agreements are designed around three primary
standards (lending, investments, and banking services).
If you have questions or would like to receive additional information
on community reinvestment, please contact Rick Taylor at ricktaylor@cohhio.org.
Community Reinvestment Links:
Community Reinvestment Standards
Community Reinvestment Information
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