ABSTRACT
Commissioners and staff of the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations have been concerned about what the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) data have revealed about the mortgage lending pattern in Philadelphia. The Commission believed that approaching fair lending from both an enforcement and an educational perspective would be effective and revealing, which it was. Lenders were chosen from HMDA data for Philadelphia, the telephone book, and newspaper advertisements. Even though fair housing laws have eradicated the legislative foundation and support for such practices, affected neighborhoods have yet to recover. Banks, savings and loans, and private mortgage companies both inside and outside Philadelphia were tested. Due to the fact that many lenders have offices only outside the city, Philadelphians often have to leave the city to apply for more competitive mortgage rates. A review of all the tests at that bank suggested that blacks may be treated less courteously and given less information on loan products than whites.
