The growth of the American economy in the post-War era has been characterized by a growth in the consumer economy as a fundamental driving force in the economy. In turn, this growth in the consumer economy has been driven by a growth in usage and spread of the use of consumer credit. Yet the...

“Behavioral Law and Economics” (BLE) is a specialized component of the legal literature that purports to base its conclusions on a branch of economic analysis known as behavioral economics. The central claim of BLE is that by applying findings of behavioral economics to the real world it can...

This article presents a number of key findings from a review of the data that mortgage lending institutions reported for 2011 under the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The article documents home-lending activity reflected in the HMDA data and places the 2011 activity in historical context....

In 1968 Congress passed the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) to require written disclosures of key credit terms for consumers, including finance charges, payment sizes, payment totals, and interest rates mathematically calculated as a defined Annual Percentage Rate (APR). Much has changed in the...

Guaranteed Asset Protection (GAP) shields purchasers from financial risks of losses exceeding insured collateral values if vehicles become total losses. Yet surprisingly little is known about the sales of this product, or consumers' attitudes toward it. In this study, we report the results of a...

Credit related insurance and other debt protection are products sold in conjunction with credit that extinguish a consumer's debt or suspends its periodic payments if events like death, disability, or involuntary unemployment occur. High penetration rates observed in the 1950s and 1960s raised...

Guaranteed Asset Protection (GAP) shields purchasers from financial risks of losses exceeding insured collateral values if vehicles become total losses. Yet surprisingly little is known about the sales of this voluntary product, or consumers’ attitudes toward it. In this study, we report the...

Credit related insurance and other debt protection are products sold in conjunction with credit that extinguish a consumer's debt or suspends its periodic payments if events like death, disability, or involuntary unemployment occur. High penetration rates observed in the 1950s and 1960s raised...

Research conducted many years ago that indicated substantial cost economies of loan size in consumer lending. This finding implies that low interest rate ceilings make small loan sizes unprofitable and will not be available in the marketplace. Furthermore, research indicates that demanders of...