A primer on how collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) work, looking at both their advantages and disadvantages and explaining how some seasoned market participants got into trouble by investing in these interest-rate-sensitive financial instruments.

Detecting and measuring discrimination in the pricing of mortgage loans present unique challenges for bank regulators. This Commentary outlines how loans are priced in the mortgage market and the difficulties involved in comparing the prices charged to different borrowers.

An argument that racial discrimination in the home mortgage market arises not only from bigotry, but from statistical discrimination (wherein race is correlated with some hard-to-measure determinants of creditworthiness) and from a lack of cultural affinity between lenders and minorities. The...

A look at how the quantity and source of information flowing to lenders can affect their credit decisions, and an argument that lenders should take advantage of the CRA provisions that allow them to address their obligations through joint-lending programs and qualified investments.

The Federal Home Loan Banks are part of a system created by the federal government to promote home ownership. This Commentary looks at new initiatives undertaken by these government-sponsored enterprises to expand their role in financial markets-and the attendant implications for their balance...

A look at some of the issues associated with reports that minority applicants for home mortgage loans are far more likely than whites to be denied credit. The authors raise the concern that simple comparisons of denial rates are not sufficient for grasping the complexities surrounding...

Mortgage brokers play an important role in the housing finance market, but they also present unique challenges to regulators attempting to enforce fair lending laws. Should lenders be held responsible for the pricing decisions of brokers from whom they receive loan applications, or should fair...

An argument that the legislation aimed at making private mortgage insurance more fair and affordable for homeowners could actually hurt the very borrowers it is intended to help by restricting the availability of mortgage loans and making them more costly.

A discussion of discrepancies in methods of evaluating evidence on mortgage-lending discrimination in minority and low-income areas, outlining fundamental differences between studies that focus mostly on neighborhood characteristics and regulatory-agency compliance examinations that concentrate...