Equal housing lender
United States legal term
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Equal Housing Lender is a term used by United States financial institutions to indicate that they comply with the Federal Fair Lending Laws under the Federal Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.[1] These laws and regulations pertain to all federally supervised institutions, including those insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation[2] (FDIC) and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).[3]
Under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), creditors are prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, or familial status.[4] They are also prohibited from discriminating because an applicant receives income from a public assistance program or because they have in good faith exercised any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act of 1968.[5]
Federally insured financial institutions engaging in real-estate-related lending are required to explicitly display a notice of nondiscrimination using the prescribed Equal Housing Lender logo and language in the public lobby as well as in any office where such loans are made.[6][7] This requirement also extends to advertisements.
This rule was introduced in the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, which amended the Fair Housing Act of 1968.
