House approves partial rollback of some Dodd-Frank regulations. Are we ready?

May 22, 2018
The House of Representatives Tuesday approved a bill that dials back some of the banking regulations put in place after the financial crisis. Among other things, it raises the threshold for which banks are considered to be big (“systemically important financial institutions,” as they are called). It also reduces some reporting requirements for banks regarding […]

Why did the Avengers partner with a mortgage lender?

Apr 27, 2018
App-based lenders, like Rocket Mortgage, are getting more and more powerful.

Could the 2008 financial crisis happen again?

Mar 14, 2018
Economists look back on the 2008 financial crisis and the changes in banking regulation that have occurred since.
Midtown buildings are reflected in a window at Bear Stearns headquarters March 24, 2008 in New York City. 
Chris Hondros/Getty Images

How a red-hot housing market became a crisis

Jan 25, 2018
Lessons learned from the Divided Decade.
A builder works on a new home at a subdivision in North Aurora, Illinois, in 2007. Residential mortgage debt doubled between 2000 and 2008 in the U.S.
JEFF HAYNES/AFP/Getty Images

Immigrant lending clubs provide capital, at a cost

Nov 20, 2017
Functioning like unregulated banks, there is little cushion against failure.
A man walks along an empty street November 27, 2001 in the usually bustling Chinatown section of New York City. Chinatown is located in Lower Manhattan near Ground Zero and has been in a deep economic slump since the September 11th World Trade Center attacks.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

The Bank Black movement gains traction

Apr 20, 2017
Since July, people have moved about $60 million to these institutions.
Since July 2016, advocates estimate people have moved more than $60 million to black banks. Above, a picture of the black-owned OneUnited Bank.
John Phelan/Wikimedia Commons

For public good, not for profit.

U.S. household debt approaches $12.6 trillion, close to 2008 record

Apr 5, 2017
Current household debt in the U.S. is at just about $12.6 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That’s how much we’re all taking out in loans. It’s 1 percent shy of the 2008 record. Mortgages still make up the largest amount of that debt. But it’s a trillion dollars less than […]

For the first time, most mortgages aren’t made by banks

Nov 2, 2016
While banks make loans to those with extraordinary credit, these companies take on more risk.
New houses line the street in the Inland Empire in Ontario, California.
David McNew/Getty Images

The Fed, your mortgage, and you

Sep 20, 2016
Do home buyers need to follow the Fed?
Federal Reserve Board Chair Janet Yellen speaks at a news conference back in June in Washington, D.C.
Alex Wong/Getty Images