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Huffington Post: Proposed Down Payment Rules Could Restrict Minorities' Access to Affordable Homebuying
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Nearly three-quarters of African-American and Latino mortgage borrowers could be excluded from 
affordable homeownership if federal regulators approve a proposal to require 20 percent down payments, according to a study released Wednesday.
Co-authored by the UNC Center for Community Capital and the Center for Responsible Lending, the study says that such a move would not only restrict minorities' access to homeownership but also that of roughly 60 percent of all creditworthy borrowers.
The proposal is part of a host of new regulations under consideration through the Dodd-Frank Act, legislation passed in the wake of the financial crisis. Policymakers have been tasked with developing new guidelines for the mortgage market to avoid a repeat of the easy lending environment that led so many Americans to take out bigger mortgages than they could afford -- often with no money down. While no one is asking to return to the days of easy money, the study cautioned that the pendulum might now be swinging too far in the other direction, tightening lending requirements too much. Many housing experts say that 10 percent is a more reasonable down payment requirement. Federal regulators are still working out the proposed policy.
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