Is Your Banker Discriminating Against You?

Wells Fargo, one of the largest banks in the country and the leading originator of mortgages to consumers, recently reached a settlement agreement with the Department of Justice over accusations of lending discrimination. The settlement requires the bank to pay a whopping $175 million while avoiding any admission of guilt. The DOJ was investigating the bank for allegedly steering well-qualified mortgage applicants towards sub-prime loans based on their ethnicity and race. Wells Fargo is not the first—nor will it be the last—financial institution to be accused of lending discrimination. Just last year Bank of America paid $355 million to settle similar claims made against their Countrywide mortgage division.