Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA)

The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) is a United States federal law that requires lenders to collect and report information about mortgage lending. The law was enacted in 1975 to address concerns about discrimination in mortgage lending.

HMDA requires lenders to collect information about the race, ethnicity, gender, and income of loan applicants. Lenders must also collect information about the location of the property being mortgaged. This information is used to create a public database of mortgage lending data.

The HMDA database is used by the government to monitor mortgage lending practices. The data is also used by researchers and community groups to study the effects of mortgage lending on communities.

HMDA has been credited with reducing discrimination in mortgage lending. However, the law has also been criticized for being too complex and for not doing enough to address discrimination.

In 2015, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act amended HMDA. The amendments expanded the scope of HMDA to include more types of loans and to collect more information about loan applicants. The amendments also increased the penalties for lenders who violate HMDA.

HMDA is an important law that helps to protect consumers from discrimination in mortgage lending. The law has been effective in reducing discrimination, but there is still more work to be done.