Wells Fargo examines systemic racism in home ownership

CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – The largest housing lender in the country deals with the problem of systematic racism in home ownership.

“The systemic inequality that has existed in our country for decades has left minorities in the process of owning a home,” said Wells Fargo CEO Christie Fercho.

Last month, 11 U.S. senators sent a letter to federal regulators asking them to investigate Wells Fargo’s treatment of black homeowners.

Most recently, a lawsuit filed in California accused the bank of discriminatory lending practices, and New York agreed to no longer open accounts at the institute.

First of all, an article published by Bloomberg claimed that the bank rejected more than half of its black applicants, while 72 percent of white colleagues were approved.

“Our response to the Bloomberg article is that it was incomplete, and it left a bunch of very important facts,” Fercho said.

She said the difference in the approval rate was a result of following GSE’s recommendations and the way the bank reports its data.

“It was an incomplete story, and it didn’t say that in 2020 and 2021, Wells Fargo was the largest black bank lender in the industry,” she said.

The bank has now set up a special-purpose lending program specifically for minorities. It starts with black customers who failed to take advantage of historically low interest rates during the pandemic.

Banks said they would identify those who could benefit from refinancing and also help cover the cost of closing and lowering interest rates.

“We want to send a message that Wells Fargo is open to business, and we want to help our minority clients realize this dream of home ownership,” Fercho said.

In addition to the new loan program, Wells Fargo has announced a $ 60 million grant that will fund visits to eight communities to identify the root causes of systemic inequality.