A September 3, 2020, HUD action to limit Fair Housing Act disparate impact claims underscores the underutilized power of credit discrimination statutes to remedy marketplace misconduct affecting communities of color and other vulnerable consumers. This article describes the power, broad scope, and varied applications of federal and state credit discrimination statutes, and also sets out the implications for consumer lawyers of the HUD rule change.

This article provides 12 reasons for bringing reverse redlining claims against predatory lenders, under the Equal Credit Opportunity, Fair Housing, and/or Civil Rights Acts. Reverse redlining targets predatory practices at communities of color or other protected groups, whether or not better terms are offered elsewhere. Recent cases bringing reverse redlining claims are included.