The Role of Credit Scoring in Increasing Homeownership for Underserved Populations

Hollis Fishelson-Holstine

BABC 04-12: Credit scoring has helped to produce a robust credit environment and increase access to homeownership for millions of consumers. This paper examines the role credit scores have played in helping lenders extend credit, and in particular mortgage loans, to underserved populations. It explores the relationship between available data sources and credit scoring, and examines the impact to consumers and lenders of expanding—or restricting—the amount and quality of data available to scoring and credit decisions…