Have you ever gone to a mortgage closing and actually read the pile of paperwork they throw at you? I have, and they get REALLY pissed off because they schedule 15 to 30 minutes of their time for the whole process.
I have a close friend who is a functional illiterate. He went to get a mortgage about a year after a fire destroyed his house, about 3 years ago. He went to a lender and showed proof of $2000 monthly income. They put him into an $1800 monthly mortgage. Of course the blame is shared between him and the lender, but the lender took that bogus mortgage and no doubt got the responsibility for that loan out of their hands as fast as possible. That's responsible lending?
Yes banks do have some level of responsibility to somewhat control their business, even if it is only a moral responsibility. It is for the greater good of the state or country they work and live in. That's part of where our country is creating it's own problems. Long term planning is putting other countries in a better position than the US, much like Ford is doing better than GM or Chrysler, because Ford saved some money for a rainy day and carried less debt.

Have you ever gone to a mortgage closing and actually read the pile of paperwork they throw at you? I have, and they get REALLY pissed off because they schedule 15 to 30 minutes of their time for the whole process.
I have a close friend who is a functional illiterate. He went to get a mortgage about a year after a fire destroyed his house, about 3 years ago. He went to a lender and showed proof of $2000 monthly income. They put him into an $1800 monthly mortgage. Of course the blame is shared between him and the lender, but the lender took that bogus mortgage and no doubt got the responsibility for that loan out of their hands as fast as possible. That's responsible lending?
Yes banks do have some level of responsibility to somewhat control their business, even if it is only a moral responsibility. It is for the greater good of the state or country they work and live in. That's part of where our country is creating it's own problems. Long term planning is putting other countries in a better position than the US, much like Ford is doing better than GM or Chrysler, because Ford saved some money for a rainy day and carried less debt.

I agree that it is the individual's responsibility to use credit wisely, but something is wrong when large banks are able to increase rates (from 7% to 24% in some cases) without notice and use high-pressure sales tactics to encourage “creative financing” for mortgages.

People who sign up for credit should have the right to know what they are signing up for, and to have terms and conditions explained fully, without emotional manipulation. Those things have been denied to them.

For profit banks are not built to “serve the community” any more than any other for profit entity. You want non-profit banking? Go to your local credit union. Choose a neighborhood bank, instead of a Chase or Citigroup.

The one qualm I have with this is that, while the courts are probably one of the least threatening government institutions, they do like to read laws as what they would have meant by those words, or worse yet what they wish the words meant. Redefinition should not constitute legislation.