Reports

Monthly principal and interest payments rose 78% driven by interest rates jumping from historic lows in 2021 to highs in 2023.

The CFPB's annual report to Congress summarizes its activities, and those of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in administering the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) in 2023. This report also highlights consumer protection issues in medical and rental debt collection.

The CFPB examines consumer risks related to fees on cash-back transactions at retail point of sale, finding that Kroger Co, Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Family Dollar, charge fees for small amounts while other sampled retailers do not.

Contracts for deed are a form of home financing where the seller retains legal title until the borrower completes payment. Buyers’ exercise of their rights regarding the property is often complicated.

The 2023 Financial Literacy Annual Report describes the CFPB’s financial literacy activities and strategy to improve the financial literacy of consumers.

Overview of the marketplace for financing residential solar panels and the consumer risks posed by solar-specific loans.

K-12 schools are increasingly offering families the option to pay school-related expenses online via third-party payment processors, presenting new costs and challenges for users.

This data spotlight covers developments in the paycheck advance market, covering products also referred to as wage advance programs, small loans, earned wage access, earned wage advances, early wage access, on demand pay, and income-based advances.

The findings in this edition of Supervisory Highlights cover violations of law and consumer harm in the areas of auto and student loan servicing and debt collection.

This report provides new insights about distressed borrowers’ experiences with mortgage servicing and loss mitigation processes using data from the 2020 wave of the American Survey of Mortgage Borrowers (ASMB).

The CFPB releases its Fair Lending Annual Report to Congress, describing its fair lending activities in enforcement and supervision; guidance and rulemaking; interagency coordination; and outreach and education for calendar year 2023.

Report providing initial findings on negative equity from the Auto Finance Data Pilot and an explanation of the dataset from the Pilot.

Fall 2023 Semi-annual Report of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Removing low-balance medical collections from consumers’ credit reports improved credit scores but has not yet led to more credit applications.

This report provides new insights on how price complexity may affect markets for consumer goods. We report on two laboratory experiments that investigated the effects of price complexity on market outcomes.

This issue spotlight describes the health savings account (HSA) market, including the complex costs and fees that many consumers with HSAs are forced to pay.

Medical collections on consumer credit reports have been an area of focus for CFPB research in recent years. In addition to studying trends in medical debt as a whole, CFPB reports have documented the burden of medical debt on older Americans, and the incidence of medical collections in rural counties in Appalachia and the Deep South region.

This is the 33rd edition of Supervisory Highlights. The findings in this report cover select examinations regarding mortgage servicing, that were completed from April 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023.

Overdraft/NSF revenue for the full year of 2023 was approximately $6.1 billion lower than before the pandemic, and 24% lower than in 2022. However, quarterly overdraft/NSF fees were flat throughout 2023, suggesting most of the year-over-year reduction reflects the impact of changes in policy enacted in 2022.

This is the 32nd edition of Supervisory Highlights. The findings in this report cover select examinations in connection with credit reporting and furnishing that were completed from April 1, 2023, through December 31, 2023.

The FY 2023 OMWI annual report to Congress provides detailed information about the diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) work of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from Oct. 1 2022 to Sept. 30 2023.

Gaming marketplaces increasingly incorporate banking and payment systems. Learn how the CFPB is monitoring the use of virtual currencies in online games.

Rising interest rates have created a challenging housing environment for borrowers. New research using HMDA quarterly data reveals more borrowers are relying on discount points.

The FY 2023 Equal Employment Opportunity status report known as Management Directive 715 (MD-715) for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

This Congressionally mandated annual report analyzes complaints submitted by consumers to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2023.