Reports

This report provides new insights about the financial security of small business owners using questions about business ownership in the Making Ends Meet Survey.

Credit card cash advance fees and interest rise as online sports betting grows.

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

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.

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

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

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.

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.

Latest credit card data from the CFPB shows that the 25 largest financial institutions offered consumers higher interest rates than smaller banks and credit unions in first half of 2023.

CFPB recently analyzed the NSF fee practices of a number of banks and credit unions, finding that most large earners of NSF fee revenue have eliminated these fees, saving consumers nearly $2 billion annually.

Reverse mortgage lenders send millions of advertisements to older adult homeowners via mail every year. The CFPB found that the number of such advertisements increased in 2021 and 2022 compared to the previous five years. These advertisements were largely sent to low-and middle-income households, and to southern and western states.

This report analyzes banking and credit access across eight states in the southern region of the U.S, particularly branch presence and bank account access, and capital access such as mortgage lending.

Overdraft/NSF revenue for the fourth quarter of 2022 alone was approximately $1.5 billion lower than in the fourth quarter of 2019 – a decrease of 48% compared to before the pandemic, suggesting an annual reduction of over $5.5 billion going forward. This decrease suggests average annual savings of more than $150 per household that incurs overdraft or NSF fees; many households have saved much more.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has published summary of focus groups and interviews with low- and moderate-income consumers about their experiences with overdraft programs.

Since late 2021, several banks have announced changes to their overdraft programs that have been expected to result in reductions in overdraft/non-sufficient fund (NSF) fee revenue.

This data spotlight shares findings on the state of financial well-being in 2020 and how it has changed over time, with an emphasis on the negative impact among certain demographics and U.S. adults with lower financial well-being.

This report highlights the CFPB’s research on rural consumers as well as contextual information from other agencies on the consumer finance challenges faced by rural communities.

In 2018, 4.5 million adults ages 65 and older had medical debt, and many experienced significant hardships. This data spotlight describes the characteristics of older adults with medical debt, measured as having a past due medical bill, using the most recent data from the FINRA Foundation National Financial Capability Study (NFCS).