Research and reports

This report provides detailed information about the diversity and inclusion work of Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection from Oct. 1, 2018 to Sept. 30, 2019.

We began consumer response operations on July 21, 2011 as the nation’s first federal agency specifically mandated to protect American consumers in the financial marketplace.

The CFPB presents its Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act of 2002 (No FEAR Act) Annual Report of Fiscal Year (FY) 2019.

The Bureau is pleased to submit to Congress its annual report summarizing the Bureau’s activities along with those of the Federal Trade Commission to administer the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

This report explores the prevalence and ease of first-time homeownership over time.

On January 3, 2019, the Good Accounting Obligation in Government Act (GAO-IG Act) was enacted as Public Law number 115-414. The GAO-IG Act requires agencies to annually submit a report to Congress on the status of open public audit recommendations. This report is the first published by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection in compliance with that law.

Between May and September 2019, the CFPB conducted a large-scale online survey experiment designed to test several versions of disclosures to support understanding of time-barred debt and revival. The results of the survey experiment are summarized in this report.  

In September 2019, the CFPB engaged ICF International, Inc., to launch a large-scale online survey experiment designed to test several versions of disclosures to support understanding of time-barred debt and revival. ICF produced this report describing the methodology of this survey experiment, including sampling, response rates, and question development.

In this issue of Supervisory Highlights, we report examination findings in the areas of debt collection, mortgage servicing, payday lending, and student loan servicing that were completed between April 2019 and August 2019. The report does not impose any new or different legal requirements, and all violations described in the report are based only on those specific facts and circumstances noted during those examinations.

Fall 2019 Semi-Annual Report of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection

This Data Point article tracks the evolution of small business lending before, during and following the Great Recession.

More than 65 percent of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP) employee population responded to the annual employee survey conducted between Aug. 19 and Sep. 13, 2019.

2019 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB/BCFP) report on college credit card agreements.

The 2019 Financial Literacy Annual Report of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau details the Bureau's financial literacy activities and strategy to improve the financial literacy of consumers. Overall, this report describes the Bureau's efforts in a broad range of financial literacy areas relevant to consumers' financial lives.

These reports provide an overview of the Bureau’s publicly available website and digital services and electronic signature usage, in accordance with the reporting requirements of the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act or the 21st Century IDEA (Public Law No. 115-336).

This Report provides the information required to be reported by provisions of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA), and the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act) for the periods January 1, 2016–December 31, 2016, and January 1, 2017–December 31, 2017.

Quarterly consumer credit trends reports focus on a specific consumer financial product or issue using a longitudinal, nationally representative sample of de-identified credit records maintained by a nationwide consumer reporting agency.

In this special issue of Supervisory Highlights, we report examination findings in the areas of consumer reporting and furnishing of information to consumer reporting companies, pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Regulation V. The report does not impose any new or different legal requirements, and all violations described in the report are based only on those specific facts and circumstances noted during those examinations. 

Our data point reports are prepared by our Office of Research to provide an evidence-based perspective on consumer financial markets, consumer behavior, and regulations to inform the public discourse.

This fourteenth data point compares borrower characteristics at mortgage servicers of different sizes and explores the role servicers of each size play in the mortgage market.

The financial report provides readers with the summary results of the BCFP’s operational activity and it is the principal statement of our accountability to the American people, the United States Congress, and the President of the United States. 

This report provides the first state-by-state description of the financial well-being of adults in the United States, as measured by the CFPB Financial Well-Being Scale.  

This report provides results from the CFPB 2019 Tax Time Saving Cohort and information on how the receipt of a tax refund is a unique opportunity for many taxpayers to Start Small and Save Up.

The CFPB researched the childhood origins of financial capability and well-being to identify those roots and to find promising practices and strategies to support their development.

The 2019 annual report of the CFPB Private Education Loan Ombudsman covers two years of data, discusses the importance of complaint analysis, and addresses unscrupulous student loan debt relief companies.