Section 701.31 - Nondiscrimination requirements(a)Definitions. As used in this part, the term: (1)Application carries the meaning of that term as defined in 12 CFR 1002.2(f) (Regulation B)(2)Dwelling carries the meaning of that term as defined in 42 U.S.C. 3602(b) (Fair Housing Act), which is as follows: "Any building, structure, or portion thereof which is occupied as, or designed or intended for occupancy as, a residence by one or more families, and any vacant land which is offered for sale or lease for the construction or location thereon of any building, structure, or portion thereof"; and(3)Real estate-related loan means any loan for which application is made to finance or refinance the purchase, construction, improvement, repair, or maintenance of a dwelling.(b)Nondiscrimination in Lending.(1) A Federal credit union may not deny a real estate-related loan, nor may it discriminate in setting or exercising its rights pursuant to the terms or conditions of such a loan, nor may it discourage an application for such a loan, on the basis of the race, color, national origin, religion, sex, handicap, or familial status (having children under the age of 18) of:(i) Any applicant or joint applicant;(ii) Any person associated, in connection with a real estate-related loan application, with an applicant or joint applicant;(iii) The present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants, or occupants of the dwelling for which a real estate-related loan is requested;(iv) The present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants, or occupants of other dwellings in the vicinity of the dwelling for which a real estate-related loan is requested.(2) With regard to a real estate-related loan, a Federal credit union may not consider a lending criterion or exercise a lending policy which has the effect of discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, handicap, or familial status (having children under the age of 18). Guidelines concerning possible exceptions to this provision appear in paragraph (e)(1) of this section.(3) Consideration of any of the following factors in connection with a real estate-related loan is not necessary to a Federal credit union's business, generally has a discriminatory effect, and is therefore prohibited: (i) The age or location of the dwelling;(ii) Zip code of the applicant's current residence;(iii) Previous home ownership;(iv) The age or location of dwellings in the neighborhood of the dwelling;(v) The income level of residents in the neighborhood of the dwelling. Guidelines concerning possible exceptions to this provision appear in paragraph (e)(2) of this section.
(c)Nondiscrimination in appraisals.(1) A Federal credit union may not rely upon an appraisal of a dwelling if it knows or should know that the appraisal is based upon consideration of the race, color, national origin, religion, sex, handicap, or familial status (having children under the age of 18) of:(i) Any applicant or joint applicant;(ii) Any person associated, in connection with a real estate-related loan application, with an applicant or joint applicant;(iii) The present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants, or occupants of the dwelling for which a real estate-related loan is requested;(iv) The present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants, or occupants of other dwellings in the vicinity of the dwelling for which a real estate-related loan is requested.(2) With respect to a real-estate related loan, a Federal credit union may not rely upon an appraisal of a dwelling if it knows or should know that the appraisal is based upon consideration of a criterion which has the effect of discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, handicap, or familial status (having children under the age of 18). Guidelines concerning possible exceptions to this provision appear in paragraph (e)(1) of this section.(3) A Federal credit union may not rely upon an appraisal that it knows or should know is based upon consideration of any of the following criteria, for such criteria generally have a discriminatory effect, and are not necessary to a Federal credit union's business: (i) The age or location of the dwelling;(ii) The age or location of dwellings in the neighborhood of the dwelling;(iii) The income level of the residents in the neighborhood of the dwelling.(4) Notwithstanding paragraph (c)(3) of this section, it is recognized that there may be factors concerning location of the dwelling which can be properly considered in an appraisal. If any such factor(s) is relied upon, it must be specifically documented in the appraisal, accompanied by a brief statement demonstrating the necessity of using such factor(s). Guidelines concerning the consideration of location factors appear in paragraph (e)(3) of this section.(5) Each Federal credit union shall make available, to any requesting member/applicant, a copy of the appraisal used in connection with that member's application for a loan to be secured by a subordinate lien on a dwelling. The appraisal shall be available for a period of 25 months after the applicant has received notice from the Federal credit union of the action taken by the Federal credit union on the application for a loan to be secured by a subordinate lien on a dwelling.(d)Nondiscrimination in advertising. No federal credit union may engage in any form of advertising of real estate-related loans that indicates the credit union discriminates on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, or familial status in violation of the Fair Housing Act. Advertisements must not contain any words, symbols, models or other forms of communication that suggest a discriminatory preference or policy of exclusion in violation of the Fair Housing Act or the Equal Credit Opportunity Act. (1)Advertising notice of nondiscrimination compliance. Any federal credit union that advertises real estate-related loans must prominently indicate in such advertisement, in a manner appropriate to the advertising medium and format used, that the credit union makes such loans without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, or familial status.(i) With respect to written and visual advertisements, a credit union may satisfy the notice requirement by including in the advertisement a copy of the logotype, with the legend "Equal Housing Lender," from the poster described in paragraph (d)(3) of this section or a copy of the logotype, with the legend "Equal Housing Opportunity," from the poster described in § 110.25(a) of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) regulations (24 CFR 110.25(a) ).(ii) With respect to oral advertisements, a credit union may satisfy the notice requirement by a spoken statement that the credit union is an "Equal Housing Lender" or an "Equal Opportunity Lender."(iii) When an oral advertisement is used in conjunction with a written or visual advertisement, the use of either of the methods specified in paragraphs (d)(1)(i) or (ii) of this section will satisfy the notice requirement.(iv) A credit union may use any other method reasonably calculated to satisfy the notice requirement.(2)Lobby notice of nondiscrimination. Every federal credit union that engages in real estate-related lending must display a notice of nondiscrimination. The notice must be placed in the public lobby of the credit union and in the public area of each office where such loans are made and must be clearly visible to the general public. The notice must incorporate either a facsimile of the logotype and language appearing in paragraph (d)(3) of this section or the logotype and language appearing at 24 CFR 110.25(a) . Posters containing the logotype and language appearing in paragraph (d)(3) of this section may be obtained from the regional offices of the National Credit Union Administration.(3)Logotype and notice of nondiscrimination compliance. The logotype and text of the notice required in paragraph (d)(2) of this section shall be as follows: View Image
(e)Guidelines.(1) Compliance with the Fair Housing Act is achieved when each loan applicant's creditworthiness is evaluated on an individual basis, without presuming that the applicant has certain characteristics of a group. If certain lending policies or procedures do presume group characteristics, they may violate the Fair Housing Act, even though the characteristics are not based upon race, color, sex, national origin, religion, handicap, or familial status. Such a violation occurs when otherwise facially nondiscriminatory lending procedures (either general lending policies or specific criteria used in reviewing loan applications) have the effect of making real estate-related loans unavailable or less available on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, religion, handicap, or familial status. Note, however, that a policy or criterion which has a discriminatory effect is not a violation of the Fair Housing Act if its use achieves a legitimate business necessity which cannot be achieved by using less discriminatory standards. It is also important to note that the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Regulation B prohibit discrimination, either per se or in effect, on the basis of the applicant's age, marital status, receipt of public assistance, or the exercise of any rights under the Consumer Credit Protection Act.(2) Paragraph (b)(3) of this section prohibits consideration of certain factors because of their likely discriminatory effect and because they are not necessary to make sound real estate-related loans. For purposes of clarification, the prohibited use of location factors in this section is intended to prevent abandonment of areas in which a Federal credit union's members live or want to live. It is not intended to require loans in those areas that are geographically remote from the FCU's main or branch offices or that contravene the parameters of a Federal credit union's charter. Further, this prohibition does not preclude requiring a borrower to obtain flood insurance protection pursuant to the National Flood Insurance Act and part 760 of NCUA's Rules and Regulations, nor does it preclude involvement with Federal or state housing insurance programs which provide for lower interest rates for the purchase of homes in certain urban or rural areas. Also, the legitimate use of location factors in an appraisal does not constitute a violation of the provision of paragraph (b)(3) of this section, which prohibits consideration of location of the dwelling. Finally, the prohibited use of prior home ownership does not preclude a Federal credit union from considering an applicant's payment history on a loan which was made to obtain a home. Such action entails consideration of the payment record on a previous loan in determining creditworthiness; it does not entail consideration of prior home ownership.(3)(i) Paragraph (c)(3) of this section prohibits consideration of the age or location of a dwelling in a real estate-related loan appraisal. These restrictions are intended to prohibit the use of unfounded or unsubstantiated assumptions regarding the effect upon loan risk of the age of a dwelling or the physical or economic characteristics of an area. Appraisals should be based on the present market value of the property offered as security (including consideration of specific improvements to be made by the borrower) and the likelihood that the property will retain an adequate value over the term of the loan.(ii) The term "age of the dwelling" does not encompass structural soundness. In addition, the age of the dwelling may be used by an appraiser as a basis for conducting further inspections of certain structural aspects of the dwelling. Paragraph (c)(3) of this section does, however, prohibit an unsubstantiated determination that a house over X years in age is not structurally sound.(iii) With respect to location factors, paragraph (c)(4) of this section recognizes that there may be location factors which may be considered in an appraisal, and requires that the use of any such factors be specifically documented in the appraisal. These factors will most often be those location factors which may negatively affect the short range future value (up to 3-5 years) of a property. Factors which in some cases may cause the market value of a property to decline are recent zoning changes or a significant number of abandoned homes in the immediate vicinity of the property. However, not all zoning changes will cause a decline in property values, and proximity to abandoned buildings may not affect the market value of a property because the cause of abandonment is unrelated to high risk. Proper considerations include the condition and utility of the improvement and various physical factors such as street conditions, amenities such as parks and recreation areas, availability of public utilities and municipal services, and exposure to flooding and land faults.54 FR 46223, Nov. 2, 1989, as amended at 59 FR 36041, July 15, 1994; 66 FR 48206 , Sept. 19, 2001; 77 FR 16426 , Mar. 21, 2012; 77 FR 71084 , Nov. 29, 2012; 79 FR 75748 , Dec. 19, 2014