UPCOMING EVENT
Friday, May 16, 2008
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Washington, DC
How could America's sophisticated financial system go so wrong and cause so much damage? Martin Baily, Douglas Elmendorf and Robert Litan answer that question in a new paper to be released at a May 16 forum. The authors, following opening remarks by FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair, will put forward a specific agenda of policy actions to reduce the chance that history repeats itself. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Colin I. Bradford, May 02, 2008, Guardian Unlimited
Missing from the recent IMF-World Bank ministerial meetings was an understanding that policy development needs to be an interactive process, one that includes financial officials and law makers. Colin Bradford advises the world's legislators must be brought into the conversation about global development in order for these discussions to evolve into successful action. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Rebecca M. Blank, April 16, 2008, The Brookings Institution
A substantial number of low-income individuals make use of services within the alternative financial sector, particularly pay-day lenders and check cashing outlets. The high cost of these services has led many observers to seek policies that would reduce the use of informal financial services among lower income households. In this paper, Rebecca Blank reviews the reasons why individuals utilize AFS outlets and discusses the policy options that could affect these decisions. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Alice M. Rivlin, March 17, 2008, washingtonpost.com
Brookings Expert Alice Rivlin comments on the Federal Reserves decision to back the crumbling financial institution Bear Stearns. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Erik Berglöf, February 28, 2008, Financial Times
In a recent op-ed, Erik Berglof discusses how European central banks might handle the current global financial crisis. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes, February 22, 2008, The Brookings Institution
At a conference hosted by the Federal Bank of St.Louis and the RISE Foundation, Matt Fellowes discusses the lessons about consumers that can be drawn from the current housing crisis. He highlights the broad democratization of the financial services market that occurred in the 20th century, but finds that there was one, important exception: access to professional advice about financial service options. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes and Mia Mabanta, January 2008, The Brookings Institution
The $100 billion size of the high-cost non-bank basic financial services industry, including check cashers, payday lenders, and pawnshops, points to the high demand for basic financial services among low- and moderate-income customers. Alternative products sold by banks—located extensively in lower-income neighborhoods could meet those consumer needs, while also creating an opportunity for households to convert their current spending on high-cost services into savings and even wealth. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes, December 14, 2007, Federal Reserve Board, Forum on Credit Scores
With detailed financial information about over 200 million American consumers, credit reports substantially reduce the uncertainty numerous types of businesses have about consumers, including banks, insurance companies, and employers. The chief economic impact of that reduced uncertainty has been to support robust economic growth and prosperity. Yet, alongside those reductions in uncertainty, there are new uncertainties created too, which also carry important economic consequences. This speech assesses these market effects of credit reports and their economic significance for both businesses and consumers. Read More
VIDEO
Douglas W. Elmendorf, October 05, 2007
Senior Fellow Douglas Elmendorf explains the roots of the crisis surrounding the rising sub-prime mortgage default rate and suggests that a greater financial literacy would be useful to homeowners and prospective homeowners.
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes, October 02, 2007, 2007 National Community Tax Coalition Annual Conference / Denver, CO
Hundreds of free tax preparation sites have opened-up in the past ten years that connect low-income families to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and other income-supports. Read More
BOOK
Michael S. Barr, Anjali Kumar and Robert E. Litan, October 01, 2007
Building Inclusive Financial Systems offers an indispensable guide for governments and the private sector to increase access effectively and responsibly. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes, July 23, 2007, Harvard Law & Policy Review
Matt Fellowes examines the higher prices lower-income workers pay for basic necessities--home loans, groceries, and financial services--and outlines a combination of initiatives that can bring down business costs. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes and Mia Mabanta, June 04, 2007, McClatchy Newspapers
The authors argue that the subprime mortgage problem is in part due to systemic gaps between what working families realistically need to know about borrowing options, and what they actually do know. The authors call for Congress to think through ways that working families can obtain trusted financial advice and information. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Matt Fellowes and Mia Mabanta, May 11, 2007, The Brookings Institution
A new Brookings Institution, Metropolitan Policy Program study finds that the recent subprime implosion is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Americans borrowing more than they can manage. The study, written by Matt Fellowes, relies heavily on previously unavailable data, and finds that about one out of every three lower income borrowers falls behind on bill payments in a typical year, and over one out of every four now pays more than 40 percent of their income every year on debt payments. Read More
RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY
Bruce Katz, April 17, 2007, Kansas City Housing Matters Forum
If housing policy is to achieve its full potential, it cannot be crafted and executed in isolation, but rather, it must be shaped in concert with related policies like transportation, land use, economic development, financial services, and even education. Read More