San Francisco, CA – CIT Bank, N.A, and its retail bank division OneWest Bank, have reached a conciliation agreement with the California Reinvestment Coalition (CRC), which was approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) related to a fair housing complaint filed with HUD by CRC in 2017.

In its agreement with CRC, CIT will institute several initiatives that expand opportunities for Southern Californian communities of color to gain equal access to home mortgage loans, down payment assistance, financial education and other community development efforts. Such initiatives include opening a new branch and offering Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and non-jumbo loans to communities of color, as well as providing subsidies to eligible borrowers to purchase, refinance or improve their homes. In addition, the company will provide and promote language access services for home loan borrowers and translate branch mortgage marketing materials into Spanish.

“We remain committed to serving the Southern California community with the tools, training and access to credit that is needed to pursue homeownership and enable more individuals to achieve their financial goals and thrive,” said CIT President of Consumer Banking Steve Solk.

“We are pleased that OneWest has committed to serving Southern California’s communities of color in this way. We look forward to seeing the positive impacts of these lending commitments and programs on California neighborhoods and working class families striving to build wealth through buying a home,” said CRC Executive Director Paulina Gonzalez-Brito.

Since 2016, CIT has invested nearly $5 billion to advance affordable housing, economic development, education and access to credit in Southern California. 

The California Reinvestment Coalition builds an inclusive and fair economy that meets the needs of communities of color and low-income communities by ensuring that banks and other corporations invest and conduct business in a just and equitable manner.

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Contacts:

CIT
Gina Proia
212-771-6008
gina.proia@cit.com

CRC
Vijay Das
415-864-3980
vdas@calreinvest.org