IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/fip/fedgfe/2002-2.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

On the economics of discrimination in credit markets

Author

Listed:
  • Song Han

Abstract

This paper develops a general equilibrium model of both taste-based and statistical discrimination in credit markets. We find that both types of discrimination have similar predictions for intergroup differences in loan terms. The commonly held view has been that if there exists taste-based discrimination, loans approved to minority borrowers would have higher expected profitability than to majorities with comparable credit background. We show that the validity of this profitability view depends crucially on how expected loan profitability is measured. We also show that there must exist taste-based discrimination if loans to minority borrowers have higher expected rate of return or lower expected rate of default loss than to majorities with the same exogenous characteristics at the time of loan origination. Empirical evidence on expected rate of default loss cannot reject the null hypothesis of non-existence of taste-based discrimination.

Suggested Citation

  • Song Han, 2002. "On the economics of discrimination in credit markets," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2002-2, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2002-2
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/feds/2002/200202/200202abs.html
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/feds/2002/200202/200202pap.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hunter, William C & Walker, Mary Beth, 1996. "The Cultural Affinity Hypothesis and Mortgage Lending Decisions," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 13(1), pages 57-70, July.
    2. Richard L. Peterson, 1981. "An Investigation of Sex Discrimination in Commercial Banks' Direct Consumer Lending," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 12(2), pages 547-561, Autumn.
    3. Shaffer, Sherrill, 1996. "Evidence of Discrimination in Lending: An Extension," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 51(4), pages 1551-1554, September.
    4. Stuart A. Gabriel & Stuart S. Rosenthal, 1991. "Credit rationing, race, and the mortgage market," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(3), pages 371-379, May.
    5. Christopher C. Henderson, 1999. "The Economic Performance of African-American-Owned Banks: The Role of Loan Loss Provisions," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(2), pages 372-376, May.
    6. Hellmuth Milde & John G. Riley, 1988. "Signaling in Credit Markets," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 103(1), pages 101-129.
    7. Phelps, Edmund S, 1972. "The Statistical Theory of Racism and Sexism," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 62(4), pages 659-661, September.
    8. James A. Berkovec & Glenn B. Canner & Stuart A. Gabriel & Timothy H. Hannan, 1994. "Race, redlining, and residential mortgage loan performance," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, pages 263-298.
    9. Ferguson, Michael F & Peters, Stephen R, 1995. "What Constitutes Evidence of Discrimination in Lending?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 50(2), pages 739-748, June.
    10. Joseph G. Altonji & Charles R. Pierret, 2001. "Employer Learning and Statistical Discrimination," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 116(1), pages 313-350.
    11. Robert Avery & Patricia Beeson & Paul Calem, 1997. "Using HMDA Data as a Regulatory Screen for Fair Lending Compliance," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 11(1), pages 9-42, February.
    12. Robert F. Phillips & Robert P. Trost & Anthony M.J. Yezer, 1994. "Bias in estimates of discrimination and default in mortgage lending: the effects of simultaneity and self-selection," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, pages 197-222.
    13. Ladd, Helen F, 1982. "Equal Credit Opportunity: Women and Mortgage Credit," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 72(2), pages 166-170, May.
    14. Masao Ogaki & Carmen M. Reinhart, 1998. "Measuring Intertemporal Substitution: The Role of Durable Goods," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 106(5), pages 1078-1098, October.
    15. Boyd, Laura A., 1997. "Discrimination in mortgage lending: The impact on minority defaults in the Stafford Loan program," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 23-37.
    16. Michael Ferguson & Stephen Peters, 1997. "Cultural Affinity and Lending Discrimination: The Impact of Underwriting Errors and Credit Risk Distribution on Applicant Denial Rates," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 11(1), pages 153-168, February.
    17. David Neumark, 1998. "Labor Market Information and Wage Differentials by Race and Sex," NBER Working Papers 6573, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Stephen L Ross, 2000. "Mortgage Lending, Sample Selection and Default," Real Estate Economics, American Real Estate and Urban Economics Association, vol. 28(4), pages 581-621.
    19. Quigley, John M & Van Order, Robert, 1995. "Explicit Tests of Contingent Claims Models of Mortgage Default," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 11(2), pages 99-117, September.
    20. Duca John V. & Rosenthal Stuart S., 1993. "Borrowing Constraints, Household Debt, and Racial Discrimination in Loan Markets," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 3(1), pages 77-103, October.
    21. David G. Blanchflower & Phillip B. Levine & David J. Zimmerman, 2003. "Discrimination in the Small-Business Credit Market," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 85(4), pages 930-943, November.
    22. Robert Townsend, 1997. "Discrimination in Financial Services: How Should We Proceed?," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 11(1), pages 215-217, February.
    23. Paul Huck & Lewis M. Segal, 1997. "New data on mortgage lending," Chicago Fed Letter, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, issue Jul.
    24. Neal, Derek A & Johnson, William R, 1996. "The Role of Premarket Factors in Black-White Wage Differences," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 104(5), pages 869-895, October.
    25. Black, Harold & Schweitzer, Robert L & Mandell, Lewis, 1978. "Discrimination in Mortgage Lending," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 68(2), pages 186-191, May.
    26. John Yinger, 1998. "Evidence on Discrimination in Consumer Markets," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 12(2), pages 23-40, Spring.
    27. Helen F. Ladd, 1998. "Evidence on Discrimination in Mortgage Lending," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 12(2), pages 41-62, Spring.
    28. Gary Dymski, 1995. "The theory of bank redlining and discrimination: An exploration," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 23(3), pages 37-74, March.
    29. Lisa Mohanty & Gary Dymski, 1999. "Credit and Banking Structure: Asian and African-American Experience in Los Angeles," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(2), pages 362-366, May.
    30. Becker, Gary S., 1971. "The Economics of Discrimination," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 2, number 9780226041162, September.
    31. Geoffrey M. B. Tootell, 1993. "Defaults, denials, and discrimination in mortgage lending," New England Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, issue Sep, pages 45-51.
    32. James A. Berkovec & Glenn B. Canner & Stuart A. Gabriel & Timothy H. Hannan, 1998. "Discrimination, Competition, And Loan Performance In Fha Mortgage Lending," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 80(2), pages 241-250, May.
    33. Becker, Gary S, 1993. "Nobel Lecture: The Economic Way of Looking at Behavior," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 101(3), pages 385-409, June.
    34. Berger, Allen N & Udell, Gregory F, 1992. "Some Evidence on the Empirical Significance of Credit Rationing," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 100(5), pages 1047-1077, October.
    35. Susan Wachter, 1997. "Discrimination in Financial Services: What Do We Know?," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 11(1), pages 205-208, February.
    36. Munnell, Alicia H. & Geoffrey M. B. Tootell & Lynn E. Browne & James McEneaney, 1996. "Mortgage Lending in Boston: Interpreting HMDA Data," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 86(1), pages 25-53, March.
    37. Telser, L G, 1980. "A Theory of Self-enforcing Agreements," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 53(1), pages 27-44, January.
    38. Olney, Martha L., 1998. "When Your Word Is Not Enough: Race, Collateral, and Household Credit," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 58(2), pages 408-431, June.
    39. Calem Paul & Stutzer Michael, 1995. "The Simple Analytics of Observed Discrimination in Credit Markets," Journal of Financial Intermediation, Elsevier, vol. 4(3), pages 189-212, July.
    40. Stanley D. Longhofer & Stephen R. Peters, 1998. "Self-selection and discrimination in credit markets," Working Papers (Old Series) 9809, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
    41. Martin, Robert E & Hill, R Carter, 2000. "Loan Performance and Race," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 38(1), pages 136-150, January.
    42. Marsha Courchane & David Nickerson, 1997. "Discrimination Resulting from Overage Practices," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 11(1), pages 133-151, February.
    43. Charles W. Calomiris & Charles M. Kahn & Stanley D. Longhofer, 1994. "Housing-finance intervention and private incentives: helping minorities and the poor," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, pages 634-678.
    44. White, M.J., 1998. "Why Don't More Households File for Bankruptcy?," Papers 98-03, Michigan - Center for Research on Economic & Social Theory.
    45. White, Michelle J, 1998. "Why Don't More Households File for Bankruptcy?," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 14(2), pages 205-231, October.
    46. Gwendolyn Flowers, 1999. "What Can We Expect from Community-Based Lending for the District of Columbia," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(2), pages 367-371, May.
    47. Bester, Helmut, 1985. "Screening vs. Rationing in Credit Markets with Imperfect Information," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 75(4), pages 850-855, September.
    48. Douglas D. Evanoff & Lewis M. Segal, 1996. "CRA and fair lending regulations: resulting trends in mortgage lending," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, vol. 20(Nov), pages 19-46.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wendy Edelberg, 2007. "Racial dispersion in consumer credit interest rates," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2007-28, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Song Han, 2004. "Discrimination in Lending: Theory and Evidence," The Journal of Real Estate Finance and Economics, Springer, vol. 29(1), pages 5-46, July.
    2. Song Han, 2011. "Creditor Learning and Discrimination in Lending," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 40(1), pages 1-27, October.
    3. Stephen L. Ross, 2003. "What Is Known about Testing for Discrimination: Lessons Learned by Comparing across Different Markets," Working papers 2003-21, University of Connecticut, Department of Economics, revised Nov 2003.
    4. Stanley D. Longhofer & Stephen R. Peters, 1998. "Self-selection and discrimination in credit markets," Working Papers (Old Series) 9809, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
    5. Ken Cavalluzzo & Linda Cavalluzzo & John D. Wolken, 1999. "Competition, small business financing, and discrimination: evidence from a new survey," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 1999-25, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    6. Stanley D. Longhofer & Stephen R. Peters, 1998. "Beneath the rhetoric: clarifying the debate on mortgage lending discrimination," Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, vol. 34(Q IV), pages 2-13.
    7. Stephen L. Ross, 2005. "The Continuing Practice and Impact of Discrimination," Working papers 2005-19, University of Connecticut, Department of Economics, revised Jul 2006.
    8. Solomon Y. Deku & Alper Kara & Philip Molyneux, 2016. "Access to consumer credit in the UK," The European Journal of Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(10), pages 941-964, August.
    9. Douglas D. Evanoff & Lewis M. Segal, 1996. "CRA and fair lending regulations: resulting trends in mortgage lending," Economic Perspectives, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, vol. 20(Nov), pages 19-46.
    10. Gary-Bobo, Robert J. & Larribeau, Sophie, 2004. "A structural econometric model of price discrimination in the French mortgage lending industry," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 101-134, January.
    11. Gary-Bobo, Robert J. & Larribeau, Sophie, 2002. "A Structural Econometric Model of Price Discrimination in the Mortgage Lending Industry," CEPR Discussion Papers 3302, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    12. Black, Harold A. & Robinson, Breck L. & Schweitzer, Robert L., 2001. "Comparing lending decisions of minority-owned and White-owned banks: Is there discrimination in mortgage lending?," Review of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 10(1), pages 23-39.
    13. Agier, Isabelle & Szafarz, Ariane, 2013. "Microfinance and Gender: Is There a Glass Ceiling on Loan Size?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 165-181.
    14. Harold A. Black & Breck L. Robinson & Robert L. Schweitzer, 2001. "Comparing lending decisions of minority‐owned and White‐owned banks," Review of Financial Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 10(1), pages 23-39, March.
    15. Block, Walter & Snow, Nicholas & Stringham, Edward, 2008. "Banks, insurance companies, and discrimination," MPRA Paper 26035, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Blanchard, Lloyd & Zhao, Bo & Yinger, John, 2008. "Do lenders discriminate against minority and woman entrepreneurs?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(2), pages 467-497, March.
    17. Michael Ferguson & Stephen Peters, 1997. "Cultural Affinity and Lending Discrimination: The Impact of Underwriting Errors and Credit Risk Distribution on Applicant Denial Rates," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 11(1), pages 153-168, February.
    18. Cole, Rebel, 1999. "Availability of credit to small and minority-owned businesses: Evidence from the 1993 National Survey of Small Business Finances," MPRA Paper 4715, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Helen F. Ladd, 1998. "Evidence on Discrimination in Mortgage Lending," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 12(2), pages 41-62, Spring.
    20. Stanley D. Longhofer, 1996. "Cultural affinity and mortgage discrimination," Economic Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, issue Q III, pages 12-24.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Discrimination in mortgage loans; Discrimination in consumer credit;

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • G28 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Government Policy and Regulation
    • J7 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2002-2. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Ryan Wolfslayer ; Keisha Fournillier (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/frbgvus.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.