Newsroom

The CFPB on Tuesday updated and published its lists of rural and underserved counties for 2019 for credit unions and other lenders to use in determining whether certain Truth in Lending Act (TILA) mortgage rules apply. The bureau also updated its rural and underserved areas tool on its website.

Credit unions and other lenders that operate predominately in rural or underserved counties, or that make loans predominately in rural counties, are exempt from certain bureau mortgage lending and servicing rules. The updated lists show which counties will be considered rural or underserved during calendar year 2019. A county's underserved status can also impact how Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) rules apply.

NAFCU has long advocated that lawmakers should expand the industry's ability to serve underserved areas; during the last Congress, Reps. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., and Paul Cook, R-Calif., introduced a NAFCU-sought bill that would allow credit unions of all charter types to add underserved areas to their fields of membership.