Regulation B - Supplement I
(Official Staff Interpretations)
Sec. 202.13 Information for Monitoring Purposes
13(a) Information to be requested.
1. Natural person. Section 202.13 applies only to applications from natural persons.
2. Principal residence. The requirements of § 202.13 apply only if an application relates to a dwelling that is or will be occupied by the applicant as the principal residence.
A credit application related to a vacation home or a rental unit is not covered. In the case of a two- to four-unit dwelling, the application is covered if the applicant intends to occupy one of the units as a principal residence.
3. Temporary financing. An application for temporary financing to construct a dwelling is not subject to § 202.13. But an application for both a temporary loan to finance construction of a dwelling and a permanent mortgage loan to take effect upon the completion of construction is subject to § 202.13.
4. New principal residence. A person can have only one principal residence at a time. However, if a person buys or builds a new dwelling that will become that person’s principal residence within a year or upon completion of construction, the new dwelling is considered the principal residence for purposes of § 202.13.
5. Transactions not covered. The information-collection requirements of this section apply to applications for credit primarily for the purchase or refinancing of a dwelling that is or will become the applicant’s principal residence. Therefore, applications for credit secured by the applicant’s principal residence but made primarily for a purpose other than the purchase or refinancing of the principal residence (such as loans for home improvement and debt consolidation) are not subject to the informationcollection requirements. An application for an open-end home equity line of credit is not subject to this section unless it is readily apparent to the creditor when the application is taken that the primary purpose of the line is for the purchase or refinancing of a principal dwelling.
6. Refinancings. A refinancing occurs when an existing obligation is satisfied and replaced by a new obligation undertaken by the same borrower. A creditor that receives an application to refinance an existing extension of credit made by that creditor for the purchase of the applicant’s dwelling may request the monitoring information again but is not required to do so if it was obtained in the earlier transaction.
7. Data collection under Regulation C. See comment 5(a)(2)-2.
13(b) Obtaining of information.
1. Forms for collecting data. A creditor may collect the information specified in § 202.13(a) either on an application form or on a separate form referring to the application. The applicant must be offered the option to select more than one racial designation.
2. Written applications. The regulation requires written applications for the types of credit covered by § 202.13. A creditor can satisfy this requirement by recording on paper or by means of computer the information that the applicant provides orally and that
the creditor normally considers in a credit decision.
3. Telephone, mail applications.
i. A creditor that accepts an application by telephone must request the monitoring information.
ii. A creditor that accepts an application by mail need not make a special request for the monitoring information if the applicant has failed to provide it on the application form returned to the creditor.
iii. If it is not evident on the face of an application that it was received by mail, telephone, or via an electronic medium, the creditor should indicate on the form or other application record how the application was received.
4. Video capability.
i. If a creditor takes an application through a medium that allows the creditor to see the applicant, the creditor must treat the application as taken in person. The creditor must note the monitoring information on the basis of visual observation or surname, if the
applicant chooses not to provide the information.
ii. If an applicant applies through an electronic medium without video capability, the creditor may treat the application as if it were received by mail.
5. Applications through loan-shopping services. When a creditor receives an application through an unaffiliated loan-shopping service, it does not have to request the monitoring information for purposes of the ECOA or Regulation B. Creditors subject to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act should be aware, however, that data collection may be called for under Regulation C (12 CFR part 203), which generally requires creditors to report, among other things, the sex and race of an applicant on brokered applications or applications received through a correspondent.
6. Inadvertent notation. If a creditor inadvertently obtains the monitoring information in a dwelling-related transaction not covered by § 202.13, the creditor may process and retain the application without violating the regulation.
13(c) Disclosure to applicants.
1. Procedures for providing disclosures. The disclosure to an applicant regarding the monitoring information may be provided in writing. Appendix B contains a sample disclosure. A creditor may devise its own disclosure so long as it is substantially similar. The creditor need not orally request the monitoring information if it is requested in writing.
13(d) Substitute monitoring program.
1. Substitute program. An enforcement agency may adopt, under its established rulemaking or enforcement procedures, a program requiring creditors under its jurisdiction to collect information in addition to information required by this section.
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