OCC Rescinds Fair Housing Home Loan Data System Regulation

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ("OCC") rescinded its Fair Housing Home Loan Data System regulation ("12 CFR Part 27"), which required certain national banks to collect and report home loan application data.

The regulation required national banks to engage in quarterly recordkeeping, obtain all prescribed information for home loan applications, and maintain a log of inquiries and applications if ordered to do so. The OCC determined the requirements were obsolete, largely duplicative of, and inconsistent with the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act ("HMDA") and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act ("ECOA"). The OCC found that the regulation imposed asymmetrical obligations and burdened national banks with more home loan data collection requirements than their competitors. The OCC concluded that the regulatory burden the rule imposed was not justified by the limited utility of the data collected.

The OCC stated that the rule was originally issued to assist agency examiners in conducting full and complete fair housing examinations. However, the OCC concluded that examiners today generally base their fair lending supervisory activities on data already collected under HMDA and ECOA.

Following the rescission, the OCC said it expects national banks to continue collecting and reporting home loan data as required under HMDA and ECOA.

The OCC stated that the rescission is effective April 3, 2026.