STUART, FL - The National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) filed a civil rights complaint with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) against Allied Home Mortgage Capital Corporation, the nation’s largest privately held mortgage broker/banker.

The complaint states that several Allied branches quoted less favorable rates and fees to minorities, displayed disrespect, and made racists comments to African Americans.

NCRC conducted the first-ever Broker Fair Lending Audit where mystery shoppers "tested" over 100 mortgage brokers from February 2005 to June 2006 in Atlanta, Georgia; Baltimore, Maryland; Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles California; St. Louis, Missouri and the Washington, D.C., metro areas.

NCRC’s complaint alleges that Allied and it’s brokers engaged in racially discriminatory lending practices against African Americans and inhabitants of African-American communities by 1) Quoting different interest rates & fees on the basis of race; 2) Steering African American Consumers to more expensive non-prime products; 3) Not treating African-American applicants for mortgages as seriously as their white counterparts, despite their being more qualified; 4) Providing African-Americans with substandard & discourteous treatment; 5) Limiting access to credit on the basis of race; 6) Differential treatment on the basis of race in representing policies & practices; and 7) making inappropriate comments regarding the characteristics of communities.

Hilary Shelton, director of the NAACP Washington Bureau, called upon HUD to investigate the audit results.