Daily Real Estate News  |  December 10, 2003  |   Chicago: Banks Allow Mortgages to Illegal Immigrants A coalition including Citibank, Bank One, and 33 other banks—banded together as the New Alliance Task Force—are rolling out a model loan program meant to bring undocumented Chicago immigrants into the mortgage mainstream. A few lending pioneers already provide home financing to immigrants with no Social Security numbers, and the task force's hotly debated plan provides guidance to other banks that are interested in following this lead. Without Social Security identification, banks can quantify applicants' credit risk by contacting employers, landlords, and utilities; but the greater risk of extending credit to these borrowers is reflected by a higher interest rate. However, critics say, the bigger problem is that banks that provide mortgages to undocumented residents are facilitating illegal immigration for the sake of greed rather than acting to improve financial services to legal immigrants.

Source: Chicago Tribune (12/10/03); Avila, Oscar