The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Role in Protecting You

The White House Blog recently released information about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and its role in protecting consumers from unfair and illegal lending practices. Previously, this responsibility was divided among many different departments with no single Federal agency in charge of overseeing the whole market. The CFPB is now the single entity in charge of monitoring and regulating financial products including making credit card, mortgage, and loan agreements more user friendly.

The primary roles that CFPB plays are to educate consumers and ensure they understand the fine print on credit and loan agreements, enforce consumer protection laws and regulate lending institutions, and research consumer complaints and financial markets for new risks. For more information visit The White House Blog.

What other measures do you think the Government should be take to protect consumers from unfair lending practices? How much responsibility do you think falls on consumers to protect themselves?