Page 22 - Book7E
P. 22
14
Credit Discrimination and the Equal Opportunity Act
example, your length of employment might be scored differently depending on your age.
Evaluating Income
When evaluating your income, a creditor may not:
1. Refuse to consider public assistance income the same way as other income.
2. Discount income because of your sex or marital status. For example, a creditor cannot count a man’s salary at 100% and a woman’s at 75%. A creditor may not assume a woman of childbearing age will stop working to raise children.
3. Discount or refuse to consider income because it comes from part-time employment or pension, annuity, or retirement benefits programs.
4. Refuse to consider regular alimony, child support, or separate maintenance payments. A creditor may ask you to prove you have received this income consistently.
Additional Rights
You also have the right to:
1. Have credit in your birth name (Mary Smith), your first and your spouse’s last name (Mary Jones), or your first name and a combined last name (Mary Smith-Jones).
2. Get credit without a cosigner, if you meet the creditor’s standards.
3. Have a cosigner other than your husband or wife, if one is necessary.
