What data is a lender NOT required to record to comply with the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA)?

The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) requires lenders to collect and report certain data about mortgage applications to monitor compliance with fair lending laws. The categories of data that HMDA mandates include information necessary to determine whether lenders are serving the housing needs of their communities and to identify possible discriminatory lending patterns.

Familial status, which refers to the presence of children or the status of an applicant regarding family composition, is not a data point required under HMDA regulation. While lenders must gather information related to race, ethnicity, sex, and age, familial status is not included in these reporting requirements. This means that while lenders are tasked with collecting a variety of demographic data essential for fair lending assessment, familial status does not play a role in the compliance obligations.

In contrast, other options such as HOEPA status, which relates to high-cost mortgage loans, and loan decision, which indicates whether an application was approved or denied, are both relevant for compliance under HMDA reporting guidelines. Additionally, applicant gross income is a critical factor considered for determining the borrower's ability to repay and is required information in the data collection process, which shows the risk associated with the income of the applicant in lending evaluations.