Home Loans in South-Central L.A.

* As the pastors of two of California’s largest inner-city African American churches, we are perplexed at the focus of “Inspirer Banks on Inner City” (Dec. 22), on Operation Hope. Your article appears to ridicule a small nonprofit’s failure to make more than 50 home loans a year in South-Central L.A. You are correct that this is indeed quite modest. But this one small nonprofit makes far more minority home loans than any financial institution.

According to verified data filed by the major financial institutions with the Federal Reserve (1997 data, compiled with the help of Robert Gnaizda and the Greenlining Institute), Operation Hope originated 17 times more South-Central L.A. home loans to African Americans earning under $35,000 than did California’s largest savings and loan, Home Savings (50 versus three for Home Savings). And, Operation Hope made 50 times more home loans than the combined total of California’s third and fourth largest banks (Union and Sanwa combined originated only one home loan in South-Central L.A. to African Americans earning under $35,000). We hope you will initiate a major front-page series on why heavily subsidized financial institutions do so little in the inner city and why South-Central L.A. has homeownership levels for Latinos and African Americans that are just half the rate for whites.

BISHOP CHARLES BLAKE

West Angeles Church

of God in Christ

CECIL L. “CHIP” MURRAY

Senior Minister

First A.M.E. Church

Los Angeles