Two numbers summarize US consumer protection policies for financial products: 1) The SEC is considering a modification of a rule so that hedge funds cannot sell their high-risk investment devices to 98.7% of all Americans. 2) An estimated one in five recent subprime home mortgage borrowers will lose their homes. There it is: When you might lose your investment in stocks, the SEC imposes suitability rules that prevent brokers from selling high-risk products to all but the most sophisticated investors. But when you could lose your home in a refinancing, federal regulatory agencies have largely left consumer to the wolves.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=1250484