GENERAL INFORMATION
Financial Literacy Programs
The Office of the State Bank Commissioner
provides consumer education through outreach programs, building on partnerships with
various state agencies, housing counselors and community organizations. Our primary goal, to raise awareness about the
financial issues impacting our most vulnerable constituents, has kept our office busy
attending community meetings and housing counseling workshops, and meeting residents at
our display tables at various events across Delaware. We have also produced a number of
brochures on issues including identity theft, mortgage lending scams and high-cost
financial services which can be reviewed at www.state.de.us/bank.
Our office also distributes brochures from the FTC (Stop, Think and Click) and the
Consumer Federation of America (Your Credit Scores) as well as informing residents about
the resources available at various Federal Agency web sites including onguardonline.gov, www.fdic.gov, and www.ftc.gov.
Deputy Bank Commissioner for Consumer Affairs Gerard W. Kelly (Gerard.kelly@state.de.us) is in charge of
developing and implementing our consumer education programs.
In July, 2006 The Reinvestment Fund (TRF),
completed a study of mortgage foreclosure filings in Delaware. The study is available
at www.trfund.com
or by calling the Office of the State Bank Commissioner at 302-739-4235. One
of our priorities in 2007 is to follow up on the study’s top recommendation,
targeting education programs in areas of the state with high foreclosures. Our office has
partnered with the Attorney General’s Office, Delaware State Housing Authority and
housing counselors across Delaware to promote a better understanding of the foreclosure
process and encourage residents to speak up quickly when they fall behind. One of our campaign tools was promoting a 24 hour
hotline sponsored by the Homeownership Preservation Foundation (1-888-999-HOPE) through
radio, bus and print ads and brochures. From
June through December, 2006 over 1,000 residents called this number and 354 completed a
counseling session. The Office of the State
Bank Commissioner is also assisting the state in implementing a pilot loan pool modeled
after Pennsylvania’s
successful Homeowners Emergency Mortgage Assistance Program.
The pilot project is set to begin spring, 2007.
Again this year our office will offer
courses throughout the state on identity theft, mortgage lending and foreclosure
prevention, buying a car, and reading your credit report.
The Delaware Money School publishes a quarterly newsletter (www.delawaremoneyschool.com) which is
distributed widely and assists in informing the community about the available courses. Throughout the year our office will also attend
homeownership workshops sponsored by housing counselors speaking on predatory lending and
identity theft.
