Bank Branch Presence and Access to Credit in Low‐ to Moderate‐Income Neighborhoods
研究发现，在中低收入社区设有银行网点能增加抵押贷款发放并降低利率，支持了银行通过物理存在收集软信息以服务信息不透明借款人的观点。
Banks specialize in lending to informationally opaque borrowers by collecting soft information about them. Some researchers claim that this process requires a physical presence in the market to lower information collection costs. This paper provides evidence in support of this argument in the mortgage market for low‐income borrowers whose access to credit is limited by their inadequate credit histories. Mortgage originations increase and interest spreads decline when there is a bank branch located in a low‐ to moderate‐income neighborhood.