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What Americans Owe and Why

Before Tom Dundon Agreed to Buy the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Accused the Company He Created of Predatory Lending

In 2020, the state sued Santander Consumer USA for allegedly preying on Oregonians through high-interest car loans they couldn’t afford in a case involving more than 265,000 borrowers nationwide.

by Tony Schick and Conrad Wilson, Oregon Public Broadcasting,

Local Reporting Network

“You’re Already Approved”: How One Tennessee Company Sets a Debt Trap

Borrowers say the lending company Advance Financial encouraged them to borrow back the value of almost all of the payments they made, tearing a hole in the safety net the law tried to create.

by Adam Friedman, Tennessee Lookout,

Local Reporting Network

The Ugly Truth

Former “We Buy Ugly Houses” Franchise Owner to Plead Guilty in Fraud Scheme That Cost Investors $40 Million

Charles Carrier agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony wire fraud that carries a potential 20-year prison sentence. The plea follows a ProPublica report detailing how Carrier bilked investors across Texas out of millions of dollars.

by Anjeanette Damon and Mollie Simon,

Desperate Loans

A 700% APR Lending Business Tied to Dr. Phil’s Son Is Dividing an Alaska Tribe

Tribal lender Minto Money has boosted the economy of its Alaska town. But some tribal members are appalled by the millions it’s made off desperate borrowers — much of which, lawsuits allege, has gone to outsider Jay McGraw, son of Dr. Phil.

by Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News, and Megan O’Matz and Joel Jacobs, ProPublica,

Featured Reporters

Portrait of Jeff Ernsthausen Jeff Ernsthausen
Portrait of Joel Jacobs Joel Jacobs
Portrait of Paul Kiel Paul Kiel
Portrait of Jeremy Kohler Jeremy Kohler
Portrait of Melissa Sanchez Melissa Sanchez
Portrait of Mollie Simon Mollie Simon

Impact of Our Reporting
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On the Hook

El DMV y los principales legisladores de Connecticut prometen revisar las leyes de remolque

Los planes para reformar las leyes de remolque en la sesión legislativa de este año siguen a una investigación de The Connecticut Mirror y ProPublica que descubrió que los remolcadores pueden vender los autos tan solo 15 días después de recogerlos.

por Ginny Monk y Dave Altimari, The Connecticut Mirror,

Local Reporting Network

Feds Fine Baker College $2.5 Million for Deceptive Marketing That Left Students With Debts and Regrets

A 2022 investigation detailed how the once-growing Michigan school built its reputation on slick advertising despite low graduation rates and leaving many students burdened with heavy debt.

by Anna Clark, ProPublica, and David Jesse, The Chronicle of Higher Education,

On the Hook

Connecticut DMV and Top Lawmakers Vow to Review Towing Laws

The plans to reform towing laws in this year’s legislative session follow a Connecticut Mirror and ProPublica investigation that found people’s cars can be sold just 15 days after they’re towed.

by Ginny Monk and Dave Altimari, The Connecticut Mirror,

Local Reporting Network

Series

Series: Desperate Loans: Tribal Lenders’ Profits Built on High-Interest Loans

Series: The Title Pawn Trap: High-Interest Title Lending in Georgia

Series: Homeowner Hell: Investigating Colorado’s Unregulated Homeowners Associations

Series: Disaster After Disaster: Growing Storms, Faltering Aid

Series: Coming to Collect: Investigating Public Housing in Annapolis

Series: Financial Aid Loophole: Giving Up Guardianship to Get Aid

Series: The Bad Bet: How Illinois Bet on Video Gambling and Lost

Series: Driven Into Debt: How Tickets Burden the Poor

Series: Too Broke for Bankruptcy: How Bankruptcy Fails Those Who Need It Most

Series: Debt Inc.: Lending and Collecting in America

Series: Foreclosure Crisis: How Banks and Government Fail Homeowners

157 stories published since 2015

This Lender Said Its Loans Would Help Tennesseans. It Has Sued More Than 110,000 of Them.

by Adam Friedman, Tennessee Lookout,

How a Connecticut DMV Employee Made Thousands by Selling Towed Cars

by Dave Altimari and Ginny Monk, The Connecticut Mirror,

Tribal Lenders Say They Can Charge Over 600% Interest. These States Stopped Them.

by Joel Jacobs and Megan O’Matz,

How Many Cars Have Connecticut Towing Companies Sold? The DMV Can’t Tell Us.

by Dave Altimari, The Connecticut Mirror,

El DMV y los principales legisladores de Connecticut prometen revisar las leyes de remolque

por Ginny Monk y Dave Altimari, The Connecticut Mirror,

Feds Fine Baker College $2.5 Million for Deceptive Marketing That Left Students With Debts and Regrets

by Anna Clark, ProPublica, and David Jesse, The Chronicle of Higher Education,

Connecticut DMV and Top Lawmakers Vow to Review Towing Laws

by Ginny Monk and Dave Altimari, The Connecticut Mirror,

The Tribal Lending Industry Offers Quick Cash Online at Outrageous Interest Rates. Here’s How It’s Survived.

by Joel Jacobs and Megan O’Matz,

A Tribal Lender Charging 800% APR Has Agreed to Stop Operating in Minnesota

by Megan O’Matz and Joel Jacobs,

What No One Tells You About Car Loan Deferments

by Byard Duncan, Ryan Gabrielson and Lucas Waldron,

One of the Nation’s Largest Auto Lenders Told Customers, “We’re Here to Help.” Then It Took Their Money and Their Cars.

by Ryan Gabrielson and Byard Duncan,

A Wisconsin Tribe Built a Lending Empire Charging 600% Annual Rates to Borrowers

by Megan O’Matz and Joel Jacobs,

TitleMax Demands High-Interest Payments From Borrowers in Bankruptcy

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Joel Jacobs and Mollie Simon, ProPublica, illustrations by Laila Milevski, special to ProPublica,

How We Measured the Title Lending Industry in Georgia

by Joel Jacobs, ProPublica, and Margaret Coker, The Current,

Thousands of Katrina Survivors Were Freed From Debt to the State. Those Who Already Paid Are Out of Luck.

by Richard A. Webster, Verite News, and David Hammer, WWL-TV,

The Powerful Forces Keeping High Interest Title Lending Alive in Georgia

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Mollie Simon, ProPublica,

Are Colorado’s Efforts to Curb HOA Foreclosures Working?

by Brittany Freeman, Rocky Mountain PBS, data analysis by Sophie Chou, ProPublica,

HOA Foreclosures Are a “Lose-Lose” Game for Coloradans, but These Lawyers Win Regardless of the Outcome

by Brittany Freeman, Rocky Mountain PBS, data analysis by Sophie Chou, ProPublica,

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Fines TitleMax $15 Million for Predatory Lending

by Margaret Coker, The Current,

Inside the Controversial Sales Practices of the Nation’s Biggest Title Lender

by Margaret Coker, The Current,

How Title Lending Works

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Mollie Simon and Joel Jacobs, ProPublica,

How Title Lenders Trap Poor Americans in Debt With Triple-Digit Interest Rates

by Margaret Coker, The Current, and Joel Jacobs, ProPublica, with research by Mollie Simon, ProPublica,

Ohio Lawmakers Seek Strict Rules for “Clean Energy” Lending

by Jeremy Kohler,

Michigan’s Largest Utility Faces Pushback on Debt Sales and Shut-Offs as Company Asks for Rate Hike

by Emily Hopkins,

Colorado Legislature Passes HOA Foreclosure Reform Bill

by Brittany Freeman, Rocky Mountain PBS,

Colorado HOA Foreclosure Reform Legislation Moves Forward

by Brittany Freeman, Rocky Mountain PBS,

They Faced Foreclosure Not From Their Mortgage Lender, but From Their HOA

by Brittany Freeman, Rocky Mountain PBS, with data analysis by Sophie Chou and research by Mariam Elba, ProPublica,

A Return to Robo-Signing: JPMorgan Chase Has Unleashed a Lawsuit Blitz on Credit Card Customers

by Patrick Rucker, The Capitol Forum,

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Proposes Further Traffic Ticket Reforms to Help Low-Income Motorists

by Melissa Sanchez,

Loan Forgiveness for Disabled Borrowers Was 10 Years in the Making

by Stephen Engelberg,

The Education Department Will Forgive $5.8 Billion in Student Loans for Disabled Borrowers

by Sasha Chavkin,

Cities in Ohio Want to Use the Same Clean-Energy Financing Company That Saddled Missouri Homeowners With Debt

by Jeremy Kohler,

Some Hospitals Kept Suing Patients Over Medical Debt Through the Pandemic

by Jenny Deam,

Missouri Lawmakers Approve Reforms to Controversial Clean-Energy Loan Program

by Jeremy Kohler and Haru Coryne,

Clean-Energy Loans Trapped Black Homeowners in Debt. The Legislature Just Started Trying to Fix the Problem.

by Jeremy Kohler and Haru Coryne,

State-Supported “Clean Energy” Loans Are Putting Borrowers at Risk of Losing Their Homes

by Jeremy Kohler and Haru Coryne,

There’s Only One State Where Falling Behind on Rent Could Mean Jail Time. That Could Change.

by Maya Miller and Ellis Simani, ProPublica, and Benjamin Hardy, Arkansas Nonprofit News Network,

Feds Investigating Lender That Sued Thousands of Lower-Income Latinos During Pandemic

by Kiah Collier and Ren Larson,

Thousands of Illinois Drivers Would Get Their Licenses Back Under a Criminal Justice Reform Bill

by Melissa Sanchez,

Donald Trump Built a National Debt So Big (Even Before the Pandemic) That It’ll Weigh Down the Economy for Years

by Allan Sloan, ProPublica, and Cezary Podkul for ProPublica,

A Lender Sued Thousands of Lower-Income Latinos During the Pandemic. Now It Wants to Be a National Bank.

by Kiah Collier and Ren Larson,

JPMorgan Chase Bank Wrongly Charged 170,000 Customers Overdraft Fees. Federal Regulators Refused to Penalize It.

by Patrick Rucker, The Capitol Forum,

The Pandemic Hasn’t Stopped This School District From Suing Parents Over Unpaid Textbook Fees

by Ellis Simani, ProPublica, and Kim Kilbride, South Bend Tribune,

New Bill Proposes Stopping Unemployment Agencies That Make Mistakes From Demanding Money Back

by Ava Kofman,

Nonprofit Hospital Almost Never Gave Discounts to Poor Patients During Collections, Documents Show

by Wendi C. Thomas, MLK50: Justice Through Journalism,

An illustration of a woman climbing staircases and navigating screens.

A Guide to Navigating the Texas Unemployment System During the Coronavirus Pandemic

by Sally Beauvais, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune, and Mitchell Ferman, The Texas Tribune,

The Fed Saved the Economy but Is Threatening Trillions of Dollars Worth of Middle-Class Retirement

by Allan Sloan,

Help Us Investigate Collection Practices at Virginia Colleges and Universities

by Megan Pauly, Virginia Public Media,

Debt Collectors Have Made a Fortune This Year. Now They’re Coming for More.

by Paul Kiel and Jeff Ernsthausen,

What Happens After a Debt Collection Machine Grinds to a Halt

by Wendi C. Thomas, MLK50: Justice Through Journalism,

What We’re Watching

During Donald Trump’s second presidency, ProPublica will focus on the areas most in need of scrutiny. Here are some of the issues our reporters will be watching — and how to get in touch with them securely.

Learn more about our reporting team. We will continue to share our areas of interest as the news develops.

Photo of Sharon Lerner
Sharon Lerner

I cover health and the environment and the agencies that govern them, including the Environmental Protection Agency.

Photo of Andy Kroll
Andy Kroll

I cover justice and the rule of law, including the Justice Department, U.S. attorneys and the courts.

Photo of Melissa Sanchez
Melissa Sanchez

I report on immigration and labor, and I am based in Chicago.

Photo of Jesse Coburn
Jesse Coburn

I cover housing and transportation, including the companies working in those fields and the regulators overseeing them.

If you don’t have a specific tip or story in mind, we could still use your help. Sign up to be a member of our federal worker source network to stay in touch.

Most Read

    More Than 170 U.S. Citizens Have Been Held by Immigration Agents. They’ve Been Kicked, Dragged and Detained for Days.

    The government does not track how often immigration agents grab citizens. So ProPublica did. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes people who were held for days without a lawyer. And nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.

    by Nicole Foy, photography by Sarahbeth Maney,

    How 3M Execs Convinced a Scientist the Forever Chemicals She Found in Human Blood Were Safe

    Decades ago, Kris Hansen showed 3M that its PFAS chemicals were in people’s bodies. Her bosses halted her work.

    by Sharon Lerner, photography by Haruka Sakaguchi, special to ProPublica,

    Machine Bias

    Machine Bias

    There’s software used across the country to predict future criminals. And it’s biased against blacks.

    Julia Angwin, Jeff Larson, Lauren Kirchner and Surya Mattu,

    White Parents Rallied to Chase a Black Educator Out of Town. Then, They Followed Her to the Next One.

    Cecelia Lewis was asked to apply for a Georgia school district’s first-ever administrator job devoted to diversity, equity and inclusion. A group of parents — coached by local and national anti-CRT groups — had other plans.

    by Nicole Carr,

    The Militia and the Mole

    Outraged by the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, a wilderness survival trainer spent years undercover climbing the ranks of right-wing militias. He didn’t tell police or the FBI. He didn’t tell family or friends. The one person he told was a ProPublica reporter.

    by Joshua Kaplan,