Home mortgage credit is less available in rural areas than in urban. The major reason is the limited number of savings and loans (S&L's) operating in rural areas. Banks are the major source of housing credit in rural areas whereas S&L's are most active in metro areas. In 1975, the per capita amount of housing loans held by banks, S&L's, and Farmers Home Administration (FmHA) was about $498 in rural areas and $1,590 in metro areas. FmHA loans amounted to $169 in rural areas and $7 in metro areas; FmHA thus helped to reduce the lending differential between the two areas. Loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration and the Veterans' Administration were more prevalent in metro areas than in rural.