Carolina specializes in housing and community development, with a specific focus on access to credit, homeownership and wealth inequality. She has most recently published research on the impact of the foreclosure crisis on low-income and minority communities, the role of the Community Reinvestment Act during the subprime crisis, and the importance of anti-predatory lending laws for consumer protection. Prior to joining the faculty at UC Berkeley, Carolina was a Senior Research at the Center for Responsible Lending. From 2005 to 2011, Carolina served as the Research Manager for the Community Development Department at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. She received her Ph.D. in Human Geography from the University of Washington, Seattle.