The American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC) [1], an independent organization comprised of industry leaders and advocates focused on shaping the diversity agenda for the mortgage industry, has launched its mortgage industry Diversity & Inclusion Directory [2].
The directory is a collection of company profiles that are minority, women, veteran, disabled, LGBT owned or operated, or diverse in other areas. The directory gives companies one central location to search diverse vendors locally or nationally for the services they need in many different categories, including legal, property preservation, valuations, title, loss mitigation, and more.
“This directory is another step in achieving the council’s ultimate goal—which is to create an industry that is inclusive of all where diverse businesses are provided the opportunity to present their services to those looking to engage in a diverse supply chain,” said AMDC co-chairs Jay Inouye, Director of Vendor Diversity at Freddie Mac, and Michael Ruiz, Director of Supplier Diversity at Fannie Mae in a joint statement.
“The directory is one of the many initiatives the AMDC had created to address pressing issues in diversity. I look forward to working alongside the Council's leadership to help further develop this important resource,” said Erik Richard, AMDC's Senior Policy and Program Advisor, and CEO of Landmark Network.
Government agencies have recently made a bigger push toward furthering diversity and inclusion within the industry. Earlier in October, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced [3] it is seeking comments on proposed amendments to its Minority and Women Inclusion regulations. The proposed amendments would require Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks to engage in diversity and inclusion strategic planning by developing stand-alone plans or by incorporating diversity and inclusion into their existing strategic planning processes. The amendments would also encourage the regulated entities to expand contracting opportunities for minorities, women, and individuals with disabilities through subcontracting arrangements.
In August of this year, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC [4]), the Federal Reserve [5], and the FDIC [6] issued guidelines for the financial institutions they regulate [7] on submitting self-assessments of their diversity policies and practices. In order to maximize transparency, the agencies are strongly encouraged the financial institutions to disclose diversity policies and practices on their websites, and also include information related to their self-assessments.
The AMDC invites all firms across the mortgage industry to submit a corporate profile and be included in the Diversity & Inclusion Directory.
The directory can be viewed by clicking HERE [2].