[1]This week, the American Mortgage Diversity Council (AMDC) [2], a Five Star Institute membership group, begins the 2021 Diversity & Inclusion Webinar Series [1], beginning Wednesday, August 11 at 11:30 a.m. CDT, to meet virtually with your neighbors and celebrate the many colors that make up the one community we call, housing.
Over the course of three weeks in August, 15-plus subject-matter experts and leaders in the industry will discuss pressing diversity and inclusion topics impacting today's mortgage business. This week's agenda [3] features three educational panels covering topics regarding minority homeownership, talent diversity, and employee resource groups.
Tune in each week to hear from the experts and connect with colleagues from across the country.
The first session is set for Wednesday, August 11 and is titled “A Dream for All: Expanding Minority Homeownership.” A panel of speakers, including Frank Fuentes, National VP of Multicultural Community Lending for New American Funding [4]; Jorge Newbery, Founder/CEO for AHP 75 [5]; and Daniel Ticona Senior Manager, Affordable Lending for Freddie Mac [6] will discuss measures the industry can take to ensure that homeownership is within reach for as many Americans as possible.
Fuentes joined New American Funding nearly 20 years ago as its first Latino and bilingual Loan Officer. He helped launch the company’s inside call center, specializing in serving the needs of the Hispanic market. Since then, he has assisted thousands of Hispanic families with responsible and affordable home loans and refinances. In his National VP role, Fuentes remains an active Loan Originator, working on everything related to increasing homeownership within the Hispanic market, including assisting families through the company’s Latino Focus initiative and helping New American Funding build a diverse workforce.
Newbery serves as Founder and CEO of AHP 75, a nationwide initiative to raise the homeownership rate for all to 75%. AHP 75 focuses on helping very-low, low- and moderate-income families achieve homeownership through micro mortgages, credit remediation, and other support services. He also founded American Homeowner Preservation, AHP Servicing, and AHP Mortgage Direct, a national mortgage banker which originates micro mortgages as low as $5,000. All AHP businesses are minority-owned and committed to nurturing inclusive and welcoming work environments.
Ticona manages the design of affordable lending strategies based on innovation and research-focused solutions within Freddie Mac’s Single-Family Client and Community Engagement Division. He is responsible for the development and execution of collaborative initiatives in a variety of local markets and communities to support homeownership preservation, increase access to credit, and address housing supply issues. His responsibilities also include management of strategic local partnerships and market outreach, as well as influencing the design of affordable housing policy, programs, and products.
The second in the AMDC Webinar series will be held Wednesday, August 18, “A Diversity of Talent: A Guide to Recruiting, Hiring, and Promoting Your Workforce [3],” and the third and final in the series will be held August 25, titled, “Learn From Your ERGs: A Valuable Resource For Company Feedback on Initiatives [3].”
[1]
Click here [7] for more information on this event.
Here's what else is happening in The Week Ahead:
- MBA’s Forbearance and Call Volume Survey [8] (Monday)
- Carrington Mortgage Services Webinar: UNtapped Non-QM Market–Helping Good Borrowers With Credit or Income Documentation Challenges [9] (Wednesday)
- MBA Weekly Applications Survey [10] (Wednesday)
- Realtor.com Weekly Housing Market Recap [11] (Wednesday)
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey [12] (Thursday)
- U.S. Department of Labor's Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report [13] (Thursday)
- Black Knight weekly forbearance data [14] (Friday)