Megan Marsh
Co-Founder Keystone Alliance Mortgage Have you had any great female mentors? What is the importance of mentoring and is this something that you focus on? I have had a handful of female mentors in my life, who have made a significant impact on the person I am today. My first two were my high school and college coaches, who taught me to be strong, independent and to always be your best, but while helping others around you and always doing what is right. These women created the foundation that has led to the culture we have at our company and I use many of the teambuilding activities that I learned from them. We absolutely need more women to lead and mentor other women in our industry. We need to reach across retail and broker lines and support and get to know one another. We need to recruit more women into the field. What do you hope to see in the future of the mortgage industry? There are a few changes that I am very passionate about: 1. More diversity & inclusion accountability - Everyone talks about having more diverse teams but I have yet to see it at any corporate offices I have visited or been a part of. The only way it is going to happen is if we can create accountability and visibility of what is really present at the top of organizations. 2. More women loan officers starting their own businesses and finding ways to be top producers while raising a family. I have had many women ask me how I have started my business while having four kids. They couldn’t build big pipelines when every few years they had to take three months off to have a child. I want to see some things change around this.
Christy Moss
Head of Sales and Marketing FormFree
30
Lauren Morris
Loan Officer Academy Mortgage Corporation How did you get into this field? What keeps you motivated to stay? I accidentally became a lender. When I was 21, I applied as a temp. The temp company sent me to an interview that lasted 5 minutes. I would eventually work for that privately owned mortgage company for 16 years. I quickly moved from receptionist, to doc drawer, to processor (which I loved). One day my three loan officers who I processed for moved to another company. The owner sat me down and said, “Well I am not trying to pressure you, but I don’t have anyone for you to process for, you mentioned getting licensed and now is the time.” That was 2004. I have been producing since 2005 and I absolutely love being a lender. I thrive off of learning and constant change in our industry, problem solving, helping first time buyers, saving loans that other lenders couldn’t close. I never give up and I don’t take no for an answer. Since coming to Academy, we have become a team of four loan officers and two transaction coordinators. Academy has given me the room to grow my business and expand our footprint. Have you had any great female mentors? What is the importance of mentoring and is this something that you focus on? I had two very strong female lenders to learn from at my first employer. The owner of the company was self-made. She went from being a loan officer to privately owning multiple locations. Everyone who knows her understands her integrity, honesty and work ethic is what drives her. She taught me to listen to a client’s motivation, understand and not be afraid to tell a client it was not worth doing the loan.
Erin McCarthy Naylor, Esq. Chief Operations Officer Direct Mortgage Loans
How did you get into this field? What keeps you motivated to stay? Like most, I didn’t plan on going into the mortgage industry. When I was 22, I had a chance conversation with the director of marketing at my credit union, which led to a position promoting financial products and services to its members. From there, I transitioned into a role at GE Capital, where I received comprehensive training on the sales and loan manufacturing side of mortgage lending and that’s when I became enamored with the industry. When I joined Fannie Mae in 2008, my eyes were opened to how impactful the housing industry is to the US economy. The understanding I developed of how home builders, mortgage lenders, banks and professionals like myself all contribute to building a strong economy is a huge motivator.
How did you get into this field? What keeps you motivated to stay? After being a prosecutor in Baltimore City I was presented an opportunity to prosecute mortgage fraud for the State of Maryland under a Department of Justice Grant for two years. When that role ended I was offered a role to join Direct Mortgage Loans to oversee compliance. Over the last seven years my role has grown to my current role, which includes oversight of our operations department. I am motivated to stay in the mortgage industry for a multitude of reasons to include a desire to help others. In my role, I am able to help our operations staff, our sales staff and in the big picture our borrowers. To help our operations staff, we focus on creating a culture where our staff feels valued, empowered and that they have a voice within the company.
Have you had any great female mentors? What is the importance of mentoring and is this something that you focus on? I’ve had several amazing female mentors. My first boss and mentor was Kim Wall at Georgia United Credit Union, who taught me how to effectively build relationships within the organization. During my time at Fannie Mae, two women — Jennifer Whip and Beth Millstein — helped me take ownership over the direction of my career. Marcia Davies at the MBA also has been influential in challenging me to stake claim to my professional path.
Have you had any great female mentors? What is the importance of mentoring and is this something that you focus on? I have been fortunate to work with other strong women in the mortgage industry, as half of the members of the executive leadership team at Direct Mortgage Loans are women. Additionally, many of our top branch managers are female. This heavy presence of women in leadership has allowed for mentorship, collaboration and comradeship.
www.mortgagewomenmagazine.com
