Girlfunds

Finance of America CEO on changes in the mortgage industry

In this Girlfunds episode,Finance of America Companies CEO Patti Cook joins us for another episode of the Women of Influence series that spotlights the latest accomplishments of our award winners. As a 2021 Woman of Influence [https://www.housingwire.com/winner-profile/2021-hw-woman-of-influence-patti-cook/], Cook has been a pioneer in financial services since her earliest days in the industry. Over the course of her career, Cook has held executive roles at numerous companies, including Prudential, JPMorgan, and Freddie Mac. Cook shares her personal journey for how she got into the industry, as a woman in the finance space who has risen to the highest level of her business. She also addresses one of her most notable accomplishments — taking the company public [https://www.housingwire.com/articles/finance-of-america-to-go-public-before-ipo-window-closes/] in the midst of a global pandemic. Now, as CEO, Cook highlights how Finance of America helps advance women into leadership positions and offers other women in the industry advice on how to advance their own careers.

Blend’s Crystal Sumner on increasing housing access

This Girlfunds episode continues the Women of Influence podcast miniseries with2020 Woman of Influence [https://www.housingwire.com/articles/2020-hw-woman-of-influence-crystal-sumner/] Crystal Sumner, who serves as head of legal, compliance, and risk at Blend, discusses the company’s recent program announcement to increase access to housing and financial services. Sumner shares the trends and topics that she is keeping a close eye on, such as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact it is having on the ability to qualify for a mortgage, specifically in regard to minority homeownership.  She also touches on how more consumers feel comfortable with online transactions and the increased adoption of RON legislation

Snapdocs’ Camelia Martin on the state of the closing market

This Girlfunds episode continues the Women of Influence podcast miniseries withSnapdocs' Camelia Martin to talk about the latest changes in digital closings. As Head of Industry and Regulatory Affairs at Snapdocs, Martin keeps a close eye on the rapidly changing digital landscape in the mortgage market, especially when it comes to how digital changes are progressing in government adoption. When she was named a 2020 Woman of Influence [https://www.housingwire.com/articles/2020-hw-woman-of-influence-camelia-martin/], Martin worked at Falcon Capital Advisors, where she served as managing director of Digital Mortgage Advisory. Throughout her career, Martin has led industry-wide digital mortgage initiatives that have directly supported eNote acceptance programs for key participants such as Ginnie Mae and the Federal Home Loan Banks. Martin is a former MERSCORP executive. She also played a pivotal role in the implementation and adaptation of digital mortgages at MERSCORP. During the podcast, she talks about her latest role at Snapdocs and also discusses the current state of the closing industry.

Courtney Graham on growing a mortgage business

This Girlfunds episode continues the Women of Influence podcast miniseries with Courtney Graham, [https://www.princetonmortgage.com/ourstory] who was a 2020 Women of Influence [https://www.housingwire.com/articles/2020-hw-woman-of-influence-courtney-graham/] and is a 2021 Marketing Leader [https://www.housingwire.com/winner-profile/2021-hw-marketing-leader-courtney-graham/]. Graham serves as chief marketing officer at Princeton Mortgage where she focuses on scaling the company culture to support its explosive national market expansion. Graham is also the driving force behind the creation of Princeton Mortgage’s marketing machine that has been a large driver for increased revenue and production for the mortgage bank. During the interview, Graham talks about her current role as CMO and how she has helped the company achieve record growth. She wraps by discussing some recent marketing trends that she is closely following and what she thinks it will take to get more women in the industry.

OJO Labs’ Karen Starns on real estate tech disruption

This Girlfunds episode continues the HousingWire Daily Women of Influence podcast miniseries. The episode features 2020 HW Woman of Influence [https://www.housingwire.com/articles/2020-hw-woman-of-influence-karen-starns/] and OJO Labs Chief Marketing Officer Karen Starns. She was also named a 2021 HousingWire Market Leader [https://www.housingwire.com/winner-profile/2021-hw-marketing-leader-karen-starns/]for her work transforming the fast-growing brand into a real estate powerhouse. Starns has more than 20 years of experience building two of the biggest names in consumer tech, Amazon and Microsoft, giving her a unique perspective on the tech developments in the real estate industry. During the episode, Starns shares her thoughts on the state of tech in the housing industry compared to other tech industries, addressing the idea that housing has been historically behind when it comes to tech.