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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 68 included an array of experts, including Toniqua Green, VP Corporate Social Re- sponsibility with Mr. Cooper; Jose Morin, VP of Servicing with Stavvy; Michael Ruiz, Director of Supplier Diversity with Fannie Mae; Summer Smith, VP, D&I Programs and Consulting with Fannie Mae; and KimArie Yowell, Chief Learning Officer with Rocket Central and Chief Diversity Officer with Rocket Companies. As many corporations begin to scale back from their investments in DEI (diver- sity, equity, and inclusion) in a contracting marketplace, ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) is still on the rise. With the Supreme Court having nullified Affir- mative Action, the winds of DEI are shift- ing yet again. During the panel discussion, the group focused on what lies at the heart of DEI, why there is still work to be done in the DEI realm, and the benefits reaped by those companies that embrace DEI. The panel events gave way to the exclusive "Fireside Chat on the Climate Change With the CFPB," featuring Barrett Daffin Frappier Turner and Engel LLP Law Group's Partner Ryan Bourgeois host- ing CFPB Financial Analyst Erik Rubinyi. With the rise in natural disasters, primarily fires, floods, hurricanes, and drought, the impact on the housing space in impacted areas of the nation has been devastating. Bourgeois and Rubinyi discussed the effects of climate change on the housing market, and the long-lasting impact that will be felt by both consumers and lenders. As Financial Analyst and Presidential Management Fellow in the CFPB's Office of Mortgage Markets, Rubinyi monitors the mortgage market, specializing in the areas of climate risk, rental housing, and automated valuation models. He joined the CFPB in 2021, and previously worked with the Treasury's Office of International Affairs on international climate finance and for Treasury's CDFI Fund. The day closed out with a recap of the day's events and a discussion of what lies ahead for Legal League, as Bourgeois welcomed Victoria Garcia DeLuca, VP of Marketplace Diversity Strategy with Guild Mortgage, to the stage. Garcia DeLuca leads Guild Mortgage's long-term initiatives, promoting minority homeown- ership and sustaining DEI in lending. Her responsibilities include the recruiting and retention of minority loan officers, devel- oping new products for minority markets, and serving as a liaison with the GSEs. She leads Guild's participation in the Nation- al Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals (NAHREP) and the National Association of Minority Mortgage Bankers of America. She also serves on NAHREP'S Corporate Board of Governors and rep- resents Guild with the MBA's "Home for All Pledge," the industry's long-term com- mitment to addressing racial inequities in housing. FORCE RALLY 2023: THE WHO'S WHO OF REO AGENTS T he Federation of REO Certified Experts, or FORCE, is the Five Star Institute's REO member organization comprised of pre-screened, certified, and experienced REO agents. Focused on the improvement of REO agent performance through lender and servicer-driven education, the FORCE acts as a conduit of communication between the REO agent/broker community and the servicing shops they serve. Through significant investment in bro- ker oversight, education, and communica- tion delivery the REO servicing industry can obtain tangible, bottom-line benefits when using this established network to address their brokerage needs. The 2023 FORCE Rally at the Five Star Conference and Expo, held at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dallas from Sept. 18-20, opened with a keynote presentation on the "State of the Market" from Brandon Lawler, Director of Real Estate Marketing and Sales at Fannie Mae, along with an afternoon of panels and networking. Lawler discussed recent findings by Fannie Mae, including the effect interest rates are having on the market, distressed sales, the state of the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, and how affordability as a per- centage of household income is faring in light of current market conditions. "We at Fannie Mae see that many borrowers are locked in at lower interest rates on their existing loan, which has created a significant financial disincentive for them to list and sell their properties," Lawler said in his State of the Market remarks. "So, looking at our 30-year fixed- rate mortgage book of business as of July of this year, our economists noted that approximately 90% have a mortgage rate that's at least one percentage point below the current market rate." "Now, on the demand side last year, my colleagues shared a view as to the percent- age of income spent on mortgage pay- ments—or market affordability—was really only rivaled by peaks of unaffordability seen back in 2005," Lawler continued. "At that point, about 28.7% of income was re- quired to qualify and maintain a mortgage. Those calculations are based off median property values, market rates at the time, and average income. So, if we zoom forward to this year, we're seeing that affordability picture has gotten even worse." "So today an estimated 32.5% of aver- age income is required to meet the mort- gage requirements. So, pivoting to REO inventory, distressed sales have remained a fraction of the market compared to the years following the financial crisis." Panels of the day included: How to Excel: Training for Excel- lence: This panel led FORCE Members through how to manifest efficiency and reliability, two key attributes to succeeding in the real estate industry, along with a discussion about how agents can ensure excellence and proficiency in the industry. Panelists included: » Kimberly McClinton, Managing Broker, Signature Realty Services (moderator) » Tai Nong, COO, PEMCO Capital Management » Eddie Pirro, Client Account Manager, Island Advantage Realty » Jeffrey (Jeff ) Shumaker, Broker-Own- er, RE/MAX Agility » Phyllis Wright, SVP Strategic Human Resources, VRM Mortgage Services The afternoon's second panel, entitled Commercial REO Flow, featured three guests and a moderator who discussed the $270 billion in commercial debt set to mature in 2023 and how the commercial F I V E S T A R M E M B E R S H I P S S P O T L I G H T : T H E L A T E S T N E W S A N D I N S I G H T S