Cosgrove Ends Busy Year as MBA Chair
SAN DIEGO–The year spent as Chairman of the Mortgage Bankers Association, past holders of the office will tell you, is a whirlwind of endless policy and strategy meetings, speeches to mortgage lenders in remote parts of the country and more trips to Washington, D.C. than one can count.
Immediate Past Chairman Bill Cosgrove, CMB, said he wouldn’t have it any other way, calling the past year a period of “tremendous personal and professional growth.”
“This is what I take away–the people of our industry are wonderful, caring people,” Cosgrove said here this morning at the MBA 102nd Annual Convention & Expo. “We want to do the right thing. We are proud of what we do. We want simple rules to follow. We want the consumer protected but don’t want to be strangled by over the top regulation and enforcement. We want clear rules of the road and the unnecessary bureaucracy out of the mortgage lending process.”
“Bill is a warrior,” said MBA President and CEO David Stevens. “He has been unwavering in his support for MBA and advocating for this industry. He’s dedicated to and passionate about this business.”
“Bill has done a tremendous job advocating for the industry,” said newly elected MBA Chairman Bill Emerson. “His passion for what’s right, regardless of the topic, has been great to experience and I have learned a lot from him.”
When Cosgrove, founder and CEO of Union Home Mortgage in Strongsville, Ohio, took over as chairman last year, he outlined three objectives for the real estate finance industry: to provide greater access to credit especially for first-time homebuyers; to educate regulators and enforcement officials on the impacts of their decisions and actions on consumers; and a CEO challenge to create a culture of advocacy within member companies and step up advocacy efforts locally and federally. He said the industry accepted these objectives head-on, which led to successes this year.
Cosgrove noted formation of the MBA Consumer Advisory Council this year to build deeper relationships and understanding, and find common ground with consumer advocates. “Working with consumer groups can only fortify our voice, improve the regulatory and market atmospheres, while also strengthening our industry and our businesses,” he said.
As a former Ohio Mortgage Bankers Association chairman, Cosgrove said he is passionate about promoting and building a strong grassroots team. “This was a major objective for me as Chairman and MBA shares this vision,” he said. “Due to the success of MBA’s State Relations Initiative, we continued building high-level partnerships with state associations, which are stronger now than ever before. I applaud the state MBAs who have partnered with MBA and accepted my challenge of stronger advocacy. MBA put forth a tremendous amount of work and resources in this area.”
Cosgrove reiterated his call for all mortgage professionals to serve the industry. “What happens outside the four walls of your company is as important as what happens inside the four walls of your company,” he said. “You will grow personally and professionally. Your career and company will benefit, I promise you.”
