#MBAAnnual22: MBA Honors Susan Milazzo with Woodward Distinguished Service Award

(MBA Chairman Matt Rocco presents MBA Andrew Woodward Distinguished Service Award to Susan Milazzo.)

NASHVILLE—The Mortgage Bankers Association honored Susan Milazzo, CEO of the California MBA, Sacramento, Calif., with its Andrew D. Woodward Distinguished Service Award.

The award recognizes dedication and prominent service to MBA and the mortgage lending industry in a variety of capacities involving both legislative and regulatory activities. Milazzo was presented with the award in a ceremony here during the MBA 2022 Annual Convention & Expo.  

“Susan is a dedicated champion for the real estate finance industry and is the perfect choice to be this year’s recipient of the Andrew D. Woodward Distinguished Service Award,” said Matt Rocco, 2023 MBA Chairman and Chairman of the Board and CEO of Grandbridge Real Estate Capital, Charlotte, N.C. “She is a tireless leader who has been at the forefront of numerous national, state, and local-level advocacy campaigns that have yielded favorable results for the industry.”

This year, Milazzo and members CMBA worked with MBA to defeat a pair of proposed bills that would have been detrimental to the industry:

• SB-1176 would have imposed costly community reinvestment burdens on Independent Mortgage Banks operating in California, despite overwhelming data that show IMBs leading the market in serving low- and moderate-income borrowers and communities.
• SB-1323 would have created a risky and unworkable new foreclosure process for certain residential properties by requiring foreclosure trustees to list and sell properties without the borrower’s consent.

Additionally, Milazzo was a steadfast leader in guiding the industry through the challenges brought forth by onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes successful efforts to defeat proposed California legislation AB 2501, a bill that would have had detrimental regulatory impacts on both single-family and multifamily property owners during the height of the state’s eviction moratorium.

Milazzo has been CMBA CEO since 2004 and is a strong advocate of MBA and for MBA’s political action programs. She has helped grow MBA’s National Advocacy Conference, held each year in Washington, D.C., and consistently serves as a state leader for her delegation during Advocacy Day on the Hill.

The Woodward Distinguished Service Award is the highest honor an individual can receive from his or her fellow MBA members. Nominees for the annual award must meet the following criteria:

• Be associated with an MBA member firm;
• Compile a record of long, sustained, and extraordinary service to MBA and the mortgage industry; and
• Have a strong reputation for ethical and professional conduct.