Val's Vibe - Episode 16: Breaking Barriers: Women Who Shaped & Are Shaping the Mortgage Industry

It’s Women’s History Month, and in this episode of Val’s Vibe, we’re celebrating the trailblazers who paved the way for women in the mortgage industry—and the powerhouse women leading the charge today. From the days when women couldn’t get a mortgage without a male co-signer to now making up 60% of the industry’s workforce, we’ve come a long way. But challenges still remain, especially in leadership roles.

Join me as I highlight pioneers, recognize modern game-changers, and many more who are mentoring, innovating, and breaking barriers.

If you’re a woman in this industry, here’s my challenge to you: Lift up another woman. Whether through mentorship, networking, or encouragement—together, we rise!

Tune in, get inspired, and let’s keep the conversation going. Drop a comment or tag me on social media—what’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced, and how are you making moves? Let’s talk about it! #WomensHistoryMonth #Val’sVibe #WomenInMortgage 

Transcript

  📍 Hey, everybody. Welcome to another episode of Val's Vibe. Being that it is March and Women's History Month, I would definitely be remiss if I didn't take at least one episode to celebrate the history of women in the mortgage industry and also to recognize some of our women game changers. It's hard to believe.

That just a few decades ago, it was difficult for women to get a mortgage or really any type of credit without a male co signer. Before the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, banks and financial institutions. Unfortunately did have all kinds of discriminatory practices. That's why the act itself was passed.

Women were routinely denied credit unless they had a husband or a father or brother co signed for them. And even if a woman had her own income, banks literally discounted it. They assumed a woman would either quit working when they had children, Or we just weren't financially responsible enough. Some crazy realities from back then.

Banks often outright refused to give unmarried women credit because they felt they lacked stability. Married women were denied credit if they were of childbearing age because banks assumed that they'd just get pregnant, leave their jobs, and then be unable to pay back their loans. And some institutions even asked a husband for permission Before issuing credit to a woman.

With a lot of lawsuits, advocacy and relentless effort,  the Equal Credit Opportunity Act of 1974 came along that made it illegal to discriminate based off of gender. And of course a lot of other things we have those seven different discriminatory practices. This was a game changer because now it meant women could apply for mortgages.

Business loans, credit cards in their own name. And I want to recognize a couple of the two first women to break into the mortgage industry. With all of this newfound financial independence, women really started pushing into the mortgage industry itself. In the 70s and 80s, it doesn't mean things immediately changed overnight.

Women were still underestimated. They were still paid less than their male counterparts. And of course they really had to prove themselves constantly just to be seen as equal. But I wanna recognize two of our early trailblazers. One was Dorothy Stoneman. She was a major advocate for low income home ownership, and she worked to make mortgages accessible for women and minorities.

And then another one, Teresa Bryce Basemore, she became the first black woman to serve as president and CEO of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. She was a real powerhouse in mortgage banking and really led the charge for fair lending practices. I also just want to take a moment to recognize some of our current trailblazers who are really helping change the game for women in mortgage lending.

And this list is by no means the only women who are working towards advancing the cause for women. To excel within the mortgage industry and it and at all levels of the mortgage industry, but I want to just point out a few. So 1st off, Christine Beckwith. We all know her as President and Master Coach for 20/20 Vision for Success.

Of course, Christine is a prominent figure in the mortgage industry. She's dedicated her career to coaching, developing mortgage professionals, helping people exceed and achieve excellence in their respective roles. She's written multiple books. Amazing. Another one, Kim Nichols. She is the Chief TPO Production Officer and Senior Managing Director for PennyMAC TPO.

Kim, of course, is leading a team that's really driving strategy and revenue within the wholesale channel. And she's really paving a way to make a pivotal role in shaping how a company's approach to third party originations from a leadership perspective. Laura Brandeo, another one she's currently serving as the Chief Growth Officer and Partner at Lighthouse Lending of course, renowned for her leadership in the mortgage industry and her commitment to empowering other professionals through mentorship and education.

She has many different roles as a women leader. She is one of the founding members of NAMB Inspire. Our women's mentoring group also Marcia Davies with the MBA, she's the founder of mPower, which is a network for women in the mortgage industry. And of course, she's been a major voice in pushing for more female leadership in mortgage banking.

And then I just want to give some shout outs to a few other folks. My personal friend, Nora Guerra. These are also some of my other personal friends, Nora Guerra currently with Guild Mortgage Paige Hernandez, Annette Watkins, Dionne Bass, Rana Mortensen, Nectar Kalajian and many more who are working hard to reshape our industry and really making it more inclusive and trying to give future generations more opportunities.

And as I said, This is by far not the only list of women just some that come to mind immediately off the top of my head. So thank you ladies for everything that you do for women within the mortgage industry. I'm sure that I know that we all greatly appreciate it, and I'm sure it will make a definite impact for future generations.

Where are we today? Women make up about 60 percent of the mortgage industry workforce. Of course. If you look at executive roles and top leadership positions, like Kim and Nectar have those numbers really dropped drastically women are still facing pay gaps. Fewer opportunities to rise into those C suite positions, and of course, just always dealing with work life balance challenges.

This is an industry that expects long hours and a constant hustle. And we as women face a unique situation because we are Working hard to advance ourselves, help our family, take care of our children, take care of our parents in my case also. It definitely can be a challenge, but also very rewarding.

Once you succeed but, here's the good news. We're making progress. All of these women I mentioned, we're all stepping up. They're mentoring others. They're demanding a seat at the table. So if you're a woman in the mortgage industry, I've got a challenge for you. Reach out to another woman and help lift her up.

Whether that's through mentorship, networking, just words of encouragement. Together, we will all rise together. So just a few final thoughts. I, we just took a deep dive into the history of women in the mortgage industry, and we've come a long way from being denied credit to now running multimillion dollar mortgage companies.

But, of course, there's always more to do. If this episode inspired you, please feel free to share it tag me on social media. I really want to keep this conversation going. And if you're a woman in this industry, drop a comment, send me a message, and just tell me what's the biggest challenge you've faced and, how are you making moves?

Let's talk about it and hopefully inspire others.