The National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association announced the detailed plans and meeting agenda for the 2010 Annual Meeting and Expo.
Taking place in New Orleans from November 3 through 5 at the Roosevelt Hotel, the conference will focus on policy, sales and marketing, and general networking for all reverse mortgage professionals including originators, lenders, wholesalers, marketers, counselors, vendors, accountants, attorneys, and financial planners.
“For the annual meeting, we devote a lot of time to focusing on the latest developments in the industry, the changes that people must adjust to,” said Marty Bell, Director of Communications and Marketing for NRMLA. “This year there is a giant wave of change—a new product, a new counseling protocol, newly defined broker/wholesaler relationships and on and on. We feel it is our responsibility to make sure that everyone who attends leaves equipped with all the latest information.”
Some key presentations at the Annual Meeting include Theodore (Ted) Tozer, president of the Government National Mortgage Association. Tozer, who had 30 years of mortgage business experience before coming to Ginnie Mae, will discuss the agency’s current programs and future plans to expand affordable housing in American by directing global capital into the country’s housing finance markets.
Federal Housing Administration Commissioner, David Stevens, and Deputy Assistant Secretary, Vicki Bott, will join Tozer as some of the most anticipated speakers. Stevens and Bott, who oversaw the re-engineering of the HECM that created the new HECM Saver, will discuss the tax and insurance default situation, among other important topics.
“This year, [an event highlight] may be the presentation of initial results from the Consumer Experience and Perception study being conducted exclusively for NRMLA by John Marttila of Marttila Strategies,” said Bell. “But it’s finally not about one presentation or one speaker—it’s the cumulative impact of sharing three days with such a variety of people and viewpoints. We each live and work in one town, but we are part of the American reverse mortgage experience.”
This year, the Expo at the Annual Meeting will also include the very first “Speed Meeting” hour, a concept based off the idea of speed dating. Each participant will get four minutes, one-on-one, with a vendor, giving him or her a chance to get to learn about products they might not have explored previously. The Expo will also feature a Cyber Cafe in the Expo Hall and many great product presentations.
“No one works in a vacuum,” said Bell. “In every business you are a part of something much larger than your office and your working community. This industry is small and it only gathers in this large a segment once a year. It is helpful to anyone working in the reverse mortgage to attend—they will leave with a sense of what they are a part of, what the guiding principles are, how their role fits into a larger national picture.”
For more information on attending the NRMLA’s Annual Meeting and Expo, or for a detailed event summary, please visit the event site.
Written by Kelly Mellott
