New American Funding Makes National Mortgage News’ 2019 Best Mortgage Companies to Work For List

By chris.garza@nafinc.com January 11, 2019

Best Mortgage Companies

New American Funding has been named a Best Mortgage Companies to Work For by National Mortgage News and Best Companies Group for 2019. The national mortgage lender ranked 31st in the nation. The annual survey and awards program was designed to identify, recognize, and honor the best employers in the U.S. mortgage industry. Thirty-seven companies made the inaugural list.

To see the full 2019 list, please visit: National Mortgage News

“We’re extremely honored to have National Mortgage News recognize us as one of the best mortgage companies to work for,” said Rick Arvielo, CEO of New American Funding. “We do our best to cultivate a positive, family atmosphere here and we’re gratified our employees have given such amazing feedback.”

To be eligible for the list, companies from across the United States entered a two-part survey process to determine placement. The first part evaluated each company's workplace policies, practices, philosophy, systems, and demographics. The second part consisted of an employee survey to measure the employee experience. The combined scores determined the top companies and final ranking. Best Companies Group managed the overall registration and survey process, analyzed the data, and determined the final rankings.

"Securing and retaining top talent is one of the biggest challenges faced by every employer,” said Austin Kilgore, editor in chief of National Mortgage News. "We launched this annual ranking to recognize companies committed to investing in their employees' growth and development and to inform executives looking for insight on how to boost job satisfaction among their own teams.”

In recent months, New American Funding has received notable accolades including a Gold Stevie® for Employer of the Year and Best Workplace for Women and Best Workplaces for Diversity by FORTUNE and Great Place to Work®.

Fortune Names New American Funding One of America’s Best Workplaces for Women

By chris.garza@nafinc.com September 21, 2017

Fortune and Great Place to Work® have identified New American Funding as one of the top workplaces in the country for women. The national mortgage lender ranked #53 in the nation on the 3rd annual list of 100 Best Workplaces, which highlights companies that provide generous benefits, flexible schedules, and a good work-life balance for women.

To see the 2017 list, please visit: http://fortune.com/best-workplaces-for-women/

The ranking is based on feedback from more than 400,000 employees from Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies in every sector of the economy.  Employees were surveyed about their organizations’ culture, leadership, fairness and other elements essential to an excellent work environment.

“It’s very rewarding to have Fortune recognize New American Funding for having an outstanding culture that’s conducive for women to excel,” said Patty Arvielo, Co-Founder and President of New American Funding. “I’m passionate about empowering women to succeed so we continuously strive to create an environment where there are no limits on what anyone can achieve and where women know they have the opportunity to take a seat at the table.”

Arvielo plays a key role with empowering women in her organization by mentoring them and opening the door for them to move ahead through an initiative known as, “If you want to grow, we want to know”. She has built one of the fastest-growing companies in America while constructing a team that’s comprised of about 59% women with many holding C-level positions. The company has also established opportunities for women to thrive by hosting events like, “Rise and Lead” which is geared toward elevating women entrepreneurs in the housing industry.

Consequently, New American Funding has received several notable accolades including a Gold Stevie® for Employer of the Year and #1 Top Workplace in Orange County by OC Register.

Vote for New American Funding - Best of Las Vegas - Mortgage Broker

By chris.garza@nafinc.com August 22, 2017
Please cast your vote for New American Funding to be the "Best Mortgage Broker" for the "Best of Las Vegas" 2017. Click here to cast your vote. https://www.research.net/r/BOLV2017 

Inc. 5000 Names New American Funding a Fastest-Growing Private Company in America

By chris.garza@nafinc.com August 21, 2017

For the fifth time, Inc. 5000 has named New American Funding to its list of Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America; ranking the national mortgage lender #1664 in the nation for 2017. The magazine complied the list according to revenue growth from 2013 to 2016; during which timeframe, New American Funding’s revenue increased by 235%.

To see the winners, please visit: https://www.inc.com/inc5000/list/2017

New American Funding was also recognized on Inc. 5000’s Honor Roll, which is an elite group of companies who’ve made the fastest-growing list five times. This distinct milestone is an accomplishment that less than one-tenth of Inc. 5000 honorees achieve.

“It’s extremely rewarding to have Inc. 5000 repeatedly identify New American Funding for its rapid growth,” said CEO Rick Arvielo. “We’re thrilled by this achievement and are driven to continue working hard to stretch our limits each day. Our commitment is to remain innovative.”

New American Funding is owned by husband-and-wife duo, Rick and Patty Arvielo, who’ve expanded the company to include nearly 130 nationwide branches with a servicing portfolio of $20 billion. The couple have distinguished the company as an industry leader by:

Notable Milestones:

  • Streamlining operations and providing industry-leading loan close times
  • Developing innovative technology including a suite of mobile apps for New American Funding Loan Originators, Real Estate Partners, and housing consumers - GoGo LO, GoGo Partner, GoGo Home
  • Building a 25,000 square foot state-of-the-art educational facility to train mortgage professionals
  • Serving diverse communities through Latino Focus Committee and New American Dream

Due to their progressive business approach, earlier this year the Arvielos won a gold Stevie® with Rick claiming Executive of the Year and Patty winning Woman of the Year; each was also selected by Ernst & Young as a 2016 EY Entrepreneur of the Year® for Orange County.

Ways Loan Officers Can Help Hispanic Millennial Homebuyers

By chris.garza@nafinc.com February 27, 2017

Hispanic Millennial homebuyers are set to be a dominating force in the mortgage industry. However, many Loan Officers have failed to connect with this crucial demographic, and as a result have missed out on increasing their business volume. Consider for a moment that according to the 2015 State of Hispanic Homeownership Report Hispanics made up 37 percent of total household formations in 2015. How much of that business did you see? What I have discovered is there are a few key ways Loan Officers can help Hispanic Millennial homebuyers realize the dream of homeownership.

It's important before you take action, to understand the demographic you are hoping to assist. In many ways, Hispanic Millennials are not too different than other Millennials. Many still live with their parents, they seek out digital technologies to communicate and find creditworthiness to be a hurdle in homeownership. That said, MGIC has always been interested in understanding the cultural differences that exist within the mortgage marketplace, and how it relates to housing formation. We often do our own research to learn more about how we can best serve these demographics. Through this research we have determined how to help Loan Officers connect with Hispanic Millennial homebuyers.

Provide Education

One of the hurdles for Hispanic Millennial homebuyers is lack of access to accurate educational material about homeownership. Consistently we have found that Hispanic Millennials are uniquely keen on educational materials that relate to understanding the homebuying process. In particular, it is important to illustrate the value of the whole process, rather than a single event. Help Hispanic Millennials homebuyers understand every step of the process by providing educational homeownership materials in Spanish and English.

According to Pew Research, three-quarters of Hispanic Millennials are proficient in English, but that doesn't mean they prefer to digest important information in English. Providing bilingual materials and insight can work to create trust between you and Hispanic Millennial homebuyers. These materials can be used to ensure the borrower clearly understands what is involved in the process of buying a home. It can also serve as a way to help other family members - who may not speak English at all - feel secure with the process. Comprehensive bilingual educational materials are the goal for any Loan Officer who hopes to effectively help Hispanic Millennial homebuyers.

Understand Family

Family is paramount in the Hispanic culture. In particular it is key with Hispanic Millennials because they often times serve as the go-between with their parents in decision-making situations. They want to protect their family. As a Loan Officer, it is your job to help them understand the value of a lender. Don't sell to them, relate to them. Create a path that highlights why it's important to have their money in the bank. Illustrate the importance of building a solid credit profile, and help them do it properly. Then explain how these actions can assist down the road in achieving the American Dream of homeownership.

Don't sell to Hispanic Millennials, relate to them.

Like many demographics, trust is deeply valued in business relations. However, with Hispanic Millennials it is everything. Becoming a trust agent to Hispanic Millennial homebuyers should be a top priority for Loan Officers. Make the concept of homeownership relevant to them; help connect the dots as to how buying a home - as opposed to renting - is going to help build their family's wealth faster.

86 percent Hispanics prefer owning a home and view it as a good place for the family to raise children.

As reported in the Hispanic Wealth Project, 86% of Hispanics prefer owning to renting - but more importantly see it as a good place to raise a family. Knowing this, and the value placed on family in the Hispanic culture, a Loan Officer can work to help interested borrowers secure a home through a variety of programs targeted directly at assisting this key demographic. For example, low-downpayment options can provide the assistance needed to help Hispanic Millennials overcome the homeownership hurdle.

Marketing Messaging

Regardless of your marketing approach, Loan Officers (and lenders) should focus on a few key items to gain the attention of Hispanic Millennial homebuyers. Most importantly: bilingual mobile-friendly websites. 96% of Hispanics currently own a smartphone, and studies show that Hispanic Millennials out-index other demographics and age groups in use of smart-phones, video and music streaming.

Understand that Hispanic Millennials are different, but don't treat them different.

Play to these stats in both English and Spanish. As a company or individual, consider sharing content on social and digital channels that highlights the value of homeownership in an authentic way. Remember Hispanic Millennials are bicultural and have a unique background and perspective. Work to find ways to celebrate this in marketing materials and content pieces.

Video plays an important role in marketing because the viewer does not need to always understand the language to resonate with the message. Consider positioning your personal brand (or corporate brand) in a way that relates to current issues, situations and values of Hispanic Millennials.

Wrap-up:

Hispanic Millennials are unique, yet somewhat familiar - they are tech savvy, bilingual and loyal, but are also concerned with creditworthiness, accurate information, seeking downpayment assistance and battling limited inventory. The best way for Loan Officers to help Hispanic Millennial homebuyers is to focus on the process. Taking time to provide bilingual educational materials about the homeownership path will work to better engage and relate to this key demographic. Focus on the whole picture and leverage digital channels to expand your reach. Understand family is paramount in all aspects of life. Keeping a Hispanic Millennials' best interest at the forefront provides you the opportunity to increase business volume not just from them, but also from their family. Aim to be a trust agent that assists in improving the customer's life and you will see success.

Editor's note: Guest post provided by Ben Smidt, MGIC Digital Strategist