Scott Griffin, CAMP President

General Session Opening Remarks

Scott Griffin has a passion and talent for helping individuals become homeowners, rather than mortgage holders, and brings over 25 years of expertise in real estate to bear for clients of the Scott Griffin Financial brokerage. In 2003 Scott opened his namesake brokerage, eventually expanding with offices in San Diego and Palm Springs and a specialty in 'A' Paper Jumbo Loans for clients either self-employed or in the entertainment industry. Scott has funded more than $831 Million in purchase and refinance home loans.

Ken Frank, Executive Chef and Owner La Toque

Session: Monday General Session

Ken Frank is entirely self-taught and brings a personalized touch to his contemporary French cuisine at La Toque. Frank’s love of French cooking stems from his childhood spent in Yoivre, France.  Frank first achieved national acclaim at age 21 at the Los Angeles restaurant La Guillotine.  He originally opened La Toque in Los Angeles, before moving the restaurant to Rutherford and then to The Westin Verasa Napa in 2008.  La Toque maintains a Michelin Star and recently received Wine Spectator’s Grand Award, the highest honor for a restaurant’s wine list.

Jill Techel, Mayor, Napa

Session: Monday General Session

Jill Techel is a graduate of the University of North Dakota, who came to the City of Napa in 1971. Her first official position was as an appointee to the Napa Parks and Recreation Commission, and she later became the first female chairperson for that group. She was later elected to the Napa Valley Unified School District Board, serving a total of six years, including three years as President.

In 1996, Jill was appointed to fill the vacancy on the City Council due to the death of Mayor Ed Solomon. After completing that term, she ran for a Council seat and was elected. Following her two four-year terms on the Council, Jill was elected Mayor of Napa in March 2005, ran unopposed for a second term in November 2008, and was elected to a third term in 2012.

Jill serves as Program Coordinator for Leadership Napa Valley and received the Preceptor Award for outstanding Leadership Professionals from the National Community Leadership Association in 2004.

Mayor Techel represents the City as the Chair of the Napa County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, as a Board member of the Napa Valley Transit Agency (NVTA), Chair of the Napa Sanitation District, and serves on the Bay Area Conservation and Development Commission.   She currently serves as co chair of the US Mayors Water Council.

Jill is enormously proud of her two children and three grand children. Her son Eric and his wife Michelle have three children: Donovan, Carter and Grant. Her daughter Kristen is married to Matthew and is expecting a little girl in early August.

Dave Schroeder, Vice President , Quicken Loans Mortgage Services, Charlotte, NC

Session: Tuesday General Session

David has been a team member of Quicken Loans since May 2012.  He has over 22 years of mortgage lending experience and has worked as a loan officer, branch manager, marketing strategist, operations leader and director. He currently leads the third party origination channel for Quicken Loans, serving over 2,000 banks, brokers, and credit unions across America.  In this role he has led innovation around client lead sourcing for partners, customer relationship management, and process efficiency.

Karen Bates, Sales Manager, Military Home Loans

Session: From Self Jobbed to Self Employed

Karen completed eight years of service as a Naval Air Traffic Controller and then became a Certified Public Accountant.  In 2004, Karen combined her military background with her financial expertise and founded Military Home Loans.  Her passion is to ensure Veterans never miss the opportunity to experience their American dream.  

Karen is California’s 2013 Mortgage Professional of the Year and was featured on Yahoo Finance for earning and retaining $1 million as a female entrepreneur.

Ginger Bell, SVP e-Learning, Morf Media

Sessions: Shift Happens; Millennials and Diversity

Ginger Bell is a two times best-selling author of “Cracking the Success Code”, and “Success Today”, books she co-authored with Brian Tracy. She has been featured as a mortgage banking expert on media outlets like National Mortgage Professionals Magazine, Scotsman Guide and Mortgage Compliance Magazine.

A Dale Carnegie Training Consultant, Ginger is experienced in regulatory compliance, sales and leadership training. 

Patricia Claproth, Freddie Mac

Session: Freddie Mac's Home Possible and Loan Advisor Suite

Patricia Claproth – Affordable Lending Regional Manager at Freddie Mac (Western Region), has been a leader in the Housing and Mortgage Industry for over 20+ years. Patricia possesses a passion for assisting under-served consumers and communities; One Family at A Time.  She has an extensive history of cultivating successful partnerships amongst industry leaders, and has developed and implemented purchase market outreach and education initiatives for Banks, Mortgage Institutions and Real Estate Professionals. Patricia has supported foreclosure prevention Agencies in the hardest hit areas of the country that assisted in promoting housing stabilization. Throughout her career, Patricia has supported and volunteered her time to working with various Housing Trade organizations and Non-Profit Housing Agencies in developing financial options for the LMI borrowers and communities.

Linda Hall, Listing Booster

Session: Tools, Innovation, Technology and Success

Linda has been working in Real Estate Finance for over 28 years. Her experience started with ownership of a small start-up brokerage in Northern California. Over the years, she has held most every position through a mortgage company. Today, she concentrates all of her efforts as a Mortgage Loan Originator working with Realtors and their buyers. 

Her expertise lies in meeting the client where they are with their knowledge and understanding of the mortgage process, and educating them to the best financing decision for their unique situation. From a seasoned investor to a first-time FHA homebuyer, her art of demystifying the mortgage process is keen. From analyzing tax returns for the self employed, multiple investment properties for the Real Estate Investor, or structuring a plan for re-entering the purchase market after derogatory life events, she does it all with ease, professionalism and precision. Linda has a dedicated lender team to take care of all of her client’s needs, and make sure that everyone is taken care of and all questions are answered. After family, the close of escrow on a purchase contract is her highest priority!

Tate Kesner, Calyx 

Session: Tools, Innovation, Technology and Success

Tate Kesner serves as the Director of Sales for CalyxSoftware, a leading provider of comprehensive mortgage software solutions for banks, credit unions, mortgage bankers, wholesale and correspondent lenders and brokers. In this role, Mr. Kesner is responsible for strategic planning, revenue generation and internal training. 

Mr. Kesner began his extensive career in the mortgage industry in 1994 with a 10-year stint as a senior closer and manager in the title industry where he was responsible for opening, staffing and building new branch operations. Mr. Kesner also spent two years working as a project manager for a commercial developer and four years as a loan originator/manager for a mortgage brokerage. 

David Luna

(NMLS provider #1400062)

Vince Malta, Malta & Co., Inc.

Vince Malta, a REALTOR^® in San Francisco, Calif., is the 2014 Law and Policy Liaison at the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS^®.   NAR, The Voice for Real Estate^®, is America’s largest trade association, representing over 1 million REALTORS^® involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

Malta is a third-generation REALTOR^® and the CEO of Malta & Co., Inc., a Real Estate Brokerage Firm in San Francisco.   He is a graduate of the University of San Francisco and the University of San Francisco School of Law.  Malta has been in the real estate business for over 40 years and has served the industry in countless roles. 

Since 1988, Malta has been deeply involved with the California Association of REALTORS^® (C.A.R.).  In 2002 he became an Honorary State Director for Life, and the 2006 C.A.R. President.  He was awarded REALTOR^® of the year for the State of California in 2006.

On the national level, Malta has testified before Congress multiple times on behalf of NAR on issues such as the impact of increasing conforming loan limits, insurance reform, and housing policy.  He has served on the NAR Board of Directors from 2002 to present, and was NAR’s Vice-President in 2010 and 2011.

Ben Miller, SimpleNexus

Session: Tools, Innovation, Technology and Success

Ben Miller is an experienced manager with a background in technology commercialization. Ben’s experience at SimpleNexus includes developing and delivering mobile technologies for the mortgage industry. The SimpleNexus technology provides exceptional mobile experiences for borrowers and streamlines the loan process. 

Ben has helped create several businesses and understands the key foundational elements for successful ventures. At SimpleNexus he is helping companies implement white labeled mobile platforms to become more efficient and deliver a better customer experience. His past commercialization and market strategy projects include financial technology, nuclear engineering, carbon nanotube manufacturing, and biotech. Ben brings a keen sense of business knowledge including technology implementation, mobile strategies, customer insights, and market entry and execution.

Thuan Nguyen, LenderRate.com

Session: Tools, Innovation, Technology and Success

Thuan Nguyen is the owner and founder of Himark Loans and LenderRate.com. With only 8 years in this business, Thuan Nguyen has propelled Himark Loans to be ranked #25 in the Scotsman Guide 2015 Top Originators.  With that growth came a need for a better system to handle over 200 loans in his pipeline, stay organized, keep the loans moving & the borrowers and realtors informed!  So....he created a software program that does all of this called LenderRate!

LenderRate.com is an online technology company that provides brokers an integrated suite of pricing engine, CRM, and Loan Processing System. The software provides solutions to problems that mortgage brokers are facing, along with the support to complement their style of doing business in this industry.  With this tool... any goals and mission objectives can be accomplished.  The smaller broker office's and one man shops can finally have their own tools and website to compete against any big competitors and lenders!!!

Mike Ousley, Direct Valuation Services

Session: Appraisal Panel

Mike Ousley is CEO and founder of Direct Valuation Solutions. His professional background spans 30 years of real estate collateral assessment, mortgage banking, and private and public business.

Early in his career, Mike was a Vice President at California Federal Savings Bank, and was instrumental in setting service and quality standards throughout Northern California and Nevada. He founded Foster Ousley in 1987 and led it through its growth from a small two-person operation to a nationwide company employing over 400 people, including hundreds of staff appraisers and thousands of contractors through multiple offices in dozens of states.

After exiting Foster Ousley in 1993, Mike started Appraisal Enhancement Services (AES) — a new multi-office, nationwide firm that used technology to help clients manage thousands of real estate transactions daily. 

Mike is an ardent supporter of his community, volunteering his time for many local endeavors. He also volunteers as youth sport coach and mentor, and served as the Chair of the California Chief Appraiser’s Council and the President of the California Association of Residential Lenders. Read expanded Bio HERE.

Kevin Peranio, Paramount Residential Mortgage Group

Session: Appraisal Panel

Kevin Peranio has been in the mortgage banking industry since 2001 originally at First Magnus as an Account Executive. From 2004-2007, Kevin was the Southeast Regional Manager over the top territory at FMFC with a team of 107 people. Kevin served as COO at North Star Lending for 3 years. As part owner, he and his team serviced loans with Fannie Mae, creating a $330 million portfolio. 

For the past five years, Kevin has helped build the eastern region of PRMG, overseeing wholesale, retail and correspondent sales and operations. In his new role as CLO Kevin is in charge of the loan manufacturing process from beginning to end. He and his team will help improve technology, process and file flow as well as enhance the customer experience.

Christa Petrone, Freddie Mac

Session: Freddie Mac's Home Possible and Loan Advisor Suite

Nick Roberson, GOT Appraisals

Session: Appraisal Panel

Nick Roberson, as Vice President Operations for Got Appraisals, is responsible for overseeing appraisal ordering, customer service, and quality control. Nick has more than 23 years of experience in the mortgage industry.

Nick entered the mortgage industry in 1992 as an associate commercial appraiser for the prestigious Don C. Peete & Associates, Inc in Kansas City, Mo appraising office complexes, auto dealerships, shopping centers, HUD PUD's, commercial/industrial land, plus the historic KC Uptown Theater. Nick made his transition into residential appraising when he arrived in California. He has held roles as Appraisal Manager for Washington Mutual, BNC Mortgage, and Providian Financial. He was the Chief Appraiser with a national appraisal firm, where he handled recruiting, management, education of nationwide appraisal staff, oversight of the rebuttal/dispute process and delivery of "Red Flag" seminars industry wide. Nick has spoken on industry panels, has been the guest speaker on local financial radio shows, and regularly attends mortgage banking conferences throughout the country. Nick frequently speaks at realtor association functions, and luncheons, providing realtors and brokers information on trends, changes, and challenges in real estate valuation. 

Michael Simmons , AXIS Appraisal

Session: Appraisal Panel

Michael Simmons is a Founding Principal and Co-President of AXIS Appraisal Management Solutions, Inc., a National AMC. His experience as a real estate agent, veteran mortgage banker and mortgage broker gives him a unique lens into helping shape AXIS’ critical commitment to relationship-based and service-oriented appraisal services. As a Director and Co-President of AXIS, he’s responsible for helping shape AXIS’ strategic direction. Michael is tasked with leading the development of the firm’s business relationships, attending State and National MBA conventions, CAMP events, CRN and Appraisal conferences, and is often called upon to speak at such events. He currently serves on  the Board of Directors for CAMP’s San Francisco and Peninsula Chapter and is a member of MBA, CAMB, NAMB, CAMP, Chairs the AMC Committee of the Collateral risk Network and is an affiliate member of the Appraisal Institute.

Nick Street, Mountain West Financial

Session: Tools, Innovation, Technology and Success

Nick Street began his career in the mortgage industry over twelve years ago. His expertise encompasses both retail and wholesale lending.  His strong work ethic earned him numerous production awards from his employers and large national banks.  As the market and economy changed, so did Nick’s focus.  More attention was devoted to lending locally and developing long-standing referral partnerships in his community.   Currently, as the branch owner of Mountain West Financial Point West Sacramento, Nick has positioned his focus towards building and growing a successful branch.   A greater focus on operational standards has been an asset to production success.  Nick feels the key is to lead by example.  He continues to originate at a high level, and was named in the top 1% of originators in the nation for 2015 by American Mortgage Executive Magazine.  Nick lives in Sacramento with his wife and two children; he enjoys staying active and coaching youth sports.

Jeffrey Tesch, RCN Capital LLC

Session: Producing Profits with Private Lenders

Jeffrey Tesch, Managing Director, is responsible for the day-to-day operations of RCN Capital LLC, including sales growth initiatives, underwriting review with compliance oversight and leadership of senior level strategic planning. Joining the Company in 2010, Tesch led efforts to develop a national brand in private lending with the best practices and transparent products for a diverse customer base. Since RCN’s inception, Jeff has personally underwritten over 1,630 loans and overseen $335M+ in originations. Jeff’s previous real estate experience was as an investor in both commercial and residential properties, ranging from single family homes to commercial retail centers. Jeff currently serves as a member of the American Association of Private Lenders’ (AAPL) Ethics Advisory Committee.

Ron Vaimberg, Ron Vaimberg International

Session: Success Secrets to a 100% Referral Purchase Based Business

Ron Vaimberg is the President of Ron Vaimberg International, as well as the Executive Director and Head Coach of NMP U, a division of National Mortgage Professional Magazine.  Ron is a veteran of the real estate and mortgage industry since 1983.  As a leading MLO and Account Executive speaker, trainer and strategic coach, Ron possesses the unique ability to quickly assess any individual’s business challenge and provide instant solutions that are simple to implement and provide significant growth results.

Ron approaches coaching and training with a singular belief…when you know what to do, what to say verbally or in writing, how to say it, and when to say it, exponential growth of your business can happen quicker than you ever imagined.  Learning these skills, when presented in an easy to follow format, makes implementation easy. More information and contact info HERE.    

Nancy West, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development/Federal Housing Administration

Nancy West is a Housing Program Officer for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development/Federal Housing Administration.  Nancy joined HUD in 2004 as an underwriter.  In 2006 Nancy became one of four Marketing and Outreach Specialists in the county, and assumed her current position in 2015.  Nancy works out of the Santa Ana Homeownership Center, which services the eight western United States, and travels extensively providing presentations, information, training, and updates on FHA programs to industry counterparts, elected officials, and staff in other Divisions within HUD. 

Nancy holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Education with an Associate of Science degree in Real Estate.  Nancy has been in the real estate industry since 1977; holding a CA broker’s license since 1989.  Nancy resides in Southern California with her husband.    

Assemblymember Bill Dodd (AD-4, D)

Bill Moore, Government Affairs Chair

Bill is a 37 year veteran in the mortgage business and currently is a Sales Manager at PRMG, in Corona California. His involvement in CAMP goes back to 2000 when he joined the Inland Empire Chapter. Prior to that Bill belong to the original CAMB from its inception to 1994 when he moved to Texas.  During that time, Bill participated in the Texas Association of Mortgage Brokers Association. He has served three terms as Chapter President and two terms as State Representative for the Inland Empire chapter. Other duties have been Chapter Treasure, Membership Chair Person and Affiliate Committee Chair Person.