Podcasts about Community Reinvestment Act

We are releasing today on our podcast show a repurposed webinar which we produced on May 13, 2025 entitled “What is happening at the federal agencies (other than the CFPB) that is relevant to the consumer financial services industry.” During this podcast, we will inform you about recent developments at those other agencies, including the FTC, OCC, FDIC, FRB and DOJ (collectively, the “Agencies”) and the White House (through the issuance of Executive Orders). Some of the issues we consider are: •        What are the strategic priorities of the Agencies, including cryptocurrency (OCC, FRB and DOJ); reducing regulatory burden, promoting financial inclusion, embracing bank-fintech partnerships and expanding responsible bank activities involving digital assets (OCC); adopt a more open-minded approach to innovation and technology adoption (FDIC); public inquiry into anti-competitive regulations (FTC and DOJ); and regulation of AI technology, boosting protections for children and teens online and strengthening enforcement against companies that sell, transfer, or disclose Americans' geolocation information and other sensitive data to foreign adversaries, more emphasis on antitrust enforcement and less on consumer protection (FTC). •        What is the status of proposed or final regulations of the Agencies? (e.g., FTC CARS Rule, Click-to-Cancel Rule, Junk Fees Rule, and Rule banning Noncompetes; FDIC advertisement and brokered-deposit rules, OCC rule on bank mergers; and the Community Reinvestment Act final rule)? •        What is the status of enforcement investigations and litigation of the Agencies? •        What impact will staff cuts have on supervisory examinations? •        What is the impact of President Trump's executive order requiring the Agencies to obtain approval from the White House of all proposed and final regulations? •        Will the Supreme Court approve of President Donald Trump's firing of the Democratic members of the FTC and NCUA and other federal agencies (who have subsequently sued Trump to challenge the firings) and, if so, what are its implications? •        What is the significance of the FDIC and OCC agreeing to eliminate “reputation risk” as a basis for evaluating risks to banks? •        Will the OCC adopt a regulation or other guidance, or will Congress enact legislation pertaining to debanking/fair access? •        Will the OCC and/or FDIC issue any guidance or regulations pertaining to federal preemption of state law in light of the Supreme Court's opinion last term in Cantero and the impending Courts of Appeal decisions in Cantero, Kivett and Conti? •        What is the significance of the FDIC withdrawing its amicus brief in support of the Colorado Attorney General in the 10th Circuit in the lawsuit brought by industry against him challenging a Colorado statute which purported to opt out of Section 521 of DIDMCA? •        Will there continue to be fair lending and disparate impact enforcement at any of the Agencies? Alan Kaplinsky, former chair and now senior counsel of Ballard Spahr's Consumer Financial Services Group, moderated the presentations of the following other members of the Consumer Financial Services Group:  Scott Coleman, Ronald Vaske and Kristen Larson.

Ralph welcomes Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen, whose group has filed eight lawsuits that have significantly slowed the Trump/Musk cabal's attempt to dismantle the government. Then, our resident Constitutional scholar Bruce Fein reports on Public Interest Law Day at Harvard Law School and how important it is for law schools in general to step up to meet this constitutional crisis. Plus, Ralph answers listener questions!Robert Weissman is a staunch public interest advocate and activist, as well as an expert on a wide variety of issues ranging from corporate accountability and government transparency, to trade and globalization, to economic and regulatory policy. As the President of Public Citizen, he has spearheaded the effort to loosen the chokehold corporations and the wealthy have over our democracy.The efforts in the courts are really vital to stem the illegal, unconstitutional actions of the administration, but also to show that there's a way to fight back. In these early days and months of the administration, there's been a sense that Trump is inevitable and unstoppable. And the actions in the courts, I think, have been really critical to illustrating that that's not true.Robert WeissmanIt's open season for the polluters. And of course, they're also promoting in a variety of ways a rush towards climate catastrophe by undoing the positive measures that have come recently from the Biden administration to deal with the climate crisis.Robert WeissmanIf you pull back all the enforcement rules, and you say we're not going to enforce the rules that are left over, corporations get the message. And they're going to bemore reckless, and it's a near certainty that we're going to have many more serious industrial disasters as a direct result of what they're doing at EPA and other agencies.Robert WeissmanBruce Fein is a Constitutional scholar and an expert on international law. Mr. Fein was Associate Deputy Attorney General under Ronald Reagan and he is the author of Constitutional Peril: The Life and Death Struggle for Our Constitution and Democracy, and American Empire: Before the Fall.If we don't inform the public (with the law students as well as others in the lead), we're not going to have rule of law and Harvard Law School will become an irrelevancy. It will be a museum piece.Bruce FeinI think the country and the law students are going to pay a price. They're being very narrow and myopic with regard to their immediate preoccupation with their trade school, where they're going to work the next day, and very little given to the fact that if we don't have a country anymore, they aren't going to have a legal career.Bruce FeinIt's a more cowardly, timid type of law school whose explanations are still ready to be discovered. It's a real puzzle…because they have tenure, they have status, they have wealth, and they have the ability to defend themselves because they're skilled lawyers.Ralph NaderNews 4/2/251. Our top stories this week are on the topic of corporate crime. First, the American Prospect reports that the Trump administration is seeking to reverse a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau case against Townstone, a mortgage brokerage firm that blatantly discouraged potential Black borrowers. According to the Prospect, Townstone's owners Barry Sturner and David Hochberg vigorously promoted their firm though “personal-finance call-in infomercials,” on Chicago's WGN radio station. During these infomercials, which generated 90 percent of Townstone's business, Sturner and Hochberg “characterized the South Side of Chicago as a ‘war zone,' downtown Chicago as a ‘jungle' that turned on Friday and Saturday into ‘hoodlum weekend,'” and so on. As the Prospect notes, if Sturner and Hochberg were simply airing these views that would be perfectly legal, however unsavory. Instead, this program is “an informercial, which generates 90 percent of the brokerage's leads, which the brokerage pays WGN to air, presumably punctuated at regular intervals by some phrase along the lines of ‘an equal housing lender.'” Therefore, this rhetoric was determined to have violated the Fair Housing Act, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and the Community Reinvestment Act. The remarkable thing about this case is that it was brought by the Trump administration's CFPB between 2017 and 2020. Townstone eventually settled the case for a little over $100,000. Yet, just last week, the Trump administration 2.0 returned the money to Townstone posting “a long press release about how ‘abusive' and ‘unjust' the whole case had been.” This episode highlights just how much more extreme the new Trump administration is, even compared to the old one.2. Another outrageous case of corporate criminal leniency comes to us from Rick Claypool, a corporate crime expert at Public Citizen. For background, CNBC reports that Trump has “pardoned three co-founders of the BitMEX global cryptocurrency exchange, as well as…a former high-ranking employee.” As this piece explains, the co-founders received criminal sentences of probation…and were ordered to pay civil fines totaling $30 million,” after “Prosecutors accused the men of effectively operating BitMEX as a ‘money laundering platform' …[and] ‘a sham.'” But Trump went beyond pardoning the corporate criminals involved. As Claypool noted, “the crypto corporation pled guilty and was sentenced in January to two years' probation,” leading Claypool to wonder whether Trump would pardon the corporation itself. His question was answered on March 29th when Law360 reported that yes, Trump pardoned the business entity. This is the logical endpoint of regarding corporations as people. Not only will individual crooks be let off the hook, the whole crooked enterprise will come out unscathed.3. New evidence confirms the redistribution of wealth from working people to the capitalist class. A February 2025 RAND Corporation study titled “Measuring the Income Gap from 1975 to 2023” finds that, “the bottom 90 percent of workers would have earned $3.9 trillion more with..more even growth rates [since 1975],” resulting in a “cumulative amount of $79 trillion.” This study extends prior estimates by factoring in “inflation, growth in inequality, and a longer time frame.” And even more recently, an April 2025 article in the Journal of Political Economy, titled “How the Wealth Was Won: Factor Shares as Market Fundamentals,” finds that “40% of [the increase in real per capita value of corporate equity, which grew at an annual rate of 7.2% between 1989 and 2017]…was attributable to a reallocation of rewards to shareholders in a decelerating economy, primarily at the expense of labor compensation.” This study estimates “Economic growth accounted for just 25% of the increase,” and compares this period to the preceding era, “1952–88, [which] experienced only one-third as much growth in market equity, but economic growth accounted for more than 100% of it.” Taken together, these studies starkly illustrate an American economic machine built to make the rich even richer and the poor ever poorer.4. On the other end of the criminal penalty spectrum, the Department of Justice announced on Tuesday that they will seek the death penalty for alleged UnitedHealthcare assassin Luigi Mangione, the BBC reports. The first Trump administration saw the resumption of the federal death penalty after a 16-year hiatus; the Biden administration then issued a new moratorium and commuted the sentences of most federal death row prisoners. Since returning to power, Trump has aggressively pursued federal executions once again.5. In more positive legal news, NBC reports French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was found guilty Monday of embezzling over €3 million of European Union funds. The National Rally party leader was sentenced to four years in prison (with two on house arrest and two suspended), a €100,000 fine, and a ban on holding political office for five years – making her ineligible for the 2027 French presidential election, which polls showed her leading. Her party will, for the time being, be led by her protégé 29-year-old Jordan Bardella. It is unclear if he will enjoy the same popularity Ms. Le Pen held. She announced that she plans to appeal the verdict, but will remain ineligible for public office unless and until she wins that case.6. In more international news, British police last week executed a shocking raid on a congregation of the Quakers. The Guardian reports, “More than 20 uniformed police, some equipped with Tasers, forced their way into the Westminster meeting house…[and] seized attenders' phones and laptops.” In a statement, Paul Parker, the recording clerk for Quakers in Britain, said “No one has been arrested in a Quaker meeting house in living memory… This aggressive violation of our place of worship and the forceful removal of young people holding a protest group meeting clearly shows what happens when a society criminalises protest.” The stated charge is the absurd “conspiracy to cause a public nuisance.” A report on the incident in Church Times adds a statement from Oliver Robertson, head of witness and worship for Quakers in Britain, who said “This raid is not an isolated incident. It reflects a growing trend of excessive policing under new laws brought in by the previous government, which are now being enforced by the current administration.” Even former Tory minister Jacob Rees-Mogg, criticized the raid, stating “There has long been a tradition in this country…that religious spaces should not be invaded by the forces of law and order unless absolutely necessary.”7. Of course, the outrageous use of lawfare on Israel's behalf continues in the halls of Congress as well. In a letter, Congressmen Jim Jordan, Chair of the House Judiciary Committee, and Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Brian Mast – famous for his role as an American volunteer for the IDF – have announced their intention to investigate activist groups critical of the Israeli government – within Israel. According to the Jerusalem Post, these NGOs are being investigated to, “ascertain whether funding they allegedly received from the Biden administration was utilized for the judicial reform protests in 2023.” These groups include the Movement for Quality Government in Israel and Blue and White Future, among others.8. The government's use of brute force to muzzle criticism of Israel continues to rock academia. At Harvard, the Crimson reports 82 of Harvard Law School's 118 active professors have signed a letter which “accused the federal government of exacting retribution on lawyers and law firms for representing clients and causes opposed by President Donald Trump…described Trump's threats as a danger to the rule of law…[and] condemned the government for intimidating individuals based on their past public statements and threatening international students with deportation over ‘lawful speech and political activism.'” The letter reads, in part, “we share a conviction that our Constitution, including its First Amendment, was designed to make dissent and debate possible without fear of government punishment. Neither a law school nor a society can properly function amidst such fear.” This letter stands in stark contrast to the recent statement by Harvard President Alan Garber, in which he pledged to “engage” with the federal government's demands in order to protect the university's $9 billion in federal funding.9. Last week, we reported on the “lynching” of Hamdan Ballal, the Palestinian co-director of the Oscar-winning documentary No Other Land – and how the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences dithered before ultimately releasing a milquetoast statement decrying violence against “artists for their work or their viewpoints,” with no mention of Palestine or even Ballal's name. This caused so much uproar among Academy members that nearly 900 of them signed a letter “denouncing the Academy's silence,” per Variety. The letter and full list of signatories can be found here. Shamed, the Academy leadership was forced to issue a follow-up statement expressing their “regret that we failed to directly acknowledge Mr. Ballal and the film by name.” This statement continues “We sincerely apologize to Mr. Ballal…We abhor the suppression of free speech under any circumstances.”10. Finally, speaking of shame, the Hill reports that the shame of Congressional Republicans is giving Democrats a golden opportunity. According to this piece, “House Democrats are ramping up their aggressive strategy of conducting town halls in Republican-held districts, vying to exploit the GOP's advised moratorium on the events to make inroads with frustrated voters, pick up battleground seats, and flip control of the House in next year's midterms.” One Democrat, Bernie Sanders' 2020 campaign co-chair Ro Khanna, has held three town halls in Republican-held districts, whose main takeaway was “People are mad.” Republicans who have bucked the GOP leadership and held town halls anyway, such as Wyoming Rep. Harriet Hageman and Indiana congresswoman Victoria Spartz have found themselves looking down the barrel of constituents furious at the conduct of the administration in general and DOGE in particular. This, combined with the upset Democratic victories in recent special elections, has the GOP on a defensive backfoot for the first time in months. Could we be looking at the beginning of a Democratic tea party? Only time will tell.This has been Francesco DeSantis, with In Case You Haven't Heard. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Kerry Lutz and Tom DiLorenzo discussed the Mises Institute's documentary "Playing with Fire," which addresses the Federal Reserve's functions and implications, noting its significant viewership and featuring notable figures like Ron Paul. DiLorenzo emphasized the Fed's role in enabling government spending and the associated economic repercussions, such as inflation and financial crises, arguing that the true costs of government actions are obscured by the Fed's ability to monetize debt. Lutz proposed a National Cryptocurrency Reserve, suggesting that inflating Bitcoin's value could eliminate U.S. debt, though DiLorenzo expressed skepticism about its political feasibility and the risks of government involvement in Bitcoin. They critiqued the Fed's manipulation of interest rates and its regulatory role, citing the Community Reinvestment Act as a contributor to the 2008 financial crisis, and reflected on historical failures of central planning. DiLorenzo advocated for a return to gold-backed currencies and competing currencies as potential solutions to the issues created by the Federal Reserve Find Tom here: https://mises.org Find Kerry here: http://financialsurvivalnetwork.com/ and here: https://inflation.cafe

Making Cents of Money reaches a major milestone in releasing its 100th episode! Join all the co-hosts (past and present) as they reunite to celebrate this achievement, reflect on their favorite episodes, and discuss how the show has evolved through the years. SHOW NOTES: Episode 86: The Illinois Community Reinvestment Act: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-86-the-illinois-community-reinvestment-act?si=da23db5a5eb54864ac46902a6ef22457&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 85: The Federal Community Reinvestment Act: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-85-the-federal-community-reinvestment-act-cra?si=f53b327f41df4d66a308ab44949fb4f9&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 78: Is Crypto the Wild West?: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-78-is-crypto-the-wild-west?si=2f70e3f31d1c44659977d0da1a5e7a30&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 54: Financial Resolutions!: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-54-financial-resolutions?si=585e0e5ced134bce868e116e3fc4740b&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 47: The Community Reinvestment Act: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-47-the-community-reinvestment-act?si=ca8fe23d82f54daf8d0234c7f5c596f8&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 27: Student Loan Update: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-27-student-loan-update?si=6b2eb7d9b261485a83d6713fd3fbf3a0&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 24: Cryptocurrency: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/mcom-ep24-cryptocurrencyfinal?si=bf3802ea62564039a4e271184589ef6f&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 15: Credit: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-15-credit?si=7b887916e593400191676b78a514bae5&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 13: Investing Basics: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-13-investing-basics?si=ba6bbf0d5d1643bd81c19f9502dec3c6&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing Episode 11: Saving for College with a 529 Savings Plan: https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-11-saving-for-college-with-529-savings-plans?si=021504277e61467f9aa42c84f754cb4a&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

Those who listen to this show likely either manage or invest in rental properties. There are several different types of real estate to choose from, but have you ever considered self-storage units? In today's episode of the #DoorGrowShow, property management growth expert Jason Hull sits down with the “OG” of self-storage real estate investing, Scott Meyers to talk about an opportunity to invest in real estate without the common challenges of residential properties. You'll Learn [01:22] Switching from residential investment properties to storage units [08:35] Investing in self-storage without the management [12:15] Pros and cons of self-storage [14:51] Self-storage education Tweetables “When you have just a hammer, everything looks like a nail.” “Be honest with yourself, and sometimes the best cook in the world can't fix a broken recipe.” “Once you get behind in habitational real estate and rental real estate in general, you know, it takes double the effort to get caught back up again.” “The more valuable you are to your property management business the less valuable your property management business is to everybody else.” Resources DoorGrow and Scale Mastermind DoorGrow Academy DoorGrow on YouTube DoorGrowClub DoorGrowLive TalkRoute Referral Link Transcript [00:00:00] Scott: Self-storage really found me instead of me finding self-storage. Which I just felt it's a simple, predictable business model that you can replicate over and over again without as many moving parts and that human factor.  [00:00:11] Jason: Welcome DoorGrow property managers to the DoorGrow show. If you are a property management entrepreneur that wants to add doors, make a difference, increase revenue, help others, impact lives, and you're interested in growing in business and life, and you're open to doing things a bit differently, then you are a DoorGrow property manager. [00:00:28] DoorGrow property managers love the opportunities, daily variety, unique challenges, and freedom that property management brings. Many in real estate think you're crazy for doing it. You think they're crazy for not because you realize that property management is the ultimate, high trust gateway to real estate deals, relationships and residual income. At DoorGrow, we are on a mission to transform property management business owners and their businesses. We want to transform the industry, eliminate the BS, build awareness, change perception, expand the market, and help the best property management entrepreneurs win. I'm your host, property management growth expert, Jason Hull, the founder and CEO of DoorGrow. [00:01:09] Now let's get into the show. All right. So. I'm hanging out here with Scott Meyers. Welcome Scott.  [00:01:18] Scott: Thanks. And so good to see you again. How are you?  [00:01:20] Jason: Good. Good. It's good to have you. So, why don't we get into your background, how you kind of into this, but Scott, you're a self storage investment expert. Is that fair to say? [00:01:33] Scott: That's fair to say. They call me the OG in self storage now. And I guess I can step into that role.  [00:01:38] Jason: All right. The OG, the original gangsta. All right. So tell us a little bit how you got into this.  [00:01:44] Scott: So like many people got into real estate by buying one single family rental house. Of course, this is a back a little ways now back in 1993, I bought a single family house. with an assumable VA mortgage on it. So I took out a home equity loan from my own home and bought this one, no money down, just like Carleton Sheets, the other OG in the real estate space taught me how to do. And so I bought that house, we rehabbed it to refinance it, rented it out. [00:02:11] So the BRRRR method before everybody called it the BRRRR method. And then we went out and bought two more. And then that turned into four, six, eight, and my wife and I got married along the way and brought my wife into this hobby. I was working for a fortune 500 company at the time, and this was really just to supplement retirement until it kind of took on a life of its own. [00:02:29] And that was because in 1999 with the dot com crash, when all of our tenants were then able to buy a house shortly after that, because the presidential administration at the time reinstituted the Community Reinvestment Act and allowed anybody who could basically fog a mirror to buy a house while all our tenants left and they were doing so. [00:02:49] And so at that time, we were now rehabbing a second time so that we could sell our houses just to be able to keep up with what the market trend was at the time. Well that just about broke us. And so we decided then to get into multifamily and all we needed to do was get some economies of scale, work a little harder, work a little smarter, and we'll make this all happen. [00:03:08] But really what I found is that we just had more doors, we had more tenants, we had more toilets. And to be honest with you, Jason you know, we made a lot of money in residential real estate and growing that side of the business. I mean, we were very big, we got up to just shy of 450 doors. But I realized that I don't think I was cut out for this. [00:03:24] I understood the math, you know, the real estate math and everything that went into it. But I found even though we had property managers and property management companies, I was finding that I was becoming less loving of my fellow man and women, because they were destroying our properties and stealing from us, as well as our contractors and some of our staff. [00:03:40] And so at that point, I began to look around the landscape and, you know, we love real estate because of all the reasons to love real estate. It appreciates, we can depreciate it. We can borrow money to buy it. And then our clients pay down our basis. I mean, there's no other investment like that. So as I looked at the landscape and real estate, that really only left parking lots and self storage if I really didn't like the tenant and toilet business. [00:04:01] So. I looked into storage and loved what we saw in terms of the fundamentals of the historical, the track record of performance of the asset class. And it was right under my nose all the time. It's just this ugly, you know, stepchild of commercial real estate that nobody was really talking about. So I researched it and spent a lot of time understanding the nuances bought my first self storage facility in a partnership. [00:04:22] And then yeah, the light bulb went off and recognize after owning it from the operation standpoint, that It was truly what everybody had said that it was. And what we found is it was all the benefits of real estate without the hassles of tenants and toilets and trash. And so we began simultaneously selling off our houses and our apartments and then going forward into self storage. [00:04:41] And here we are today at about just shy of 5 million square feet of self storage, 28, 000 doors nationwide and growing. And then along the way, also built a sizable education and consulting and mentoring and coaching and event business that only not only teaches people how to get into the business, but also became a funnel, a conduit for a lot of partnerships and a lot of deal flow into our organization. [00:05:01] So that's either the long winded version on a podcast or the short winded version however you want to look at how we got started in the business.  [00:05:07] Jason: Yeah, love it and qualify yourself help everybody understand like where are you at right now with storage and rentals. I mean you got some impressive numbers. [00:05:17] Scott: Yeah, so we're sitting at about we've done over 5 million square feet We're sitting at about three and a half just maybe three and three quarters million square feet right now assets under management So we're right now jason, we're basically a syndication company where we're a financial services company that raises capital and layers that on top of debt and then deploys it in nothing but self storage. [00:05:37] And so many of these projects, these partnerships, these joint ventures in our funds, they have a shelf life and they expire in four to five years because that's when we can capitalize and pull our chips off the table, if you will. And we have a capital event by way of sometimes a refinance, but usually a sale of the property or properties within that fund. [00:05:55] And then we just go out and buy more. So it ebbs and flows when some are going out the door, we have more projects coming in the door as well. I only own two residential properties. One of them is an Airbnb and the other one is the one that I live in. And that's it. Everything else is 100 percent self storage at this point. [00:06:10] Jason: Got it. How many units of storage do you represent then?  [00:06:14] Scott: Yeah, so 28 to 29, 000 overall is what we've invested in and we're sitting at about 20, between 20, 000, 21, 000 right now in asset center management. Awesome.  [00:06:25] Jason: Wow. Okay. So for those listening that are in residential property management, and they're listening to you what would you say to them? [00:06:34] Like, maybe there's some of them that they're like, "man, I don't want to deal with toilets, tenants and trash anymore." And, you know, "I'm starting to love humans less. And I love real estate," but what's kind of your message?  [00:06:49] Scott: You know, in the education side of our business, Jason, of course, when there's a room full of folks interested in self storage, it's really easy to say that you know, I think everybody should have a self storage facility, one in their portfolio, if you're in real estate and, you know, all roads lead to self storage eventually, because I think everybody gets to that place where they do get frustrated and it could be just a day. [00:07:06] It could be, you know, in terms of, "wow, that was a whole lot coming at us." But it doesn't mean that, you know, my recipe is the catch all, you know, when you have just a hammer, everything looks like a nail. And I'm not saying that anybody should go out and do what I have done because we made a lot of money you know, on the residential side and commercial multifamily. [00:07:21] I just found for me, that this self storage really found me instead of me finding self storage. Which I just felt it's a simple, predictable business model that you can replicate over and over again without as many moving parts and that human factor. And so for a knucklehead like me, I think it was the perfect fit to be able to go out and just master this practice and that business model and the standard operating procedures. And then just at scale and at speed go out and just make a go of it. And we grew really fast and never really get over our skis. It was just it's a manageable model as well. And so it just fit for myself. But I would say Jason, when business gets so difficult that it's just absolutely no fun anymore, and it's drudgery... I see many people doing it right now, they're just throwing good money after bad. Well, you know, be honest with yourself, and sometimes the best cook in the world can't fix a broken recipe. And if they find that is the recipe is your business model or just your business in general, then get help. [00:08:13] Or, you know, maybe it's time to take a look at some of their asset classes like self storage.  [00:08:17] Jason: So if somebody's an investor and they're wanting to get into this, there's probably a learning curve. There's probably potential pitfalls. So like, yeah, I've tried my Airbnb. That was kind of difficult. I didn't like having to mess with pricing constantly. Like maybe I should try self storage. I'm curious about what you would say to them and then, you know, if somebody's just an investor and they're just looking to just invest, but they're not wanting to really actually manage storage units, then what path would you recommend? [00:08:45] Scott: So sure. Two paths, but also some folks just take a one and end up achieving the same result. So if this is something that you're looking to do actively you know, of course, Jason, I own, you know, I run an education company. And so we're always going to tell you to get education because the cost of not, you know, you pay the dump tax. [00:09:03] And sometimes we've seen people pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for the dump tax. And that just means that they've gone out and they've watched a couple of videos read a book and all of a sudden they're experts in masters and this is commercial real estate. There's a lot of nuances to it, no matter what the asset class you pick within commercial real estate, but also because it's commercial real estate, there's lots of commas and zeros to profit from it, which is fantastic. [00:09:23] But also if you make a mistake. Those mistakes in underwriting and in other areas also come with commas and zeros behind them as well. And we've seen many a good investor that maybe it was a little prideful or maybe thought that, "Hey, this is an easy asset class compared to what I've been doing. You know, I can do this with one hand tied behind my back." And then they find out that this is an operating business on top of real estate. And there's more nuances to this and they need to dig in and understand what that looks like, because as you know, once you get behind in habitational real estate and rental real estate in general, you know, it takes double the effort to get caught back up again, and if that goes on for a quarter, sometimes people just can't recover. So, you know, we can go into all the reasons why and the mistakes that people have made, but I think just understanding you need to educate yourself. Now, if you're looking to do this passively, in other words, you don't want to take on the credit risk, you don't want to take on, say, the construction risk or a lease up risk of a turnaround or a development project then you can invest passively. [00:10:20] There's a number of REITs out there and we have funds and individual syndications and joint ventures that we do with folks where they come in as a limited partner. They still get equity. They still have ownership. They have a piece of ownership of this property. So they get the depreciation, they get a share of the cash flow, and then the profits upon the sale. [00:10:38] But they don't take on the lease up risk, the development risk, the risk of a project going south no matter what, and or have to go out and create a business, you know, and a team to be able to do so. And along the way, many folks, Jason, they start as passive investors either with one of our projects or others, and by, by just following along, you know, you get that education. [00:10:59] You know, we hold webinars once a quarter and we send out monthly reports and we send out updates as to what's happening with our projects. And so by def facto, our passive investors are getting an education and they earn while they learn the business.  [00:11:11] Jason: Got it. Earn while they learn. Like it. [00:11:15] And that's probably a better path to start out as is to first explore doing it passively to figure out should they jump in and do it more actively.  [00:11:24] Scott: I don't know better. That's not my decision to make. I think some folks, if they have a team in place, you know, they can make that pivot just by learning the business, but it just really depends on where they're at. [00:11:34] I would say that it's It's certainly the safest. And if you have a small amount of capital to set aside to invest in a project, that's the best way about doing it. Because once it comes time to do your own, it's going to take a larger chunk of capital to be able to do so unless you're raising private equity. [00:11:49] So you know I can say that is the best and probably is for most people, but not everybody.  [00:11:54] Jason: Got it. Yeah. Well, a lot of people listening already have some sort of business, a lot of them, they won't just throw it in, jump right into storage units, maybe. But I think a lot of them, it would resonate with them. [00:12:06] "Hey, then maybe this is another way to diversify my portfolio, another way to invest. I would love to do, try it out passively, and then maybe even get some education." for those that maybe heard the beginning of this and they're like, "Man, I don't have to deal with toilets, tenants, trash, and it's real estate. And it sounds so easy." What are some of the things that maybe they have a blind spot to? That somebody, you know, they would learn once they start doing this, it's not all, you know, stars and rainbows and roses with this as well.  [00:12:38] Scott: Right. So, you know, outside of the front end and the due diligence that needs to be done just to make sure that you've bought a solid property from an operational standpoint, which is what you're referring to, you know, what we found is that, you know, a million bucks, 5 million bucks goes a lot further, meaning you buy more doors you buy more square footage and it allows us more doors because these are metal boxes on concrete slabs and they're not, you know, multifamily that has drywall and plumbing and, you know, a lot of HVC, it just goes further. [00:13:03] So that means that there are more units to be able to keep track of. You know, the good news is there's software and we do have property management companies and property managers to handle that and a lot of it is automated, but at the end of the day, you know, it's a large amount of units and a large amount of rental tracking that needs to be done to make sure that the dollars come in the door. On the flip side of that, just because I am a bright side up, kind of guy, you know, we have the ability with our leasing structure within self storage that, you know, it's a 30 day lease automatically renewable. And so anytime that we want to raise the rates, we don't have to wait. It's not an anniversary. It's not an annual lease. It is a month. And so that means on month seven, if we see that the market is changing and the demand is higher and there's a whole lot of development going on, then we can raise the rates in seven months. [00:13:46] We can do it in four months. We can do some nuisance increases in between, you know, either way, and we're very flexible when it comes to that. But then also, the good news is even if people do fall behind in the rent, you know, we have the ability to, or we have the power behind us of the lien laws instead of habitational or versus habitational real estate in which you have tenant and toilet courts. And so when I used to walk out of there, I had a pink piece of paper and very little ability to be able to get my money back and to be able to you know, execute on getting that the money back in the door. [00:14:18] But with self storage and the lien laws. We can put a lock on their unit, lock them out and we don't have to go to court within 60 or 90 days depending upon the state, my manager or an auction company will cut the lock off and open it up for bids on the date that we have an auction and I can recoup my back rent to my late fees and, you know, we are the judge and jury so we don't have to wait. [00:14:36] I know you asked for the pitfalls but, you know, the good side is that you know, even though there's a lot of units to manage the, just because of the nature of the industry and the safeguards that we have in place, it's much, much easier and simpler to handle.  [00:14:48] Jason: Awesome. Cool. Well, yeah, this is very informative. [00:14:51] Tell us a little bit about your education company, what you do there and and maybe how people can get in touch if they're curious.  [00:14:58] Scott: So on the education side, you know, when I got into business, you know, there wasn't an education company out there. There wasn't anybody that I could go to to learn the, you know, the A to Z to the nuts and bolts of the business. [00:15:10] I could certainly go to the trade shows and some of the industry events and I can learn about doors and how to build these facilities and some of the, you know, the bolt on property management software. But there wasn't anybody teaching about the investment side of the business. And so, you know, we scraped as much as we could, you know, leaning on and building on the foundation that we had in commercial real estate already by owning multifamily and office buildings and warehouses. [00:15:30] But just digging into this business and talking to as many people as possible. And I hired a consultant to fill in the gaps and spend a day with him touring his facilities and others that he managed for other investors. And, you know, that's how we grew our you know, bank of knowledge and created our standard operating procedures, at least the foundation of it. [00:15:48] But then after we got into the business a little further down the path and buying facilities I used to run the Real Estate Investor Association here in Indianapolis. And we had 600 folks in the association. And about 300 of them wanted to know about self storage after they saw what we were doing. [00:16:04] And so we started holding workshops and then some of the agents that represent the national speakers in the industry, again, there wasn't a person speaking and experts on the industry. And so they contacted me and one of them assisted me in setting up presentations, the ability to sell tools and resources for folks, and then helped us to create a live events, and thus, our education industry was born. It was really just out of a, I guess, like any good entrepreneur, you see an opportunity in the marketplace and a hole to be filled, and we stepped in and filled that. And so it's evolved from just a home study system, which is, you know, that's such a guru, you know, term to use that what we developed, what we put together was a very extensive business plan with all the tools, the resources and links and software, you know, and everything you need to find, manage, purchase a self storage facility. And that is the name of our home study system. And then that evolved into live events, three day events, which is an immersive workshop and then also for folks that are looking for either one on one or a group coaching and mentoring, you know, begin offering that. And to this day, still offer that. And so we have you know, we're the nation's leading education company in the space. [00:17:14] We've taught more people how to get into the business and grow and scale the business and than anybody else out there in any other organization out there and still going strong at this is what we'd love to do is, you know, we love to take people from zero to 55 miles an hour in storage. [00:17:26] And then in our mastermind and in our other areas, we like to take them from 55 to a hundred and build partnerships and do syndications with them as well. Awesome.  [00:17:35] Jason: Yeah. Sounds very much like our goal here at DoorGrow for the residential space. So what's the name of your education company?  [00:17:44] Scott: Self Storage Profits is the name of the education company. [00:17:46] SelfStorageInvesting.com is the website for all the tools and the resources, a ton of free information, pull downs, white papers, a whole lot to not only just dip your toe in the water, but really to help you get started, and then anything else that you would want or need with regards to coaching, mentoring, attending our live events, it's all located on that page as well, including access to our passive investments as well. [00:18:11] Jason: Very cool. Awesome. Cool. Well, I appreciate you coming on the show, hanging out with us here on the DoorGrow show. It sounds really interesting. I think there's a lot of our clients that are involved in different types of management. And so this may be another one that everybody should maybe take a look at that could be interesting. I think it's fantastic. Or as to do management, you know directly so very cool. Scott, thanks for coming on the show. Appreciate you.  [00:18:39] Scott: My pleasure, Jason. Good to see you again  [00:18:41] Jason: Good to see you. All right So if you are a property management entrepreneur and you're dealing with frustrations, you can go start a storage unit business as well. So appreciate Scott for being on the show. If you would like our help in cleaning up your business so that you don't hate it and getting you out of that first level of exit of doing the frontline work and getting out of the next exit and the next exit until maybe eventually you decide to sell that business, we can help you with that because the more valuable you are to your property management business the less valuable your property management business is to everybody else. And what I find with clients is as we ascend them through these levels of exit, It becomes more and more business that they would enjoy keeping perhaps And so let's see if we can ascend you and get you past that first exit at least, maybe the next exit where you're out of managing the people in the team and you've got an operator and things are really smooth and so if you would like our help here DoorGrow reach out to us at DoorGrow.com And until next time, to our mutual growth. Bye everyone. [00:19:45] you just listened to the #DoorGrowShow. We are building a community of the savviest property management entrepreneurs on the planet in the DoorGrowClub. Join your fellow DoorGrow Hackers at doorgrowclub.com. Listen, everyone is doing the same stuff. SEO, PPC, pay-per-lead content, social direct mail, and they still struggle to grow!  [00:20:11] At DoorGrow, we solve your biggest challenge: getting deals and growing your business. Find out more at doorgrow.com. Find any show notes or links from today's episode on our blog doorgrow.com, and to get notified of future events and news subscribe to our newsletter at doorgrow.com/subscribe. Until next time, take what you learn and start DoorGrow Hacking your business and your life.

In this episode of the Compliance 911 Show, hosts Dean Stockford and Len Suzio are joined by special guest Linda Ezuka for the second part of their series on the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). Linda, the founder of CRA Today and the CRA Hub, shares her extensive expertise on CRA compliance, community development finance, and the new CRA rules introduced in 2023. The discussion delves into the complexities and challenges posed by the new CRA regulations, including the concerns expressed by bankers about adapting to these changes. Linda provides valuable insights into how financial institutions can prepare for the transition, balancing the legacy CRA rules with the new requirements. Linda also highlights the potential opportunities offered by the new CRA, such as partnerships with minority depository institutions and community development financial institutions. The conversation explores how these collaborations can enhance service to disadvantaged communities and improve financial literacy. Additionally, the episode touches on the introduction of calibrated benchmarks for assessing bank performance, and the importance of understanding community context when evaluating CRA activities. Join us for this informative session as we explore the evolving landscape of the Community Reinvestment Act and learn how banks and community groups can work together to better serve their communities. CRAtoday: cratoday.com CRAhub: cratoday.com/hub Linda: linda@cratoday.com   Brought to you by GeoDataVision and M&M Consulting

Welcome to the Compliance 911 Show, where hosts Dean Stockford and Len Suzio dive into the intricacies of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) with special guest Linda Ezuka. Linda, the founder of CRAtoday and the CRAhub, shares her extensive experience and insights on how to master CRA compliance, stay exam-ready, and leverage capital for community development. In this episode, Linda discusses the most common questions from bankers, the importance of performance context, and the challenges of identifying community development loans. She also emphasizes the need for CRA professionals to engage with their communities to truly understand and meet local credit needs. Join us for an enlightening conversation that will equip you with the knowledge to navigate the complexities of the CRA and drive impactful community development initiatives. CRAtoday: cratoday.com CRAhub: cratoday.com/hub   Brought to you by GeoDataVision and M&M Consulting

In real estate, appraisal bias can keep homeowners from receiving the full value of their home. IDFPR Deputy Secretary Ericka Johnson breaks down what appraisal bias is, how exactly it affects consumers, and what you can do if you believe you're a victim in our newest episode of Making Cents of Money. Show Notes: HUD: Appraisal Bias and the Valuation Process - https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/housing-counseling/housing-counseling-today/appraisal-bias-and-the-valuation-process/ NPR: Racial Bias often creeps into home appraisals. Here's what's happening to change that -https://www.npr.org/2023/03/13/1161713496/home-appraisals-racial-bias-black-latino-homeowners-lawsuit Making Cents of Money podcasts: - Buying a Home! (ep. 36): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-36-buying-a-home - Mortgages (ep. 38): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-38-mortgages - Credit Access (ep. 42): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-42-credit-access - Selling a Home (ep. 45): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-45-selling-a-home - The Community Reinvestment Act (ep. 47): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-47-the-community-reinvestment-act - Help for Homeowners (ep. 63): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-63-help-for-homeowners - Lines of Injustice: What is Redlining? (ep. 83): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-83-lines-of-injustice-what-is-redlining - The Federal Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) (ep. 85): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-85-the-federal-community-reinvestment-act-cra - The Illinois Community Reinvestment Act (ep. 86): https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-86-the-illinois-community-reinvestment-act Research • How racial bias in appraisals affects the devaluation of homes in majority-Black neighborhoods (Brookings, 2022): https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-racial-bias-in-appraisals-affects-the-devaluation-of-homes-in-majority-black-neighborhoods/ • HUD reaches groundbreaking settlement with The Appraisal Foundation to ensure equal opportunity in the appraisal profession (HUD, 2024): https://www.hud.gov/press/press_releases_media_advisories/HUD_No_24_176 • Racial and ethnic valuation gaps in home purchase appraisals (FreddieMac, 2021): https://www.freddiemac.com/fmac-resources/research/pdf/202109-Note-Appraisal-Gap.pdf Government Resources and Legislative Efforts: • How to become an appraiser in Illinois: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/idfpr/forms/dre/hdi/how-do-i-become-an-appraiser-in-illinois.pdf • Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity from HUD: https://www.hud.gov/fairhousing • PAVE Interagency task force on property appraisal and valuation equity (HUD): https://pave.hud.gov/ • Protecting homeowners from discriminatory home appraisals (CFPB, 2023): https://www.consumerfinance.gov/about-us/blog/protecting-homeowners-from-discriminatory-home-appraisals/ • IDFPR Real Estate Valuation Task Force: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/profs/boards/rev-task-force.html • IDFPR “How To” Series from the Division of Real Estate: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/dre/howtoseriesdre.html

In our latest episode of Making Cents of Money, Acting Director of Banking Susana Soriano discusses Illinois' historic Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). From reducing discrimination to combatting redlining, learn how this landmark legislation will help Illinois consumers! Show Notes: • Please note, this podcast was recorded before rules for Illinois' Community Reinvestment Act were adopted on May 1, 2024. The rules may be found below: o Banks: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/idfpr/forms/CRA-Banks.pdf o Credit Unions: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/idfpr/forms/CRA-CU.pdf o Mortgage Lenders: https://idfpr.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/idfpr/forms/CRA-ML.pdf • Legislation for the Illinois Community Reinvestment Act: https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/ilcs/ilcs3.asp?ChapterID=20&ActID=4086 • Illinois CRA Coalition Fact Sheet: https://housingactionil.org/downloads/Policy/ILCRAOverviewMarch2023.pdf

In this episode of the Cashology Podcast, Chris Turner, FNBO's Community Reinvestment Act officer, joins us. Chris shares her extensive background in banking and her passion for teaching financial literacy, driven by her experiences as a mother and professional. She discusses the concerning state of financial literacy in the U.S., highlighting a statistic that two-thirds of American adults can't pass a basic financial literacy test and more.Chris and Justin explore the importance of financial education starting at a young age, and discuss the proactive steps FNBO is taking to address this issue, including partnering with schools and organizations like Junior Achievement to teach real-life financial skills. Listen here and follow @CashologybyFNBO® on YouTube for more!In addition, you can refer to these sites for free financial education resources:Junior Achievement -  www.jausa.ja.orgAmerican Bankers Association's Teach Kids to Save - www.aba.com  Khan Academy -  https://www.khanacademy.org/FDIC's Money Smart - www.fdic.gov  

Did you know federal law aims to curb discriminatory lending? Ed Hill from IDFPR's Division of Banking breaks down the Community Reinvestment Act and how it works to increase lending to underserved communities in our latest episode of the Making Cents of Money podcast! Show Notes: • Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) via Federal Reserve Board - https://www.federalreserve.gov/consumerscommunities/cra_about.htm o CRA Ratings via FFIEC - https://www.ffiec.gov/craratings/default.aspx • Housing Discrimination Under the Fair Housing Act via HUD - https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/fair_housing_equal_opp/fair_housing_act_overview • Equal Credit Opportunity Act via FTC - https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/statutes/equal-credit-opportunity-act • Home Mortgage Disclosure Act via FFIEC - https://ffiec.cfpb.gov/ • Illinois Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) via IDFPR - https://idfpr.illinois.gov/admin/cra.html

Congress passed the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) nearly 50 years ago to encourage lending within financial institutions' local communities. Since its passage, regulators have tried to modernize the CRA in order to keep up with broad changes in the financial system. Today, banks and bank examiners are preparing for possible reforms in the coming years that would significantly alter how they comply with the CRA. In this episode, we talk with Brian Waters, President and Co-Founder of FindCRA, about the history of CRA, its efficacy amidst a shifting financial landscape, and some proposed changes on the horizon. 

A new report from the National Community Reinvestment Coalition reveals that race-based exclusion from home ownership persists despite the Fair Housing Act, which outlawed discriminatory lending practices 55 years ago. Analyzing 40 years of home Mortgage Disclosure Act data, the study shows redlined neighborhoods received 3,000 fewer mortgages than those rated as best by historic maps, even when accounting for market factors. The report, funded by the NIH and created with the University of Michigan, provides clear evidence linking past redlining to current public health and housing issues. It highlights the need for stronger policy measures, such as enhancements to the Community Reinvestment Act and the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rules, to address and mitigate the long-lasting effects of redlining. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's new with Small Business Administration lending this year, and how can bankers maximize the value of the SBA loan guaranty programs? On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Biz2X — Erik Daniels of U.S. Bank, the nation's fourth-largest SBA originator by number of loans, talks about how U.S. Bank builds SBA into its overall business banking strategy. Daniels highlights the role of SBA lending in making efficient use of capital, mitigating risk, providing more tailored solutions to businesses and driving Community Reinvestment Act impact. He also talks about the value the bank gets out of making SBA loans as a portfolio lender, “which gives our customers great opportunity with rate structure, modifications, any flexibility down the road. . . . Being a portfolio owner gives us the optionality to help them in any way that we can to make their experience a good one.” Daniels also discusses anticipated changes to SBA programs in 2024 and 2025, and he shares insights on the small business outlook from U.S. Bank clients and survey research. This episode is presented by Biz2X.

University faculty groups have organized a protest outside of the Illini Union.Richard “Dick” Cogdal, the oldest alumni of the University of Illinois Marching Illini has passed away at the age of 107.In 1977, President Carter signed the Community Reinvestment Act, known as the CRA, to tackle racial discrimination in mortgages. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign encampment proceeds for its fifth day on the main quad.Hosted by Layli NazarovaStories by Peter Derrah, Nicolas Roacho, Emily Huffman, Suzette MurilloMusic by Boxout

When we sat down with Juan Santiago to reminisce about TEDx Youngstown, it struck us how many stories go unheard in our bustling community. Our conversation quickly branched out to the fascinating banking world beyond the vaults and interest rates—the vital community outreach and sponsorship that breathe life into our neighborhoods. Juan, with his rich family history and passionate work in community development, illuminated the transformative effects of the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977. It's not just about loans and savings; it's about providing a 'hand up' to entrepreneurs and homebuyers who dream of a better tomorrow.Ever wonder what keeps the heart of America beating strong? It's the sturdy middle class, and community banks like Farmers Bank, founded in 1887, have been their unsung heroes. These institutions have been pivotal in empowering families and small businesses by sticking to local decision-making and fostering personal connections. In our chat, we delved into the crucial role a thriving middle class plays in fostering economic stability, comparing the societal structures of the U.S. and China and celebrating the community banks that help make the American Dream a reality.Wrapping things up, we shifted our gaze to Youngstown's evolving economic scene. Steel mills and factories may wax and wane, but the spirit of growth adapts and endures. We shared our ties to the area, from its vibrant diversity to the warm and familiar sense of community. And, because no gathering is complete without some good eats, we wrapped things up with a playful debate over food favorites and a nod to local culture—proving that every community's heart lies a shared table and stories waiting to be told.

When Sandy pivoted from the path of medicine to lead the charge in philanthropy, he didn't just change careers—he reshaped her impact on the world. Our latest episode features this powerhouse of community development as he lays bare the intricacies of his journey, revealing the strategic twists and invaluable lessons learned along the way. From the personal resonance of working within the Latino community on health behavior changes to his ascension through the ranks at the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, Sandy's narrative is a testament to the power of intentional career moves and the profound understanding of one's work.Picture this: a transition from the healthcare trenches to the financial nerve center of banking, where community investment and advocacy become the new pulse points. Sandy illuminates her decade-long experience navigating shifts in the banking industry post-Great Recession and the role of the Community Reinvestment Act in fostering inclusive growth. He unpacks the complexities of corporate responsibility and community engagement, all the while juggling the personal pursuit of a master's degree to solidify his place in the tapestry of leadership as a person of color.But it's not just about climbing the professional ladder. Sandy's personal tribulations, such as the loss of his sister, intertwine with his career, reminding us of the importance of support and vulnerability in the workplace. As we wrap up the conversation, we delve into the art of negotiation, the pursuit of financial liberation, and the way our personal paths are inextricably linked to our professional journeys. Sandy's story serves as a beacon for anyone looking to blend their livelihood with their passion for making a difference, proving that with persistence, clarity, and a bit of heart, you can steer your career towards horizons that resonate deeply with who you are and aspire to be.Books/Resources: Bringing Down a DictatorCaste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel WilkersonFlowers for Algernon by Daniel KeysSapiens: A Brief History of HumanKind by Yuval Noah HarariThank you for listening to #CareerCheatCode. Don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. Follow us across all platforms for updates and resources. Let's make an impact, one episode at a time! Host - Radhy Miranda LinkedIn Instagram Producer - Gary Batista LinkedIn Instagram Subscribe on YouTube Subscribe to our YouTube Clips ChannelFollow us on Instagram Follow us on TikTok Follow us on LinkedIn

Last year featured some of the largest bank failures in U.S. history. In this episode of Making Cents of Money, Chicago City Comptroller (and former Illinois Director of Banking) Chasse Rehwinkel joins us to break down what went wrong, how regulators respond, and why most consumers should not be worried about ever losing the money in their bank accounts. Show Notes: FDIC & California Regulator Reports • FDIC Releases Report Detailing Supervision of the Former First Republic Bank, San Francisco, California: https://www.fdic.gov/news/press-releases/2023/pr23073.html • Review of DFPI's Oversight and Regulation of Silicon Valley Bank: https://dfpi.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/337/2023/05/Review-of-DFPIs-Oversight-and-Regulation-of-Silicon-Valley-Bank.pdf Financial Institution Insurance: • FDIC: https://www.fdic.gov/ • NCUA: https://ncua.gov/ Recorded Webinar: • Your Financial Tool Chest: https://youtu.be/XdUgsotxCqE?feature=shared (part of the Get Savvy: Grow Your Green Stuff Series) Books: • Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System from Crisis — and Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin (Book and Movie) • The Continental affair: The rise and fall of the Continental Illinois Bank by James P. McCollom (Book) Previous Podcasts with Chasse: • Episode 2: Banked or Unbanked - Choosing Financial Services for You https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/making-cents-of-money-episode-2?si=81bc1ead8b4b425db9b2c6bfd9b7f4e0&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing • Episode 14: Short-selling https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-14-short-selling?si=fd95e90d0de64fb2a1743ec92a8c7cd3&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing • Episode 47: Community Reinvestment Act https://soundcloud.com/idfpr/episode-47-the-community-reinvestment-act?si=0b0b179278a74e0982f396809780aa1c&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

In 2023, The Federal Reserve and other banking regulators announced they were making changes to how they grade banks on servicing local communities. This all stems from a 1977 law called the Community Reinvestment Act, which was designed to encourage banks to better meet the needs of moderate and low-income borrowers. However, major banking trade groups weren't too excited about the new rules and filed a lawsuit against the banking regulators last week. Today on the show, we explain the history of racist housing policies in the United States and how that history informs the banks' fight with the government today.Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

On October 24, 2023, the OCC, FDIC and Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System jointly adopted final amendments to their regulations implementing the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977 (CRA). In this episode, which repurposes a webinar, we are joined by guest speaker Kenneth H. Thomas, Ph.D., Founder/CEO of Community Development Fund Advisors. After reviewing the background of the adoption of the CRA and implementing rules by the banking agencies, we discuss the key elements of the final rule. We look at the requirement for banks to delineate assessment areas in which their CRA performance will be evaluated, the tests under which banks' CRA performance will be evaluated, the strategic plan option, and data collection and reporting requirements. In discussing the final rule's requirements, we also consider how they apply to banks of different sizes. Throughout our discussion, Dr. Thomas provides his commentary on the final rule's impact on the goals of CRA and CRA evaluations. Alan Kaplinsky, Senior Counsel in Ballard Spahr's Consumer Financial Services Group, leads the discussion, joined by Scott Coleman, a partner in the Group, and Sarah Dannecker, an associate in the Group.

D'ontra Hughes is the Founder and CEO of Spare, which uses tech to solve cash management problems for unbanked small businesses and enterprises. D'ontra shares his entrepreneurship journey, driven by realizing the financial industry's impact on less privileged individuals. D'ontra highlights a significant issue in the banking sector where the poorest people are often charged the most in fees, perpetuating poverty. Spare addresses the high fees unbanked individuals face when accessing their money. D'ontra's entrepreneurial journey involved various challenges, including learning from customer feedback, understanding the importance of data-driven decisions, and navigating the competitive startup environment. The conversation also covers the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Spare, leading to a strategic shift and a focus on regions with high cash circulation. D'ontra emphasizes the importance of strategic planning, data analysis, and a systematic approach to business growth. He also discusses the personal aspects of being a CEO, stressing the importance of maintaining personal relationships and self-care. Spare (https://www.gotspare.com/) Follow Spare on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/spare-cs/), Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/SPAREapp/), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/gotspare/), or X (https://twitter.com/gotSPARE). Follow D'ontra Hughes on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dontrahughes/) or X (https://twitter.com/dontrahughes). Follow thoughtbot on X (https://twitter.com/thoughtbot) or LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/150727/). Become a Sponsor (https://thoughtbot.com/sponsorship) of Giant Robots! Transcript: VICTORIA: This is the Giant Robots Smashing Into Other Giant Robots podcast, where we explore the design, development, and business of great products. I'm your host, Victoria Guido. And with us today is D'ontra Hughes, Founder and CEO of Spare, which uses tech to solve cash management problems for the unbanked small businesses and enterprise. D'ontra, thank you for joining us. D'ONTRA: Well, thank you for having me. VICTORIA: Well, wonderful. So, we met at San Diego Startup Week a few weeks ago. So, I'm excited to have you on the podcast today. Why don't you tell me what was your experience of San Diego Startup Week? And how did you come to be one of the speakers on a panel there? D'ONTRA: Yeah, well, it's always a really nice thing to take part in, you know, kind of those innovative startup week events because you get to see a lot of what people are working on or what they're doing. So, we've been working very closely with the County of San Diego, especially with the city of Oceanside with our latest technology. And, you know, there came this opportunity where I could get on the stage and kind of tell people about our journey a little bit, I think because we're becoming a little bit more successful or something [laughs]; I don't know what to say. We're getting better at what we're doing, apparently, and so folks wanted to hear what I had to say. VICTORIA: I was able to catch your talk, and I thought what was really inspiring about it was that you came from the background of working in the financial industry and saw an opportunity to solve a problem that was common for other people and to be more fulfilled by the work you were doing. So, can you share a little bit about that? D'ONTRA: I came out of a background in finance, as you said. I used to work for JPMorgan. It feels like a long, long time ago. And that was my last corporate job until I became an entrepreneur. You know, one of the things that I learned at that time...and not that the bank was doing anything wrong, but in the nature of finance, it's a business, right? It's got customers. It's got clients. It's got shareholders. And the most important thing is it's designed to make money. There's always someone that loses, right? And sometimes you could say that that's the nature of business. But in this regard, it was a lot of people who lost that couldn't recover or wouldn't be able to recover from the financial waste that was left. You know, I went on my entrepreneurial journey wanting to learn how to build a business and, you know, try to solve problems for myself or for other people. And specifically for this endeavor with Spare, which we launched back in 2015, we looked at the subset of the population, roughly about 25% of the U.S. population, 90-something million households of folks that were basically spending about 7% of their own income every year just accessing their own money. And, like, that's wild, right? Because if I came to you and I said, "Hey, if you got 100 bucks in your pocket, in order to pull that money out of your pocket, you got to give me $7," you'd be furious. And so, the unfortunate thing is that this kind of tax on the poor was being facilitated by the ATM industry. At the time when we began the company, you had consumers out there going to an ATM roughly about seven times per month, withdrawing roughly about $60 per transaction. And the average fee at that time was $4.09. And today, the average fee is just about $4.80, something cents, depending on where you're at in the country. And so, it's unfortunate the difference in these fees for these folks. It might sound absurd to say this, but it makes a difference between eating and not eating for some of these folks. And anyone who's a struggling college student or lives on the low end of the economic spectrum they understand what I mean by that, where the extra $30 or $40 in their pocket per month actually matters. It's an extra tank of gas or two tanks of gas, depending on what kind of car you're driving. And so, it matters. We wanted to really take a really clean look, an assertive look at the relationship that, not just the ATM, but just cash management services or cash management on a local level the impact that it actually has. VICTORIA: Yeah. And to kind of play that back a little bit, let's say you have a bank or you're not able even to get an account in a traditional bank. Maybe your bank doesn't have an ATM in your neighborhood, and you need to always go to a different ATM to get money out of your bank. And you're just constantly paying those fees. You're more likely taking out smaller sums of money, and then you have to do that over and over again. And it becomes a really high percentage of your income that goes just towards getting money out of the ATM. D'ONTRA: Yeah, absolutely. So, when you consider even during the pandemic, right? Everyone's at home, but businesses were trying to figure out how to cut costs. And banks, just like any other business, when they have a retail bank branch that's in a neighborhood that's perhaps low income, they may not keep that bank branch around. And that's unfortunate because it creates an additional hurdle for folks to be able to become banked. You may hear this term of banking deserts, and that's partially because folks have to travel too far, which is an external cost of time, and money, and resources, just to be able to put their money inside of a bank. Now, the additional cost for this particular demographic is that fees tend to add up. And we all know that the bank says, "Hey, as long as you keep $1,200 in your bank account, we're not going to charge you any fees." Well, that's really great, except for the person who is living paycheck to paycheck, right? And so, this fee tax that's placed on them simply because they don't have enough money when you look at it, it's actually pretty rough [laughs]. I look at it, and sometimes I kind of laugh because it's absolutely absurd when you actually look at it on its face where the poorest people you're generating the most profits from. And unfortunately, those fees keep them in the cycle of being poor. And so, it's been really great. Over the past few years, you've seen really great applications or neobanks come up that have acted as, you know, somewhat shields against all of these arbitrary fees, like, hey, no overdraft fees, and no account fees, ever, no monthly fees, and things of that nature, right? But they still aren't solving the other issues, some of the major issues. So, it's really great that I have your debit card. But if you're a neobank, that means I either have to use your co-op ATM network, which is only going to allow me to withdraw cash so many times per month for free, or I have to use some other third-party ATM network. The unfortunate thing about that is they're still paying that fee [laughs]. At some point, they're still going to pay that fee, and when that money is better in their pockets, it's just a little rough. It's a little hard to digest. And so, we wanted to make sure we were doing something about it. VICTORIA: Right. It reminds me of a phrase I come back to sometimes is that being poor is actually very expensive [laughs]. D'ONTRA: It is. VICTORIA: There's a lot of fees, a lot of extra stuff you have to pay for that other people don't. I'm curious: how did you narrow in on this problem? Was it through doing some market research? Was it a personal experience that led you to wanting to work for these types of users? D'ONTRA: Even though JPMorgan was my last, like, corporate job, I went out into the world to be an entrepreneur. Being an entrepreneur is expensive because you got to figure out how to pay bills. And so, one of the side gigs I had is I worked for a hotel in Santa Monica by the name of the Fairmont, and I was managing valet. For anyone who's been to the Fairmont in Santa Monica, it's not for the cheap folks, right? But what would happen is, you know, patrons would show up, and they'd say, "Hey, I'm going to valet my car. I'm going to come back and pick it up." I'm going to go ahead and settle this up. But, you know, where's the nearest ATM so I can give the valet person cash?" And the most often answer was, "Well, there's one inside the lobby of the hotel, and then there's one across this very busy street." Both of these ATMs had a fee of...the one across the street was about $3.75 if you weren't a bank customer, and, of course, it wasn't a national bank. And then the one in the lobby was about $4.75, I think is what the fee was. And so, here's the person who doesn't really carry cash that often being told that they have to pay a premium just to help this person out. And you could almost guess what the most likely outcome was is, unfortunately, that valet person just didn't get tipped. But the thing is, is there was actually a third source of cash, and it was actually in the valet's pocket or at the valet stand. So, there was money there in closer proximity. There just wasn't a mechanism of extracting it. And so, our first look was, well, hey, can we monetize a transaction between, say, the valet stand and this consumer where, basically, the valet stand is selling these folks their cash for much cheaper than the ATM? So, it's going to save everyone time, energy, money, and it ensures that the valet folks get cash in their pocket. I can remember when we initially launched this; I thought it was such a brilliant idea. We created an app in which we would populate a map with all the people around you that had cash on them. So, when you say it out loud, -- VICTORIA: [laughs] Yeah. I could see how that might be problematic. [laughter] D'ONTRA: So, we're super stoked. We're, like, "Hey, we got this app, and it's really great. And, you know, look at all the people here that have money on them." So, we go to submit this thing to the App Store, and the legal team's like, "Absolutely not [laughs]." So, we spent about six months working back and forth with their legal team to come up with a model. And it's somewhat similar to what you see today, where we're sending consumers to regular brick-and-mortar businesses that have spare cash on hand. That's it. Nothing glamorous about that. But the mechanism and the usefulness does some real overall good, not just for the consumers but for the businesses and for the local economy. VICTORIA: Right. So, I was going to ask you, like, what surprised you in the early phases: the discovery process? It sounds like you had at least [laughs] at least one big strategic turn. But I'm curious if there was anything else that came up in your early-stage journey where you realized you had to make a pivot and change up what you were doing based on the feedback you got from users. D'ONTRA: I'd love to be able to tell the story that we got it all right the first time around, but we didn't. I think we almost hit the checklist of things that you should not do. So, like [laughs], one example is you actually really truly shouldn't listen to your customer to some degree, right? So, you have the vision for this thing, but every customer has their idea of how your app should be better or something you should add. And we went through phases where we were adding features then that people just weren't using. You know, it might have worked for, you know, 10% of the user base, but we had spent two or three weeks with the dev team putting in this new feature. And it was somewhat of a departure from the core. It's adjacent, and so we could justify it. So, we did it, but we shouldn't have. So [laughs], then we had to, like, backtrack on that. We had lots of these moments. But I would say one of the most defining moments, and it was actually one of the first ones that came, was this moment in which one of early entrepreneurs' fear is that someone is going to steal your idea. So, we try to, you know, wrap folks up in NDAs, and secrecy, and things of that nature. You know, if you have a really solid idea, like, we all know that it has major potential to change your life. And so, I can remember, you know, we went out, and we pitched this business to a venture capital company. It was very early on. That was my first lesson: people don't steal things that are worthless. And the second being that just because they steal, it doesn't mean they can build it. I can remember, you know, it took us six and a half months to get Spare in the App Store the first time around. And during that time, we had met with this venture capital company looking for investors, angel investors. And it happened to be that this company gave us an offer to buy the company, and we said "No." But then were like, "Hey, why don't you come in and consult us, and let's see if we can work together to do a deal?" And me being super naive at that time, went in, and I said, "Hey, yeah. Like, this is how we would change the app, and this is what we would do." And after two or three hours chatting with them, I had designed my competitor. And I didn't know that until a week later where they made their announcement, and, you know, I had Google Alerts on. And so, this app comes out and, you know, they're posting to see what people think about it. And they had gotten their app in the App Store, same business model, mind you. And I was just blown away [laughs]. Like, I think, at that time, I think I lost all composure. I was, like, sick to my stomach. I was furious. When you asked about, like, the major pivot, it would have been in, like, my mindset because I went in thinking that we have this really great idea and how could anyone want to take something from an entrepreneur because starting is tough enough, especially the people that fund this stuff, right? And [laughs] I learned that, no, opportunities are opportunities, and people take them when they can. And the bigger you become or depending on where your industry is, people are just looking for a shot. They're looking for an opportunity. No one really cares whether or not they're copying someone else's tech, right? If you were destined to do it, you would do it, and you would do it well, and you'd be one of the top ones to do it, right? That was a major change in how I saw this journey, which allowed me to kind of reframe what we were doing and how I was approaching the market, how we collected data, how we dealt with our consumers, and how we ran our business in general. And then, we had to go in and pivot back to the conversation around the customer. So, we go back, and we're going back to build this thing. And so, at that time, I'm feeling, okay, I have to, like, do any and everything I can once we're in the App Store to get users and retain them. And that's when I learned the lesson of, like, don't listen to all of your users. Like, know what your thing is, and do that thing really, really well. And try not to build features that aren't central to your core because, honestly, that can just get you in a lot of trouble. And you can waste a lot of time for no reason. But I think the most important thing out of that is listen to the data, the information, and what I mean by that is where people go on a webpage, or where they go in your app, where they spend the most time. Listen to those things, and pay attention to the data, and somewhat become obsessed about utilizing the data to make your decisions. I think that'll save everyone a bit of heartache and, you know, pain as they go down that journey. VICTORIA: Yeah, I really love that. There's a couple of, like, interesting points. I feel like when you said it can be daunting, like, oh, there's a million apps in there that already do this or, like, somebody else has already started this. Like, sometimes that means, well, it's a good idea because clearly somebody was willing to try and put it together, and they found a market. But you can always do it better, and you can always have a unique angle and try if you think there's a strong enough idea. And I'm curious to, like, get more into, like, the data question and understand what do you use to understand how people are behaving in your app? And kind of metrics you look at to see how you're tracking and whether those are, like, key success measures or other ways that you think about that data. D'ONTRA: For our application, you know, our KPIs were pretty simple very early on. It was like, do we have, like, the keywords that people respond to to find the application? And is it cash? Is cash the keyword? Is ATM the keyword? How do people find us, ultimately, at the end of the day? Because if you can solve that, solving what keywords are most attractive to your company, then what you're going to be able to do is organic traffic is going to be a lot easier to come by. So, you don't have to spend a whole lot of money trying to get advertisements. There's going to be natural search traffic that drive people toward your platform. In addition to that, it was really paying attention to where the customer complaints were coming from because that told us a lot about the application. Even still, today, we have one very consistent customer complaint that, like, the unfortunate thing is, like, it's really difficult for us to solve this thing because it's actually more in the hands of the business than it is us. And that major customer complaint is when I went into this active location, the person at the cash register didn't necessarily know what I was talking about, and there's a myriad of different reasons for that. But the primary one is that these locations typically have high turnover for the person that's working at the counter. And so Spare has to be an integral part of their onboarding this person so that when someone walks off the street, they can get the service that they need. To some degree, listening or paying attention to the feedback that you're getting about the effectiveness of the service or being able to deliver the technology is actually a very useful data point. In addition to that, looking at where your app is available in cross-section with where the people are that are going to use your app. And this is one of the lessons, I think, we learned the hard way, where, you know, we came out the gate and said, "Hey, anybody and everybody can use this app. It doesn't matter if you're in New York, if you're in Texas, Midwest. It doesn't make a difference, right? Any and everyone can use it." And the unfortunate thing is, when you do that, like, you're going to new users, which is really fun. It starts off that way. So, you go out, and you get merchants and things of that nature. And the mentality that we used was, well, we'll build it. The users will come, and the users will tell us where the businesses are or where we need to place businesses. So, we had a new person or a group of individuals show up in downtown Los Angeles. It was like, okay, cool, there's a concentration of people in Downtown LA. Let's go make sure we put businesses there. Well, that's faulty thinking in and of itself. Even though you're getting the data points and the useful bits of data, you're actually doing it in pretty much, like, the wrong order [laughs]. We didn't really realize that, and Spare was my first tech company. And so, you know, when you think about things like that, like, you think, oh, users, they're important. But how you get them, and how you service them, and when you service them must be a strategic plan. You have to have that process thought out so that the user audience follows your plan, not you responding to them or following their informal plan. VICTORIA: Yeah, that makes sense. And I love that, you know, focusing on the users and really focusing, like, on all of their unique needs like location [laughs] and other things like that. And I talk about that, you know, in my role as managing director at thoughtbot, I work on our DevOps and platform engineering team. I often talk about it in terms of, you know, very early in the process; you know enough about your user to tell you a lot about what their needs are going to be like on the infrastructure side, like their regional location, the sensitivity of the data, you know, that can tell you a lot about what you need to build [laughs]. So, I'm curious, you know, you're working on a financial app here. Have you also had to consider that from a regional perspective and from an infrastructure perspective how that affects your users? D'ONTRA: Going into COVID and how we got there, was that we thought we were actually doing really well, right? So, we officially launched our platform to the marketplace in Q4 of 2018. And we did well for the initial launch without any marketing. And then a year later, we had done 3x the volume and had a strategic partner in place that would have grown our network by 30 times by the end of the next year, you know, we were moving. And then COVID came along, right? In which, you know, huge event that no one planned for. It kind of put the company on halt while businesses were shut down, and we lost about 98% of our network at that time. So, we had to go back to the drawing board and kind of, like, figure out, well, one, if this company is really truly something that we know that there's a thing, we're going to continue to build it, but let's do it better this time around, like, what did we miss the first time? And the first place that we went when we were trying to make this decision is we went to look up, like, cash effectively, like cash in circulation. And to our surprise, actually, there was more cash put into [laughs] circulation during COVID than there was at any other time in the past, like, decade, and so that was shocking. And so, we said, okay, cool. We know that cash is in circulation, perfect. Where is cash in circulation? And in addition to that, where should we start with the base of our technology? And how do we want to reconfigure this? And to be honest, we need help. So, you know, we applied to Techstars, and we were super fortunate that we got into the Techstars Anywhere program. I think it was a lifesaver and a reboot for us and the company primarily because, you know, during the pandemic, we had lost, you know, over 70% of the folks that worked for the company at that time. So, going through that program helped us rethink a lot about strategy infrastructurel...how exactly we need to rebuild and reconfigure the company for success this next time around. I think very early on, you know, we were just trying to do the business. We were just doing it rather than actually strategically building it. You know, that's the major difference between where we were versus where we are now is that everything that we do now is more methodical. When we look at, okay, where do we build merchant networks? Well, we're building them in a very strategic location. That particular location has this value to not only us as a company, the merchants in that area, but also the user base. When we were able to take this more strategic position around, you know, how exactly we're building this business, we were actually able to see much larger opportunities that have always been there, but we just didn't see them. And so [laughs], I'm super grateful for, like, us kind of doing that recalibration because we were able to build a business that is ten times bigger than we initially thought that we were building. VICTORIA: That's super interesting. So, yeah, like, pre-COVID, you're like, we'll get users, and then we'll figure out where to build. And then you had to, like, go through this full recalibration and focus on strategic regions, and that really opened up more opportunities and more growth than you had expected. Mid-Roll Ad: As life moves online, bricks-and-mortar businesses are having to adapt to survive. With over 18 years of experience building reliable web products and services, thoughtbot is the technology partner you can trust. We provide the technical expertise to enable your business to adapt and thrive in a changing environment. We start by understanding what's important to your customers to help you transition to intuitive digital services your customers will trust. We take the time to understand what makes your business great and work fast yet thoroughly to build, test, and validate ideas, helping you discover new customers. Take your business online with design‑driven digital acceleration. Find out more at tbot.io/acceleration, or click the link in the show notes for this episode. VICTORIA: What does success look like for you six months from now or five years from now? D'ONTRA: So, six months from now. We're hitting this hot streak with new clients and things of that nature. And we're going out, and we're pitching contracts that are bigger than I ever thought we would be able to pitch, honestly. And sometimes when I see the zeros on the proposals that we're sending out, there's part [laughs] of me that's like, oh, they're never going to say yes to this thing, but, one, they are, which is still shocking, even though we've gotten a few of these in. And six months from now, I just want us to be doing it right. I know that sounds so arbitrary, and it sounds, like, so whimsical. But there are so many things that we're adjusting to in the marketplace and with our tech. Some of this is kind of new frontier for us. But what I would like to have happen is for the results in the next six months to indicate that we're doing it the right way and meaning that we have clients sticking around, we're still getting contracts signed, the network is growing, consumers are actually getting their needs met by our technology, and the company is growing at a rapid pace. That's what I'd like to see. And granted, you know, we've, in the past, you know, few weeks here, we've doubled the size of the team, which is something that feels really great. But I want us to not lose sight of making sure that the team itself always has a common goal in mind, even as we're growing. And whether that's six months from now, 2, 5, 10 years from now, I want that to kind of be the core of the expectations of what I want this company to be able to do and to deliver. VICTORIA: That's exactly the right attitude to have [laughs], right? It's like I want it to work. I want us [laughs] to, yeah, be successful. I think it all makes sense. You know, it's easy to come on a podcast, like, you know, you're eight years into the startup now, and you're starting to see some success. And it's like, here's how I did it. Everything sounds great. So, I'm glad you've also shared some mistakes or some things that you maybe would have reconsidered or done [laughs] differently before. I'm curious: if you could travel back in time to when you first started, what advice would you give yourself, now that you've had this experience, to set your mind right from the very beginning? D'ONTRA: Oh God, there's so much. There's so [laughs] much. One of the major things that I would do differently is I would read more. And what I mean by that is there are lots of lots of people that have been here in this position and done that thing already. I think in the past year, I would say probably one of the most influential books that I've read is Zero to IPO by Frederic Kerrest. And I happened to listen to it in Audible. But when you talk about, like, just things being pivotal, or like [laughs], going, "Oh, that makes sense," yeah, you get that because being an entrepreneur isn't new. And there are folks that have already kind of cracked the code in some regards. So, if you don't have the existing network around you already, go get the materials. Go read the books or listen to the audios of people who have been there, done that. It's going to save you so much time. So, that would be the number one thing that I would change is I would really truly read more and ingest other people's experiences more, and reach out and get mentors and advisors as you're going down this journey. The second thing that I would do is–it's important to move fast when you're building a company. It's important to respond to the market and all that stuff. That's all super important. That's how you live or die, right? You treat it like there's a fire behind you, and you have to lead it. You have this really hot thing. You've got to be in front of it always, or you'll lose it. And sometimes what we miss is we miss the opportunity to do it faster or better by just slowing down just a little bit. And what I mean by that is, like, I mentioned earlier about looking at the data and things of that nature. There may be things in the data that are making suggestions that you should go a different direction. But because of how you've built this thing, you and your co-founders, and how you guys have built these things in your head, that piece of data may not seem like it's very relevant. Sometimes, it's good to take a breath and take an assessment of where you're at. So, when you're with your team, whether you're setting this up monthly, quarterly, whatever it is, make sure that you're taking some time to make sure that you guys are aligned around where your company is, the industry is, and the signs that you're getting inside the space that you're operating in. It's going to save you a lot of time. And I think the last thing that is probably the most important is for those out there who are listening to this that are CEOs, one of my board members/life mentors/ CEO mentors, a friend, and almost like a father figure to me at this point, one of the things that he said to me and that I've never gotten out of my mind is that the CEO position is the loneliest position inside of an organization. And the reason why is even though you may start a business with your friends or people who aren't your friends, whatever it might be, whatever those relationships might be, those folks will never quite understand what it's like to sit in your seat because everything must end with you. It has to. Every successful organization is going to rise or fall by the person that sits at the top. And because that burden is so heavy, oftentimes, we don't want to go and talk to people when things are going bad. We don't want to admit when, like, hey [laughs], this thing that we've sunk all these resources into isn't really working. And just the sheer pressure of being that person sucks sometimes. With that being said, take care of yourself and your key relationships. And I'm not talking about key as in, like, strategic. I'm talking about the people that love you. Make sure even though you're going down this journey, you're making time for your friends, your family, your significant others, your kids, whatever it might be. Because business stuff aside, and we're all chasing the–Man, this is going to be really successful one day, and I'll be able to change everyone's life. Sure, we're all chasing that. But there is a now moment. There is a person right now that might want your love or your attention, and do not rob them of that. Make sure that you're still making time for those things that are important. Because you could very easily start building a business and five years later, look up and go, oh, this thing didn't work. And then turn around, and there's a wasteland of relationships that you just didn't pay attention to. That's not worth it. So, make sure that you're not only showing, you know, the folks that support you some love but show yourself love by still nurturing those relationships. VICTORIA: That reminds me I heard something about like, your rest ethic should be as good as your work ethic. And your rest ethic includes that time that you spend with family, or whether it's your religion, or your hobbies, or anything like that that makes you feel whole and like yourself, which I know can be a difficult thing to do when you're balancing starting a new business and thinking about the growth and the future all the time. So, I really appreciate that. You know, you mentioned mentorship and these networking and relationships. Bringing it all the way back to Start Up San Diego Week, I'm curious if you have thoughts on how founders could get the most out of those types of events. And what draws you back to Startup San Diego or startup weeks in general? D'ONTRA: Just as a caveat to all this, even though I'm on the podcast and stuff like that, and I'm sure if you Googled my name, you'll see that I've been on TV and stuff, I generally don't like networking [laughs]. I'm a major introvert. So, like, when you put me in an event like that, it's very hard for me to talk to people. Like, when we met, it seems that would be contrary to what I'm saying because we were strangers, and I came over, and we started chatting and stuff like that. And by and large, like, that's not always, like, an easy thing for me to do. The reason why I'm saying that is that if you're that kind of person, do what you have to do to be more extroverted because sometimes that extroverted or that more open or welcoming side of you will allow for spontaneous interactions to occur. And so, when we think about events like, you know, Innovation Week or something like that, there's a lot of opportunity for you to either meet people that are on your journey or a similar journey like you who've been there done that, or even just to offer a different perspective. And if you're in a place where you're open and constantly seeking, amazing things can happen, right? You could end up with your next co-founder. You could end up, you know, with your next investor. Or you could end up talking on a podcast with a stranger that you met just a few weeks ago, right? So, anything can happen. Keeping yourself open to the opportunity and the ability to extract as much value as you can out of those events. It's really interesting to kind of have your pulse on what's going on, even if it's outside your industry. We're a FinTech, but I go, and I pay attention to things that are going on in aerospace or in health because it's always good to, one, not completely have yourself submerged in just your industry, even though that might sound really great. People like folks that can talk about a myriad of different topics [laughs]. So, it might be useful if you can go and have a chat with a stranger about, you know, what's the latest in aerospace, right? It gets you out of the brain drain of what it is that you do on a daily basis. But also, you get to learn some new things and cultivate some new relationships. VICTORIA: I love that. Yeah, I listened to...I think it's Happiness Lab episode where they talk about random conversations with people those, like, sparks of innovation or things like ideas you never would have thought of if you hadn't run into this random person [laughs] and talked to them for five minutes about, you know, what they do in health tech, or what they do for their consumer product that they're building. So yeah, I think that's great. And I've been excited to be here in Southern California for the last three years and starting to grow that network and meet people like yourself who are doing really interesting things. I'm curious if you have any questions for myself or about thoughtbot, or the podcast, or anything. D'ONTRA: Yeah. So, you say that you've been here for three years. Tell me a little bit about your journey, how'd you get here, and why you chose the podcast life, right? As one of your many things. VICTORIA: That is one of my many things, right? So, I grew up in Washington, D.C., And my career was in tech and civic tech. I was working for big three-letter agencies and some pseudo-federal banks like FDIC, and Fannie Mae, and PBGC, all the acronyms all the time. And we got an opportunity in early 2020 to move here for my husband's job. And we moved out here, and I decided to take a switch out of the federal space and get into more commercial consulting. And I was lucky enough to find thoughtbot; they had a position that just looked great for me. And when I joined, you know, we have an internal collaboration thing called Hub that I think our CEO wrote and writes with the other people. All the developers on our team all contribute to it. But he posted a message about this Giant Robots podcast and if anybody wanted to be a new co-host. And I was like, "Sure, I've done a little podcasting here and there, and I have a microphone, so I'm ready to go." And little did I realize just how popular the [chuckles] podcast was. And it ended up being a really great avenue for me to meet people and, learn more about their stories, and build relationships in a way that has been really impactful and meaningful. And like I said, you know, you never know how someone you meet might help you [laughs]. So, sometimes I'll interview people, and I'll get an idea about something that is, like, exactly relevant to the work that I am doing that week, just total kismet however it came about. So, that's how I got into podcasting and how I'm in thoughtbot and here in Southern California. And so, I'm super lucky that I live in a place where there's lots of events going on all the time and lots of great people to meet. Between LA and San Diego, you could go to a different event every single day, probably [laughs], and meet people who are working on cool stuff. So, my background was really in operations and maintenance and taking federal agencies into more modern practices with digital services, and agile development, and DevOps. And now I'm taking kind of a similar lens but to commercial partners who are much faster and can make change quicker. And, in some cases, are doing things in even cooler ways than I could have thought and trying to think about how to move them forward with their infrastructure and how they deploy software. D'ONTRA: That's fascinating. And, you know, it's difficult to be in Southern California, right? New events every day. VICTORIA: And then yeah, I'll go walk my dog in the morning-- D'ONTRA: [laughs] VICTORIA: And people are out there surfing. And I'm like, I could surf all day. I don't have to work [laughs]. D'ONTRA: Right? VICTORIA: But I do. I got to work. D'ONTRA: It feels like the world of limitless possibility, right? [laughs] VICTORIA: Yeah. You almost feel, like, a pressure. Like, everyone else is starting their own company. Why am I not starting my company? Everyone's doing cool stuff all the time. So, you get motivated that way by being around a great group of people who are...everyone is very happy and sunny and [laughs] for the most part, the people are so nice. D'ONTRA: Definitely a departure from the East Coast, right? And, like, I'm sure you came here with, like, that hustle mindset, where you're like, got to get it done, which is probably why you do, like, a million things. But then also, you have all of these people [laughs] that, like, I don't know, like, cares to the wind when they need to, right? Although you've got lots of successful people. But, sure, like, more or less down here, it's like, hey, you know, like, let's live life first and [laughs] make the dollars second. VICTORIA: It's very casual. I got rid of all of my blazers. There's no more of that anymore [laughs]. People when they found out that I was moving to California, they were like, "That makes sense for you [laughs]," like, just the general, like, vibe. D'ONTRA: [laughs] VICTORIA: And I'm a rock climber. So, they're like, of course, you're going to go somewhere where the outdoors is prioritized, yeah. Versus when you live in D.C., it's like the news is happening to you. D'ONTRA: Yes [laughs]. VICTORIA: And it's very, very close. So yeah, it's interesting. I love it, though. And it's cool to take experience from that and then apply it to this world and how people might think about stuff. So, I was worried that, like, my experience might not translate, but it has. It's been very helpful [laughs] in some cases, right? Is there anything else that you would like to promote today? D'ONTRA: Yeah, so, you know, maybe for a future conversation, but in line with, you know, your background and what you're talking about, I would love to have a discussion around CRA, the Community Reinvestment Act, for those who don't understand the lingo, right? Because Spare's latest, like, golden nugget that we've really been just, like, kind of moving on and we're talking to federal regulators about is actually our impact on banks and the Community Reinvestment Act. For those who follow the news and know, you know, the time and space that we're in right now, there are some changes that are taking place inside of CRA. And it's very fascinating because when you say about your background of helping agencies kind of modernize things with digital, that's effectively what we're doing with our tech, and we're getting a lot of support from the government. And so, you know, I think that we're really doing some very interesting things that are starting to get some really great attention. We recently partnered with Visa on one of our initiatives, and we're talking to a few other really large organizations and government organizations so that this technology can really be used at a scale, honestly, far beyond what I ever imagined. But when we talk about, like, actually helping people, we're doing it [laughs]. We're doing it in this very unique way, which I'm super stoked about. But maybe we'll have a chat about that in the future. But I think, you know, for those of you that are listening to this and you're curious, you know, what it is that we're working on, feel free to reach out. It's gotspare.com. Feel free to email me: ceo@gotspare.com. I'm generally in that email box every day. Or even just checking out our service, you know, searching Spare on the App Store or Google Play, and just going in and giving it a test drive. And, you know, we're happy to hear your thoughts. And for those of you who are out there that may be looking for a new experience, we are definitely growing this team, and we want to expand as quickly as we can. We have some really aggressive initiatives for the organization over the next 12-18 months. And so, we're not going to do it on our own. I'm super stoked to where we're, like, we're at a place where we're like, we're actively building [laughs]. We're actively moving. And so, if there was a [inaudible 38:44] for us, whether it's supporting us as someone who uses the application or supporting us as a merchant who's in our community. There's lots of value that we're adding that we're turning back around to reach all small businesses. We're really working on combating inflation with our tech. And we've been able to do that, which is one of those really, like, refreshing byproducts of a tech company, or at least of our services. Like, we're actually adding real, true value to folks, and I'm super stoked about that. VICTORIA: That's wonderful, and it's really close to my heart as someone who wants to see tech with purpose and who loves tech solving problems for people, especially groups of people that usually aren't the focus of founders who are trying to turn a quick buck, right [laughs]? The people who have real problems there's a real market there. It is a business, and it makes sense to start solving those problems. So, I'm really happy that you're working on it. Thank you so much for coming in today and being a guest on the show. We will include all those links and wonderful ways to reach out and get connected with you in the show notes. You can subscribe to the show and find notes along with a complete transcript for this episode at giantrobots.fm. If you have questions or comments, email us at hosts@giantrobots.fm. And you can find me on Twitter @victori_ousg. This podcast is brought to you by thoughtbot and produced and edited by Mandy Moore. Thanks for listening. See you next time. AD: Did you know thoughtbot has a referral program? If you introduce us to someone looking for a design or development partner, we will compensate you if they decide to work with us. More info on our website at: tbot.io/referral. Or you can email us at referrals@thoughtbot.com with any questions. Special Guest: D'ontra Hughes.

From the Basel III endgame to Regulation II to new Community Reinvestment Act and Section 1071, 2023 has delivered a regulatory onslaught for the industry. How are bankers navigating the waves of overlapping changes? On this episode, Gary Shook, chair of ABA's Government Relations Council, reflects on the council's recent meeting and offers perspectives on how banks can navigate the policy environment. Shook also highlights areas where ABA is looking to press gains on its positive agenda, including the SAFER Banking Act, the ACRE Act and financial inclusion. And as president and CEO of Community Bankers' Bank in Virginia, Shook discusses the role of bankers' banks in today's landscape, including helping the industry transition to new payment platforms like FedNow.

The US federal banking regulators recently finalized major changes to their decades-old Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) regulations, which will have significant consequences for many US banks. Please join Mayer Brown lawyers Kerri Webb, Kris Kully, and Jeffrey Taft as they discuss: How the final regulations differ from the proposal What the final regulations could mean for large and small banks and community development activity Where banks may find opportunities for new businesses and investments under the final regulations

This episode is special and a bit different. Instead of interviewing a pioneer at the intersection of business and law more generally about their field of expertise, we have the opportunity to interview an incredible pioneer and professor about their recent article published with the Harvard Business Law Review. Specifically, I get to speak with Prof. Brian D. Feinstein about his article “Banking on a Curve: How to Restore the Community Reinvestment Act,” which he co-wrote with Prof. Peter Conti-Brown. The article is available online and went to print on Oct. 10th. Brian D. Feinstein is an Assistant Professor of Legal Studies & Business Ethics at Wharton. Brian D. Feinstein examines how the structure of financial regulators and other government agencies that regulate business affect outcomes. A political scientist and lawyer by training, Dr. Feinstein's research incorporates insights from administrative law and the social sciences. His scholarship has been published in the Columbia Law Review, Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, University of Chicago Law Review, and University of Pennsylvania Law Review, among other journals, and has been featured in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and other national publications. Brian D. Feinstein holds a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from Brown, a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard, and a J.D. from Harvard. 

U.S. financial regulators recently made big changes to the Community Reinvestment Act. The fair lending rules are from 1977 and were designed to stop damage from redlining. But not everyone’s happy with updates to the law. We discuss. Plus, there are tons of applications — and big benefits — to gamified training.

U.S. financial regulators recently made big changes to the Community Reinvestment Act. The fair lending rules are from 1977 and were designed to stop damage from redlining. But not everyone’s happy with updates to the law. We discuss. Plus, there are tons of applications — and big benefits — to gamified training.

Ebrima Sanneh, who covers the federal banking agencies for the American Banker, breaks down the final rule setting out new standards under the Community Reinvestment Act. He tackles how the rule changed from the proposal, the new standards for community banks, and how the industry is likely to react.

Get ready for an information-packed episode as we delve into the dynamic Philadelphia real estate market with our guest, Maria Quattrone. We also have some fantastic tips that every dedicated REALTOR® should remember and amusing yet unbelievable stories from her extensive real estate career, just for you, so tune in!     Key takeaways to listen for 5:30 Why REALTORS® should pay attention to local laws and politics 18:20 The importance of asking questions as a beginner REALTOR® 24:12 Reasons you need to be direct when communicating with buyers and real estate agents 28:55 Significance of having good quality pictures when selling a property 35:37 REALTOR® safety tips you should remember     Resources mentioned in this episode 26:43 Community Reinvestment Act 35:59 Pennsylvania Association of Realtors     About Maria Quattrone Maria Quattrone, a native of Philadelphia, is the distinguished Founder and CEO of Maria Quattrone and Associates RE/MAX @ HOME and Motto Mortgage Expert Solutions. With a prosperous career in real estate spanning nearly two decades, she has emerged as a pivotal figure in the industry. Her relentless dedication and proficiency in sales and marketing have underscored her prominence in Philadelphia's real estate sector. Her success has won praise and accolades from Industry Insiders and Clients alike.     Connect with Maria Podcast: Be the Solution with Maria Quattrone LinkedIn: Maria Quattrone Facebook: Maria Quattrone YouTube: Maria Quattrone TikTok: @mariaquattronerealestate Email: mquattrone@liveloveathome.com Phone Number: (215) 607-3535     Connect with Leigh Please subscribe to this podcast on iTunes or the Podcasts App on your phone, and never miss a beat from Leigh by visiting https://leighbrown.com. DM Leigh Brown on Instagram @ LeighThomasBrown.   Subscribe to Leigh's other podcast Real Estate From The Rooftops     Sponsors Leigh Brown University – New On-Demand Training How to Dominate During This Recession! Enroll Now to get ahead of the curve and learn how to manage changing markets, the action steps for what to do, and most importantly, what to say so that you can secure listings, assist more buyers, and grow your business no matter what the market is doing.   Link: http://dominatethisrecession.com

In this podcast episode, Dean and Len discuss the implications of the new Section 1071 rule, which extends beyond the banking community. Len highlights that the number of reporters under Section 1071 is estimated to be four times greater than under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). They focus on the impact of Section 1071 on CRA reporting. Len mentions that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Federal Reserve Board (FRB), and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced their intention to replace the reporting of small business and small farm loans under CRA with Section 1071 reporting. Additionally, the definition of a small business loan will change, and the Section 1071 definition will replace the CRA definition. Len emphasizes that this change allows for unlimited loan sizes based on the size of the business, not the loan. This has significant implications for CRA. Furthermore, Len discusses how Section 1071 may affect community development lending under CRA and raises questions about how the regulators will treat loans reported under both Section 1071 and CRA. Len also mentions some aspects of Section 1071, such as protected demographic information and reporting the course of action for small business loans, that will not impact CRA. Brought to you by GeoDataVision and M&M Consulting  

NCRC Community Development Fund, a subsidiary of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, lends primarily to Black, Latino, women, and immigrant entrepreneurs and business owners throughout the country with its mission to help bridge the racial wealth divide by supporting entrepreneurship and affordable homeownership in America's underserved communities.Its new lending platform – for which it is also building an algorithm to determine loan eligibility – stands to make the roughly 10-person operation more efficient, Marisa Calderon, NCRC CDF's executive director, said in a recent interview.This episode of the CRA Podcast addresses the promise of CDFI lending, partnerships with financial institutions to support the continuum of capital for disadvantaged communities, and how the Community Development Fund is also building a new lending platform leveraging AI to not only support efficiencies in their operation but also for others in the CDFI industry. Marisa Calderon's Bio and ExperienceMarisa Calderon is an experienced executive who is regularly recognized, awarded and cited nationwide for her expertise in the housing and financial services industries. She has over two decades of experience dedicated to the issues of economic mobility and bridging America's racial wealth gap. Marisa Calderon is the executive director at NCRC Community Development Fund (NCRC CDF), a nonprofit, U.S. Treasury-certified community development financial institution (CDFI) that provides loan capital to expand access to affordable homeownership, which helps Black-, Brown- and woman-owned businesses thrive. Under her leadership in her first 18 months at NCRC CDF, they deployed over $17 million in capital to historically underserved Black, Latino, immigrant, and women entrepreneurs through their small business and investment programs, earning them a place on Fast Company's list of 2022 Most Innovative Companies in the World. She is also chief of community finance and mobility at the NCRC CDF's parent company, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC), where her work focuses on advancing economic mobility for communities impacted by systemic inequality and disinvestment. Marisa is ranked on the Swanepoel Power 200 as one of the most powerful leaders in the residential real estate industry, and was twice named a HousingWire Woman of Influence in 2018 and 2021 for her work in increasing real estate and mortgage professionals' understanding and appreciation of the Hispanic home-buying market. In 2021, she was named one of Diversity Journal's Women Worth Watching in Leadership and was featured in Hispanic Stars Rising: The New Face of Power and was recognized on Women We Admire's list of the Top 50 Women Leaders in Finance of 2022. Frequently sought out as an expert on affordable housing, lending and immigration, Marisa has been interviewed by numerous publications and media outlets, including NPR's Marketplace and does regular public speaking at industry and general market events, including Mortgage Banker's Association, FDIC, Consumer Federation of America, National Fair Housing Alliance, and many others. In addition to this work, Marisa is also a board member of the non-partisan political action committee, Latinas Lead California and a Senior Advisor to America's Homeowner Alliance.CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ CRA Hub: https://cratoday.com/hubLinda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2023 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.

We begin with a discussion of the goals and themes of FTA's recent summit and AFC's advocacy regarding retention of the strategic plan option under the Community Reinvestment Act. We then discuss consumer benefits of buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) and regulatory concerns raised by the CFPB in its BNPL report, state level regulatory issues facing fintechs, the Treasury's report on bank/fintech relationships and takeaways for fintechs, consumer benefits of earned wage access products and artificial intelligence and regulatory concerns raised by the CFPB, and reactions to the CFPB's Section 1033 rulemaking. Alan Kaplinsky, Senior Counsel in Ballard Spahr's Consumer Financial Services Group, leads the discussion.

Bias may present itself in a variety of ways within lending. When assessing biases, two issues frequently arise: Was someone treated differently because of who they are? Or did a sincere goal activity end as being harmful to one group? A recent wave of technological innovation has enabled lenders to better comprehend how distinct subpopulations might perform differently than the kind of borrower they're used to seeing or that's effectively represented in the data. On this episode of The Lending Link, we sit down with Kareem Saleh, CEO and co-founder of fairplay.ai, which assists lenders in identifying potential disparities in the decisioning systems, provides options to increase profitability and fairness, and helps in demonstrating to consumers, regulators and the public that they are taking strong steps to be fair. Kareem and Rich discuss how to assess algorithms for bias and optimize them for failures and as well as discuss a number of topics, including: The role of alternative data in credit underwriting and machine learning What is the adverse impact ratio? How is it determined? How does it function? How to identify variables for the protected groups that may not be in your initial model Opportunities for lenders to meet the requirements under the Community Reinvestment Act and more! About Kareem Saleh Kareem Saleh is the founder and CEO of FairPlay, the world's first Fairness-as-a-Service company. Financial Institutions use FairPlay's APIs to embed fairness considerations into their marketing, underwriting, pricing, and loss mitigation algorithms and automate fair lending testing and reporting. Previously Kareem served as Executive VicePresident at Zest.ai, where he led business development for the company's machine learning-powered credit underwriting platform. Prior to Zest.ai, Kareem served as an executive at SoftCard, a mobile payments company that Google acquired. Kareem also served in the Obama Administration, first as Chief of Staff to the State Department's Special Envoy for Climate Change, where he helped manage the 50-person team that negotiated the Paris Climate Agreement, then as Senior Advisor to the CEO of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) where he helped direct the U.S. Government's $30B portfolio of emerging market investments with responsibility for transaction teams in Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. Kareem is a Forbes contributor and a frequent speaker on the application of AI to financial services. He is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center and an honors graduate of the University of Chicago. Be sure to follow Kareem and our host Rich on LinkedIn, and for the latest GDS Link updates and news, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn. You can subscribe to the Lending Link on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Play, or wherever you prefer to listen to your podcasts!

Eugene Ludwig, the former Comptroller of the Currency who led the last successful effort to reform the Community Reinvestment Act, details why the current proposal by regulators needs to be reproposed. He also tackles how banks should be evaluating their fintech partnerships in light of supervisory scrutiny, and how he sees the fintech sector as a managing partner at venture capital fund Canapi Ventures.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters has submitted legislation that would amend the original Community Reinvestment Act in radical ways. Learn about her proposal for mandatory "Community Advisory Committees" and their role with bank management as well as other radical aspects of the proposed legislation in this broadcast.   Brought to you by GeoDataVision and M&M Consulting

Hi, it's Linda with CRA today and the CRA Hub. I thought I'd hop back here and give you a quick tip. So many of you have asked "what exactly is BLS (hint, it is the Bureau of Labor Statistics) and how should I use it to support my CRA program?" Well this month in the CRA Hub, we're focusing on CRA exam prep. As you know, it's really important to make sure that we are crossing our T's and dotting our I's and making sure that all of our community development activities are properly documented. Well, this is where the website bls.gov comes in. This website will help you substantiate the creation or retentions of jobs for low and moderate income people. The BLS website is where you can go to create the documentation or the proof, to show your examiners during an exam to substantiate community development loans and activities, as applicable. So let's take a $1.5M community development loan that your bank originated to a restaurant to expand to a new location. You would first document that the borrower is considered a small business and then you will need to document and prove that the majority of the jobs created as a result of your financing would in fact be jobs for low and moderate income individuals.  Given my description so far, you may know you are working towards documenting this community development loan under the economic development hook, right?  So after you document all other aspects of the community development loan and you are down to documenting the creation of jobs for LMI individuals.  So you go to BLS.gov and you search for jobs that typically would be found in a restaurant, like cooks, waiters, bartenders.  I tend to keep two or three, as an example is my backup files for examiners. And then you can drill down to the different geographies within Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). So I recommend getting as close as you can to the geographic location of the business that you are documenting the community development loan for aka “follow the money” to the community development impact.Here is the link to the screen share overview of BLS.gov: https://www.loom.com/share/2ae5b997547343a2b33ce9413db17598You would take these representative jobs and compare the salaries against area median income to make sure these annual salaries fall below the thresholds for a moderate-income person in the area for which the loans proceeds are applied.  I hope this helps you as you continue to mine for community development loans and then also document your CD loans. I often say, if it's not properly document, it didn't really happen!  The “art of the CRA” as I say is to properly document all of your activities to support an efficient review by your examiners and this “pre-work” if you will will also allow you to defend your position with confidence.  CRA Today provides Community Reinvestment Act Training, Professional Development, and a new Certification for CRA professionals. We Help You Master the CRA, Get Exam-Ready, and Reinvest for the Greater Good.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.

This podcast covers the implementation of the new 2020 Census tracts effective January 1, 2022. It covers the impact of the new tracts for CRA in terms of the Community Reinvestment Act and Fair Lending. The new tracts are effective retroactive to the beginning of 2022.   Brought to you by GeoDataVision and M&M Consulting

CRA Podcast Episode 16: Community Development Loans Demystifiedwith Krista Shonk, VP & Senior Counsel, Regulatory Compliance and Policy, Fair & Responsible Banking, ABAAre you one of the 95 percent of banks that are underreporting community development loans under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)? This episode debunks the myths around how to recognize community development loans at the time of loan origination and how to avoid expensive loan mining activities at the tail end of your compliance processes.Community development loans are the most heavily weighted aspect of the CRA, and when you understate your community development loans you are compromising your bank's lending performance. As you know, if you don't meet the credit needs of your communities, it can lead to public relations risks that could even result in an internal “needs to improve” rating or hamper your ability to adjust your bank's strategy priorities.ABA's Krista Shonk interviews Linda Ezuka of CRA Today in this focused episode on the most subjective aspect of the CRA. Identifying community development loans requires many internal stakeholders within the bank and this episode highlights a solid approach to engage commercial lenders in identifying loans that are hidden within their portfolios and their loan pipelines. Most lenders are focusing on meeting the credit needs of their commercial clients and overlook common community development loans due to a lack of understanding of the CRA. The key to engaging commercial loan officers is to conduct community development loan training. Use this training to highlight the community development "hooks" or pillars to determine if their loans meet the primary purpose test.Ongoing micro-training moments are key to keep community development loans top of mind thereafter.Enjoy this episode that breaks down strategies to identify community development loans at origination and how to avoid underreporting these important loans. If you want to take a deeper dive into this work to learn how to increase your community development loan portfolios, consider our community development loan workshop of customized bank training for commercial loans officers. See below for more information. Links: Community Development Loan Workshop: https://cratoday.com/workshop/ Customized Bank Training: https://cratoday.com/cra-training/ Check out our website to take the next step in your CRA journey today: www.cratoday.com Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.

Mr. Thomas is widely-viewed as the nation's leading CRA expert and has advised federal regulators on CRA reform. After reviewing CRA's origins and purpose, we discuss how the new proposal differs from the OCC's rescinded 2020 final CRA rule and the current CRA rules, including the proposal's higher asset threshold for small banks and approach to assessment areas, how industry and consumer groups have reacted to the proposal, and next steps and possible timetable for issuance of final rules. We also discuss state efforts to enact CRA-like laws and the concept that the CFPB should have a role in approving bank mergers. Alan Kaplinsky, Ballard Spahr Senior Counsel, hosts the conversation joined by Scott Coleman, a partner in the firm's Consumer Financial Services Group.

Common Cause Program Director Yosef Getachew: Groups Work to Stop Disinformation to Protect 2022 Mid-term ElectionsAnti-Pipeline Activist Becky Crabtree: West Virginia Novelist Fights Mountain Valley PipelineMedia for Matters senior researcher Andrew Lawrence: UnFoxMyCableBox Campaign Targets Fox News' Toxic Rhetoric That Provokes ViolenceBob Nixon's Under-reported News SummaryHunger spreads in Afghanistan due to U.S.-led freeze on government assetsEnvironmentalists urge reform to 150-year-old mining lawFair lending advocates urge overhaul of 1977 Community Reinvestment Act

Are you looking to take your community development services to the next level? If so, don't underestimate the breadth and depth of internal expertise that lies right at your fingertips. Your bank is likely full of subject-matter experts that can enhance your existing services or perhaps even build out an entirely new external partnership.While banks typically engage mortgage officers, lenders, and retail team members with opportunities to teach financial education in the community, other departments have a wealth of technical expertise to offer. Employees' technical expertise in core business functions can result in the creation of deliverables at the end of a short project (i.e. creating a social media strategy, designing a logo, conducting a technology assessment) or can result in actionable recommendations. Think of your employees as pro-bono consultants. For example, consider how you might leverage the internal expertise found in these departments to drive the positive and meaningful impact your organization has on the community. (Ensure the benefitting organization meets one of the four community development purposes!)• Compliance: Serve as a subject-matter expert at a small business fraud prevention workshop or a consumer protection workshop (identify theft, fraud prevention, common types of financial exploitation, etc).• Human Resources: Teach on workforce development topics such as resume prep, interview tips. Serve on an advisory board for a nonprofit focused on financial service career pathways for LMI individuals. Consult with an organization as they develop an employee handbook.• Marketing: Create collateral (brochure, etc.) or a logo pro-bono for a local nonprofit. Help a nonprofit or small business develop a social media strategy.• IT: Serve on an advisory board for a nonprofit focused on financial service career pathways for LMI individuals. Conduct a technology assessment for an organization. Assist with the installation of new software/hardware.• Accounting: Provide assistance on accounting/bookkeeping. Help organizations review internal controls and policies.• Legal: Review contracts, etc. pro bono.CRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

There are a wealth of opportunities to serve aspiring entrepreneurs and established small businesses!Consider the following opportunities to diversify your portfolio of existing community development services and ensure that some of them meet the “Economic Development” community development purpose.• Contact your local CDFIs and other small business development nonprofits and inquire about committee or board openings. Some might even have opportunities for lenders to serve as mentors to local entrepreneurs or to serve on a one-time committee that provides constructive feedback on the entrepreneurs' business ideas. • Reach out to local Small Business Development Centers and see if one of your lenders can teach a class or serve on a panel about accessing capital. Consider inviting a credit union, a CDFI, and another type of bank to join the panel as well. Each one will have a unique perspective to provide!• Volunteer with your local SCORE chapter, where opportunities include serving as a Business Mentor, Subject Matter Expert, Local Workshop Presenter, and more.CRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

After collecting information about existing employee involvement through board service and volunteerism, it's apparent you need to increase your bank's community development services…but where do you start?First, look at your bank's existing community development services and consider whether you can expand or deepen that relationship by providing additional services. Is the organization looking for new board or committee members with financial expertise? Could their clients benefit from financial capability workshops or workforce development support such as resume reviews?Second, are there local affiliates of national organizations that you might be able to support in each of your assessment areas? Through Junior Achievement your employees could teach a curriculum focused on financial literacy and career readiness in local schools with free-and-reduced-lunch rates greater than 51%. Through Habitat for Humanity, an employee could review homeowner applications to ensure applicants can afford the mortgage while serving on a Family Selection Committee. Third, don't be afraid to get creative! Consider meeting with the local community foundation or United Way chapter to learn about the greatest needs in the communities you serve. Oftentimes these organizations are the first to know about board or committee opportunities in the community and can direct you towards organizations that serve low-to-moderate-income individuals or small businesses and that align with CRA community development purposes. The sky is the limit to what you could build together! For some inspiration, read the OCC's Financial Capability Fact Sheet. https://www.occ.gov/publications-and-resources/publications/community-affairs/community-developments-fact-sheets/pub-fact-sheet-financial-capability-jan-2019.pdfCRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

I predict that at least 90% of banks under report their community development loans. Yes, that's an alarming statistic, but I believe it's true. As I often say, the art of the CRA is not creating new programs, but actually unveiling what your bank is already doing to meet the needs of your community by the nature of opening your doors and deploying your core banking services. Recently, I have been conducting many customized bank training sessions for commercial loan officers. We use the bank's credit approval memorandums and take a deep dive into originated loans to reveal hidden community development purposes. It's fun! The look on their faces when they realize they originated community development loans and they didn't even know it! It's priceless. I also offer a follow up Q&A session where the loan officers get to review their pipeline with me and ask me anything. Again, like magic, there are more community development loan prospects on the table. Here is what a senior commercial lender shared… “Linda's webinar provided CRA/CDL training that gave us the depth of knowledge to more accurately identify opportunities that we had been missing for years. Past trainings left us with more questions than answers. Her presentation was customized to our needs and our commercial lending team dealt with actual loans that we selected. We also had the opportunity to ask experience based questions and receive in depth answers that opened people's eyes. Since the webinars, we have taken a deeper dive into our loan closings since our last exam and found numerous cases of economic development and affordable housing loans that had not been reported. Very well worth the time and cost that will pay dividends over the years.” ~Chuck Woerner, SVP , Senior Commercial Lender, Fairfield County BankYou don't need me to do this training, but if you have too much on your plate, this is a good option too. Either way you approach this training, it is imperative to have a strategy in place or you will be underreporting your community development loan portfolio which compromises your lending performance and your overall CRA rating. What do you have planned to engage with your commercial lending officers? Make sure you outline a solid strategy to build these critical relationships and support them in identifying community development loans. The return on your investment of time is priceless! CRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

A key element of your CRA program is understanding that CRA is not always about creating new opportunities, but is about finding the opportunities that already exist. To do this, you should aim to give each team at least three CRA trainings a year. This will keep team members up-to-date on any new regulations and will help keep your program top of mind. Team members are more likely to forget about CRA when they haven't heard from you in a long time. But if you train team members to watch out for CRA opportunities, you're almost guaranteed to come across new services, loans, and investments that are eligible for CRA credit. So who do you train, you ask? It depends on your bank size and structure, but here is a common list of trainings: New Hire Training: The first introduction to CRA, do this in person or recorded, keep it quick and high level. CRA Essential Live - https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarBankwide Training: Keep this high level and part of your LMS (your learning management system). Highlight how everyone has a role in the CRA program (service etc). Commercial Lending Partners: This includes small businesses, commercial lending, commercial real estate, all aimed to help you identify community development loans! You can do this yourself or I also help train commercial loan officers using their own credit documents! -https://cratoday.com/cra-training/ Don't forget loan ops too, not only for community development loan identification, but also for data integrity training! - https://cratoday.com/blueprint/Other departments include Marketing, Investments, Controllers etc. The list can go on and on! The bottomline here is you need to have a solid training plan in place based on your bank size and plan to deploy training on a periodic basis. And don't forget to keep it light and fun! CRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“One of the things that are appealing to me about being a Community Reinvestment Officer is helping those who are underserved,” says Melvin Hugans, a Community Reinvestment Officer at Thomasville National Bank. In honor of National Financial Capability Month, where financial institutions and organizations support programs that promote economic empowerment, host Linda Ezuka interviews Melvin Hugans on his life as a CRA officer. A retired elementary school principal with a history of non-profit community work, Melvin is now on a mission to educate America's youth on the benefits of financial literacy.With debt on the rise in America, people need financial literacy more than ever. Understanding this all too well, Melvin works to educate young people on how they can start saving and create spending plans now. Through Thomasville National Bank, a company whose mission is to promote economic development in their community, Melvin can continue doing what he loves while bettering the lives of others. Tune into this week's episode of CRA Podcast for a meaningful conversation on financial literacy education. Learn more about Melvin's transition into the CRA profession, how Thomasville National Bank serves its community, and the importance of staying committed to your mission all year.The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) encourages banks to invest in and deploy financial literacy efforts in their communities. If you would like to learn more about the intersection between banks, the CRA, financial literacy, and how to join their efforts, visit the Community Developments Fact Sheet from the OCC. Financial capability resource from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.Melvin Hugans has served as the Thomasville National Bank Community Reinvestment Officer for 2 years. He has a long history of involvement in community non-profits in the communities where TNB branches are located. Prior to assuming the role as the Community Reinvestment Officer, Melvin retired as an elementary school principal. The relationships he established as a principal have helped him grow in his role as a community reinvestment officer. TNB is a regulated by the OCC and has 1.3 Billon dollars in assets.Links:Thomasville National Bank: https://tnbank.com/about-usCommunity Developments Fact Sheet: https://www.occ.gov/publications-and-resources/publications/community-affairs/community-developments-fact-sheets/pub-fact-sheet-financial-capability-jan-2019.pdfFor more information on the CRA Hub, a membership for bankers to connect, inspire, and master the art of CRA: https://cratoday.com/hub/ CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“11% of students from low-income households graduate college,” says Abby Coyle. As a former educator for Teachers for America, Abby realized the equity gap in the education system. To close the gap, Abby co-founded ClassEquity, an online platform aimed to help students build financial literacy. Class equity enables students to open their own "bank account," through which they practice earning classroom dollars, saving, and spending in a safe environment. Co-founders Abby and Katie started ClassEquity to solve a problem they both experienced during their time as classroom teachers in Title 1 schools: access to financial education. With ClassEquity, they aim to increase economic mobility by giving all students the tools they need to become financially independent, regardless of their zip code. After launching this fall, ClassEquity now supports over 3,000 students across 120 classrooms weekly. Tune into this episode of the CRA Podcast to learn more about the role that technology and financial education play in providing economic and educational equity for students. Links: Links to program: ClassEquity.com; Blog; LinkedIn pageContact info: abby@classequity.comFor sponsorship opportunities, interested parties can email me at abby@classequity.com For more information on the CRA Hub, a membership for bankers to connect, inspire, and master the art of CRA: https://cratoday.com/hub/ Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

April 1st marked the start of National Financial Capability Month, a month during which organizations (especially financial institutions!) across the country focus on supporting programs that expand financial literacy, economic empowerment, and access to capital and credit for all consumers. You might be asking, “As a bank, what can we do to build financial capability in our community?” Luckily, there are many pre-existing resources just waiting for you to use! Here are a few:• FDIC's Money Smart – Consider this the Swiss army knife of financial capability resources. It provides a range of curriculum options tailored for young people (K-12), young adults (12-20), adults, older adults, and even small businesses. Note that some modules are long (2+ hours); adapt them in partnership with the nonprofit to best suit the needs & interests of your audience and to fall within time constraints.https://www.fdic.gov/resources/consumers/money-smart/index.html• The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas's Building Wealth – A 5-module curriculum available in multiple formats. https://www.dallasfed.org/~/media/microsites/cd/wealth/index.html• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – Pull together educational tools for key financial decisions, search their database of 270 financial literacy activities for youth, or download publications for youth and adults available in PDF or print format.https://www.consumerfinance.gov/• American Bankers Association – ABA has various ready-to-teach presentations and activities in connection with their various community programs, such as Get Smart About Credit, Teach Children to Save, and Safe Banking for Seniors. ​​https://www.aba.com/For a comprehensive list of useful financial literacy resources, issues, and events, visit the OCC's Financial Literacy Resource Directory.occ.gov/topics/consumers-and-communities/community-affairs/resource-directories/financial-literacy/index-financial-literacy-resource-directory.htmlCRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

For the last thirty years, Tawalla Simmons has dedicated her career to serving others through CRA-inspired programs. Today, she is the president of Inspiring You to Greatness, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to educating low to moderate-income members of the community about credit, mortgage, and money literacy. As a previous mortgage broker, Tawalla saw firsthand the gap in education surrounding topics such as credit, job readiness, and housing stability. To better serve the community, Tawalla put together a platform of CRA-eligible programs that provide the necessary tools to both increase mortgage approval rates and teach community members how to be successful in the workforce. As the president of IYTG, Tawalla hopes to one day be a primary resource utilized by banks across the country. Tune into this week's episode of the CRA Podcast to learn more about the importance of strengthening your basic life skills, community development, and how you can achieve personal and professional growth through IYTG's online educational programs. Call to Action: Inspiring You To Greatness CDC would like to be one of the resources utilized by banks when they need to begin the bootstrap serving in the census tracts and communities we currently serve. We provide bank approved CRA eligible online classes with certificates of completion, demographics, zip codes, income information, and data collection tools to ensure CRA examinations are Satisfactory. Links: Tawalla Simmons, President, Inspiring You to Greatness CDCEmail: tsimmons@iytgcdc.orgWebsite: www.iytgcdc.orgOnline Academy: www.iytgcdc.com www.gocoacht.teachable.com Inspiring You To Greatness CDC Educational Academy supports CRA Community Reinvestment Acts of Service in Communities by offering Social Services, Financial Literacy, Credit Education, College, Career, Mortgage Readiness Certificate of Completion Classes through an online platform helping non-profits, banking partners, businesses, and clients connect for the greater good.Inspiring You To Greatness CDC Educational Academy courses assist clients with taking classes in a busy environment, helps banks by offering CRA eligible online courses, while helping other nonprofits streamline social services through our platform.For more information on the CRA Hub, a membership for bankers to connect, inspire, and master the art of CRA: https://cratoday.com/hub/ Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

It's time to build your 2022 CRA strategy and action plan! Here are your next steps: Sign up to download the CRA plan resource. This list of questions will help prompt you as you start to build out your CRA plan. https://hub.cratoday.com/opt-in-c71cd533-9b19-4d80-89d9-43b2ec44f869 To prepare your approach, start by obtaining a copy of your bank's strategic plans for 2022, if available. If a document is not available to you, set up meetings with your executive management team members to learn more about the core strategies of the bank and how you might integrate those priorities into your CRA plan. Next, meet with business units to learn about their business goals and discuss how your CRA program might also support them in their business goals. You can also set benchmarks for identifying community development loans within the commercial lending departments and divisions.You might also want to meet with marketing to make a stronger link between your CRA program and their key priorities as well. Typically CRA programs incorporate marketing goals as it relates to CRA service goals and charitable giving initiatives. Compile all the details into one document and set benchmarks and timelines to pave the path forward for an effective CRA program. Don't forget that it doesn't have to be perfect, you just have to get it started! CRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts, and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

Build your CRA plan. You aren't required under the Community Reinvestment Act to build a plan, but it's an industry best-practice and will help take your CRA program to the next level. Keep your plan simple and don't worry about making it perfect. Your plan can be one page or it can be 20; everything is up to you. As a general rule, you should start your plan with an overview of your CRA program. Where are you in the exam cycle? Who's your regulator? What are some of the past year's accomplishments? Next, list out your bank's strategic priorities, both long and short term. Include your CRA performance goals, and make sure to mention goals for your lending, services, and investment tests (including benchmarks!), as well as goals for fee and investment income, deposits, and various business units. This is where you can set business unit goals, community development activity benchmarks and the like. This document represents your path forward. Some sections you might include are how you're going to conduct CRA training, any applicable regulatory changes, technical compliance, public relations, and marketing. For a list of questions to ask yourself when building your CRA plan, sign up for the PDF download here: https://hub.cratoday.com/pl/2147559089. This will help you think about your CRA program and build that perfect plan to promote your program and make a difference in your community. Most of all, remember that your CRA journey is your CRA journey. Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be, and have fun with it. Once you've created your CRA plan, you can share it with executive management, internal business units, the compliance department, and even CRA examiners. This will help keep everyone in your bank on the same page and set expectations throughout the company.CRA Today helps bankers master the Community Reinvestment Act, get exam ready, and change lives through the power of community development.Want to learn the CRA basics? Sign up for CRA Essentials Live! A live webinar with Linda Ezuka that shares everything you need to create a solid foundation for your CRA journey. https://hub.cratoday.com/freewebinarReady to take a deeper dive into the CRA? Join your fellow CRA enthusiasts in the CRA Hub as we navigate regulatory change, study core CRA concepts and connect as community development professionals across the nation.https://cratoday.com/hub/Are you understating your lending performance? Learn the 5 Foundational Steps to Building an Outstanding Community Development Loan Portfolio with an on-demand training workshop.https://cratoday.com/blueprint/CRA Today Website: https://cratoday.com/ Linda Ezuka, LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/linda-ezuka-cra-today/Copyright © 2022 by CRA Today LLC(No claim to original U.S. government material)All rights reserved. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the author and publisher.This podcast is a periodic publication of CRA Today LLC and is intended to notify and inspire recipients of new developments in the Community Reinvestment Act. It should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion on any specific facts or circumstances. The contents are intended for general informational purposes only, and you are urged to consult your own attorney concerning your situation and specific legal questions you have.Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm