Springboard CDFI eyes 13-state expansion for nonprofit origination platform

Citi Community Development invested $1 million to support the expansion

By Francis Monfort

01 Mar 2018

Springboard Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) has announced plans to expand its nonprofit mortgage loan origination platform to 13 states in 2018.

Citi Community Development has invested $1 million to support the deployment of the loan origination platform to members of the Nationwide Mortgage Collaborative (NMC), a national coalition of nonprofit housing counseling agencies and CDFIs which provides mortgage credit access for low- to moderate-income, minority, rural, and other underserved first-time homebuyers.

Springboard plans to on-board more than 100 CDFIs and housing counseling agencies to the platform with the goal of closing more than $220 million in home loans by the end of 2019.

Citi Community Development’s support will cover the legal, administrative, and onboarding costs required to be licensed, compliant, and operational in each of the new states.

In 2016, Springboard received early-stage support from Citi Community Development and the Ford Foundation. Since then, the loan platform has been fully operational, licensed, and being used by Nationwide Mortgage Collaborative members in California, Texas, Florida, Arizona, and Illinois.

Following the new investment, Springboard plans to expand in Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Maryland, Kentucky, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, Ohio, and Washington.

“CDFIs and housing counseling agencies are vital community intermediaries with the opportunity to provide the affordable credit access and homeownership education that first-time homebuyers need. But the complexity of mortgages and the associated rigorous and costly compliance requirements mean that many CDFIs have been unable to develop the loan platforms and economies of scale to originate responsible mortgages,” said Bob Annibale, global director of Citi Community Development and Inclusive Finance. “By investing in Springboard CDFI and the Nationwide Mortgage Collaborative, our hope is that many CDFIs and nonprofits will for the first time, have the capabilities to make homeownership a reality in the communities they serve resulting in a more inclusive and responsible mortgage delivery system.”