NRMLA has invested a great deal of time, energy, and finances in its attempt to establish a credential program. NRMLA is now in the process of creating a committee to oversee that credential. One problem NRMLA faces is satisfying the needs of originators, underwriters, processors, servicers, senior management, and a host of others with credential programs that meet their needs.

NRMLA is still identifying what types of credentials it will offer, priorities in developing the programs, and curriculum. Whatever is developed should be outstanding.

The MBA is a great organization but will it ever adequately represent the interests of those in the reverse mortgage industry? Just looking at raw numbers, it would seem that the MBA would not place the concerns of the RM industry anywhere near the top of its list.

As to credentials, do we really need more credentials or titles? We already have RMSs, RMCs, and others. What credibility or esteem do these titles and credentials have with the general public? We need an originator’s credential that has real meaning and recognition. It should mandate some type of screening including a criminal background check.

In the accounting industry if the AICPA had not established the CPA as the gold standard then it would be lost among so many credentials like EA, CMA, CIA, etc. Fortunately although these are great credentials, the public as a whole, look to the CPA as the most meaningful. If all of the credentials had equal respect among the public as a whole, most people would not know whose assistance to seek.

Whether we have a strong originators’ credential program offered through NRMLA or MBA is not the issue. We need one and only one to gain ascendancy so that it can be marketed and recognized as the credential of prominence in our industry. Having other credentials and credential programs is fine but dealing with the general public, originators need a single mark of excellence not just in our own eyes but most importantly, in those of the general public.

I wonder why they don’t partner with NRMLA – we don’t need two organizations doing the same thing. Uniting as a single organization working towards the same common goals is way better then “they’ve been saying it for a while and they’re too slow so we’re going to do it ourselves”.