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NAMB President’s Corner: The Benefits of NAMB Membership

Wow, May is here and I hope all of you are experiencing the same mini-boom that my company is experiencing. It seems that the people looking for homes are starting to find them now, and the next few months should be good for all of us. This is the sixth time I have sat down and started to put things that I thought were important for you and this month I have decided to talk about membership and benefits. So, here is the important stuff and some clarification for all of you.
In December, the NAMB Delegate Council approved a change to the reciprocity rule for memberships. What this means is that people can join NAMB―The Association of Mortgage Professionals or join their state without having to join the other. It does not mean that NAMB does not want members to join the states, but that it gives an option to those who want to join one or the other or both. It again gives options to people to go to the NAMB Web site and join. Now this in no way means that we won’t share information. By the 10th day of every month, all of the information for new members who joined NAMB only is sent to every state so that states can begin to talk with these members about joining their state association.
Many of you have called, e-mailed or sent me a letter on the fact that you don’t understand why NAMB went to this system of membership. You have said that it makes no sense why NAMB would do this. To be very frank, it is about membership. We have tried to increase membership by relying on the states to increase our membership, and we are still at the same round number of about 5,100 members. We need to grow this association and it is not going to do it on its own. We need to get to 25,000 (and that still is only 22 percent of the entire licensed and registered mortgage originators in the United States). This is a way for us to grow. We can then allow the NAMB Membership Committee to expand their abilities and go out and get more members. We will always suggest that these members join the state in which they are registered, but we need to increase our numbers.
Some benefits that are great for our members are doing business with NAMB’s Strategic Alliance Partners.
►Sprint is one of our best benefits. A 20 percent monthly savings on their standard program is a great deal. And as an NAMB Member, you are a Preferred Customer. Contact Alex Mohammed, NAMB’s Sprint National Representative, at [email protected] to talk with him about these outstanding benefits and get on the road to saving money today.
►Lowe's is another great benefit of NAMB membership. You can send your customers a coupon good for 10 percent off any purchase of Lowe’s products or services. There is no cost to you for participation in this program, and with this being the season for home improvement, now is an excellent time to send your customer one of these coupons. Go to www.lowesnamb.org and begin using your benefit to help your customers today.
►Liberty Mutual has been a Strategic Alliance Partner of NAMB for the past three years. They not only can offer you a reduction in your insurance costs, but they can also help your customer. They offer you specials to college graduates with additional discounts. Contact www.libertymutual.com/lm/namb to be put in touch with an insurance professional in your area.
►Have you completed your compliance with the Red Flag Rule? If not, contact Jim DeGeronimo Sr. at Majestic Security for one of the most comprehensive programs you can have in your office. The cost is not overpowering, and Jim will save you lots of money from those fines you would have to pay without this important piece of security. Contact Jim at http://majesticsecurityidsafe.com/compliance.htm and let them help you today.
►We have two other Strategic Alliances that are also helpful to all business in saving you money. Office Max and FedEx help you in your purchasing of office supplies and your shipping needs. Contact Office Max at www.officemaxsolutions.com and FedEx at www.1800members.com/NAMB to take advantage of these great specials.
As you can see, NAMB has been working very hard to bring you benefits that help you in your everyday business situations. And we are working on some great new programs that will benefit all of our members. And we are very close to announcing a new opportunity that each member will be able to benefit from just by answering your phone and gathering a little bit of information.
I hope that some of you have tried out some of these outstanding benefits personally. NAMB is always striving to improve our benefits to all of the membership. We are putting a value on it that will expand your cost of the yearly membership, as well as give you the standard information from Washington, D.C. and our Government Affairs team.
The cost of this membership is $120 per year for a Platinum Membership and $50 annually for a Silver Membership. Whichever one that you choose, remember that you will be an important member of NAMB who cares about you and will never give up the fight to protect you in your right to originate loans and be respected for what you do. Remember, we are NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals, and we are proud to have you as our member.
As a final note, we will be having our Annual Conference & Board Installation in Indianapolis this year. It will be held Friday-Saturday, June 22-23, 2012, and this information will be on the NAMB Web site at NAMB.org. We will be having a Board Meeting and a Delegate Council Meeting while we are there. It is a short one, but we will make every effort to be memorable one. On Friday, we will be going to the Indianapolis Indians baseball game, and then on Saturday, we will hosting a session for all new NAMB Board Members and Committee Chairs. The Delegate Council Meeting and Board Meeting will be in the afternoon, followed by the President’s Reception in the evening. So start making those reservations to come to Indy for a great time as we make plans for the upcoming year.
And for those of you who remember the last Annual Convention in 2008, we had a great time in Indy. It is a great town to have a great time in. Come and join us for a great time.
Donald J. Frommeyer, CRMS is president of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals. he may be reached by e-mail at [email protected].
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