Mortgage Lending Committee
Committee meetings are open meetings held throughout the year on a variety of topics related to mortgage lending trends. At our meetings, you can network with those who share similar interests or responsibilities and discuss topics related to your industry. Each meeting is facilitated by Partnership for Financial Equity co-chairs and staff as well as attendees who volunteer to lead the discussion. These sessions are designed to encourage an informal and collegial exchange of experiences and insights. Membership in Partnership for Financial Equity is encouraged to help sustain our efforts, but is not a requirement to attend meetings.
Co-Chairs
Elliot Schmiedl, Director of Homeownership, Massachusetts Housing Partnership
Michelle Meiser, Vice President, Community Relationship Outreach Officer, Eastern Bank
Mission
The Mortgage Lending Committee brings together financial institutions, housing advocates, public officials and others to work to expand home ownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income homebuyers and to sustain home ownership in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
The Mortgage Lending Committee hosts open meetings quarterly on a variety of topics from downpayment assistance programs to mortgage lending trends in the Commonwealth. Membership in MCBC is encouraged, but not a requirement to attend.
Publications
For the fourth consecutive year, Black and Latine homebuyers in Massachusetts received mortgage loans at rates nearly proportional to their share of the state’s population. Yet, a sharp overall decline in mortgage lending in 2023 meant that fewer households in these communities were able to purchase homes.
A new report released today by the Partnership for Financial Equity and the Woodstock Institute shows that home purchase mortgages to Black households fell by 23%—from 4,040 in 2022 to 3,115 in 2023—while Latine households saw a 22% decline, from 6,733 to 5,271. Though significant, these drops were slightly less severe than the overall 25% decrease in home purchase mortgage lending across Massachusetts, which was largely driven by rising interest rates and a tightening housing supply. Lending to low- and moderate-income households saw the steepest decline, falling by 36% year over year.
The findings are part of Mortgage Lending Matters, one of the most comprehensive annual analyses of home lending in the Commonwealth, with a particular focus on access for low- to moderate-income borrowers and communities of color.
2025 Meeting Dates (Virtual)
- Tuesday, January 21 from 12-1pm
- Tuesday, April 15 from 12-1pm
- Tuesday, July 15 from 12-1pm
- Tuesday, October 21 from 12-1pm
Register here for our 2025 meetings
Click here to be included on the e-mail distribution list for our Mortgage Lending Committee