Obama sends CU grad to ground zero in housing crisis
By Clint Talbott
In July, David H. Stevens became the commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration, having been tapped to fill that position by President Obama. He has stepped into a challenging job in the midst of a recession driven in part by the meltdown of the housing market.
This probably wasn’t the future he envisioned as an undergraduate studying political science at the University of Colorado. Stevens, who graduated in 1980, didn’t even see an immediate application for his degree.
“When I began scouring the help-wanted ads, I never saw a listing for ‘political scientist wanted,’ but I found many career opportunities on my own,” he said recently.
He did indeed.
Today, Stevens is responsible for overseeing the $600 billion FHA mortgage insurance portfolio and the Housing and Urban Development Department’s multifamily subsidized-housing program. In addition, he oversees HUD’s regulatory responsibilities in the areas of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and the manufactured-housing industry.
After graduating from CU, Stevens became executive director at the Colorado Public Interest Research Group, a consumer-advocacy group, where he spent “a couple of years in several positions.”
Stevens then moved to the financial-services world, where he spent the next 25 years holding executive positions in “a few well-known financial institutions” including Freddie Mac and Wells Fargo.
Stevens is also the founding executive sponsor of the Women’s Mortgage Industry Network. While at Freddie Mac, he coordinated the first Latino joint venture initiative with Freddie Mac and Latino mortgage industry leaders, and has sat on many boards in the real-estate and mortgage-finance arena.
At the time of his appointment to the FHA, Stevens was president and chief operating officer of Long & Foster, reportedly the nation's largest privately owned real-estate firm.
Ultimately, Stevens “was asked to use my experience and apply my political origins to join the Obama administration.”
While in college, Stevens volunteered with campus political organizations. “I worked for candidates running for office, ran for UCSU (the CU Student Union) and held a seat on the Student Council, and was active in Program Council in organizing concerts and other events.”
Stevens met his wife, Mary, while volunteering on a U.S. Senate campaign. They have four children, one of whom is now a freshman at CU.
He urged today’s students to seize the day. “CU is more than simply an academic experience,” Stevens said. “My advice to any student at CU is to maximize every opportunity to enrich your experience. The Flatirons, skiing, hiking the fourteeners and biking are truly unique opportunities in Colorado.”
And while the social and recreational environment is rich, Stevens also suggested that students “get involved on campus and off in ways that will add value to the future.”
Stevens also emphasized “the need to get experience in your trade.”
The FHA was created in 1934 and was a New Deal initiative to stabilize the mortgage market and increase access to home-ownership. It does not make loans but insures mortgages. Stevens is now heading that agency in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Since the sub-prime mortgage industry collapsed, the percentage of all mortgages insured by the FHA has increased about five-fold, from 2 percent to 30 percent. The agency’s work-load has burgeoned, and some observers suggest that capable leadership at the FHA is critical.
When news of Stevens’ nomination hit the pages of The Washington Post, the paper noted that Stevens would be the only FHA commissioner in recent years with a strong background in single-family home mortgages.
“They needed someone with a deep knowledge of the mortgage industry because of the challenges facing the country and the FHA in particular, and he fits the bills,” one source told the Post.
David H. Stevens
In July, David H. Stevens became the commissioner of the Federal Housing Administration, having been tapped to fill that position by President Obama. He has stepped into a challenging job in the midst of a recession driven in part by the meltdown of the housing market.
This probably wasn’t the future he envisioned as an undergraduate studying political science at the University of Colorado. Stevens, who graduated in 1980, didn’t even see an immediate application for his degree.
“When I began scouring the help-wanted ads, I never saw a listing for ‘political scientist wanted,’ but I found many career opportunities on my own,” he said recently.
He did indeed.
Today, Stevens is responsible for overseeing the $600 billion FHA mortgage insurance portfolio and the Housing and Urban Development Department’s multifamily subsidized-housing program. In addition, he oversees HUD’s regulatory responsibilities in the areas of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act and the manufactured-housing industry.
After graduating from CU, Stevens became executive director at the Colorado Public Interest Research Group, a consumer-advocacy group, where he spent “a couple of years in several positions.”
Stevens then moved to the financial-services world, where he spent the next 25 years holding executive positions in “a few well-known financial institutions” including Freddie Mac and Wells Fargo.
Stevens is also the founding executive sponsor of the Women’s Mortgage Industry Network. While at Freddie Mac, he coordinated the first Latino joint venture initiative with Freddie Mac and Latino mortgage industry leaders, and has sat on many boards in the real-estate and mortgage-finance arena.
At the time of his appointment to the FHA, Stevens was president and chief operating officer of Long & Foster, reportedly the nation's largest privately owned real-estate firm.
Ultimately, Stevens “was asked to use my experience and apply my political origins to join the Obama administration.”
While in college, Stevens volunteered with campus political organizations. “I worked for candidates running for office, ran for UCSU (the CU Student Union) and held a seat on the Student Council, and was active in Program Council in organizing concerts and other events.”
Stevens met his wife, Mary, while volunteering on a U.S. Senate campaign. They have four children, one of whom is now a freshman at CU.
He urged today’s students to seize the day. “CU is more than simply an academic experience,” Stevens said. “My advice to any student at CU is to maximize every opportunity to enrich your experience. The Flatirons, skiing, hiking the fourteeners and biking are truly unique opportunities in Colorado.”
And while the social and recreational environment is rich, Stevens also suggested that students “get involved on campus and off in ways that will add value to the future.”
Stevens also emphasized “the need to get experience in your trade.”
The FHA was created in 1934 and was a New Deal initiative to stabilize the mortgage market and increase access to home-ownership. It does not make loans but insures mortgages. Stevens is now heading that agency in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
Since the sub-prime mortgage industry collapsed, the percentage of all mortgages insured by the FHA has increased about five-fold, from 2 percent to 30 percent. The agency’s work-load has burgeoned, and some observers suggest that capable leadership at the FHA is critical.
When news of Stevens’ nomination hit the pages of The Washington Post, the paper noted that Stevens would be the only FHA commissioner in recent years with a strong background in single-family home mortgages.
“They needed someone with a deep knowledge of the mortgage industry because of the challenges facing the country and the FHA in particular, and he fits the bills,” one source told the Post.