Our Story

Three decades ago...

we created the Equity Protection Program to provide credit unions and banks with a safe method to generate additional equity lending based on the belief that homeowners should be able to access more of the hard-earned equity in their homes.

While lenders have historically been hesitant to lend more than 80% of the combined loan-to-value, we were confident that with responsible underwriting and protection against defaults, more borrowers could be given the loan options they needed, and lenders could better serve their communities.

Developing proprietary guidelines was the first step in our model. They were written with the idea that they could be customized for each lender and continually modified as the industry and the economy changed. Assembling the right team was also critical to ensure the success of the program. Selecting specialists in the mortgage underwriting, insurance and sales industries ensured that all aspects of our program were well thought out and continue to evolve. Our current team, led by Rick Hughes, SVP, and Cindy Light, VP, has over 150 years of combined experience and all of our underwriting, claims and administration is done in-house. Becoming part of NFP in 2017 was a proud and exciting time for us as we became part of a global network of resources yet are still able to specialize in what we do best.

We remain committed to providing the best possible program and service to our lender partners and continue to refine the program as trends and the economy change. The housing crisis of 2008 reinforced the fact that our program model worked, paying millions of dollars in claims to lenders, which enabled them to maintain positive balance sheets and continue to assist their borrowers with loan options. Our teams’ focus on the market and attention to detail are why our program continues to be successful, used by hundreds of credit unions and banks across the nation.