New Panorama TPO targets first-time buyer lending

Panorama Mortgage Group, parent company of several lenders focused on affordable homeownership, announced the launch of a new mission-driven wholesale and corresponding lender aimed at making funding available to first-time buyers.   

The Las Vegas-based company unveiled Travisa Financial, which it created in response to what it saw as a demand for partnerships among many third-party originators who held ideals similar to its own.  

"Travisa gives us the opportunity to expand our reach to brokers and lenders who share our purpose; helping first-time buyers and underserved communities build real wealth through homeownership," said Hector Amendola, president of Panorama Mortgage Group, in a press release. 

"Affordability isn't a passing issue. It's the defining challenge for our industry today. We've built our company around meeting it head-on," Amendola added.

Travisa Financial is the newest unit in the Panorama family of companies attempting to provide affordable housing and wealth-building solutions for minorities and disadvantaged groups. Other Panorama mortgage businesses include consumer-facing lenders Alterra Home Loans, Legacy Home Loans and Lone Peak Lending, with Travisa now exclusively in third-party origination channels. 

Operating as an independent brand with its own designated website, Travisa named mortgage industry veterans Ben Slayton and Norma Somers as account executives to lead the new company. Slayton is the president and CEO of affiliated lender Legacy Home Loans, while Somers joins the company after holding a leading sales role at private mortgage insurer Essent Guaranty. 

"Our ambition is clear: to become the No. 1 lender for first-time homebuyers. We've curated the right team, the right products, and the right partnerships to make that happen," Amendola said.

What is driving the market for more affordable lending products

Recent research illustrates the demand for affordable lending products in the U.S. today. 

Approximately one-third of adults said their income relative to home prices today was the primary factor keeping them from making a purchase, according to a June Neighborworks America study. Over one-quarter of respondents said they were in the market for a home purchase, but 22% of those searching for properties said they would wait for prices to drop before making any offer, the nonprofit organization also found. 

"The mismatch between home prices and income is freezing out individuals and families who want to buy a home," said NeighborWorks President and CEO Marietta Rodriguez, in a press release.

The median-priced U.S. home now requires a near six-figure salary, Zillow reported late last month. In the most expensive cities, a worker making median local wages would need a six-figure raise to make regular payments, although several affordable markets can still be found across the country. 

The launch of Travisa also comes as minority homeownership programs have seen federal support rolled back in the second Trump administration. In March, the Federal Housing Finance Agency prohibited government-sponsored enterprises from offering special-purpose credit programs that were created specifically to open up homeownership to minority groups. 

The Department of Housing and Urban Development followed in May, rescinding a fair housing regulation first introduced during the Obama administration that sought to reduce disparities and foster inclusive communities.