Meet the Contributors

Adam Lesner is a Michigan-area mortgage banker specializing in portfolio loan and unique-scenario lending. He has originated home loans since 2008 and has helped clients across the U.S.

Aly J. Yale is a mortgage and real estate writer based in Houston who has contributed to Forbes and worked for organizations such as The Dallas Morning News, PBS, NBC, and Radio Disney.

Andrew Penner has worked in the real estate and mortgage industry for over three years. He is the Marketing Director at Total Mortgage Services, a nationwide lender based in Milford, Connecticut.

Ashley Baskin is a graduate of UCLA and has hands-on experience working in real estate. She uses her knowledge to pursue her passion for writing. She has a unique way of blending the hard facts and numbers with a personable touch.

Barbara Ballinger is a freelance journalist and former senior editor for the National Association of REALTORS®. She has co-authored 15 books, interviewed Martha Stewart, and appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show as a home remodeling expert.

Bridget McCrea covers real estate and other topics for publications like Realtor Magazine, International Business Times and Logistics Management.

Britt Scearce is a mortgage, credit and personal finance expert working with consumers and training mortgage professionals for over 18 years.

Casey Morris is a finance and tech journalist. She has written for Forbes Asia, The Washington Post, and a number of finance publications and institutions.

Chaunie Brusie is a widely published writer. Her work has appeared everywhere from The New York Times and The Washington Post to SELF, Real Simple, and more.

Chris Birk is a former journalist and author of “The Book on VA Loans: An Essential Guide to Maximizing Your Home Loan Benefits.” He is also the content development director for Veterans United Home Loans.

With over 20 years in mortgage banking, Craig Berry has helped thousands achieve their homeownership goals.

Dahna Chandler is an award-winning business and finance journalist with 20 years of experience writing for major media outlets and top blogs. She is passionate about helping wealth-minded people thrive financially by reaching their wealth objectives.

Dan Green is an expert on topics of money and mortgage. With over 15 years writing for a consumer audience on personal finance topics, Dan has been featured in The Washington Post, MarketWatch, Bloomberg, and others.

Dan Rafter has written about mortgage topics for more than 20 years. His stories have appeared in the Washington Post, Wise Bread, the Motley Fool, Fox Business, and more.

Dawn Papandrea is a writer specializing in personal finance. She writes for Family Circle, CreditCards.com, and more.

Deborah Kearns is a Denver-based freelance writer whose work has appeared in the Associated Press, New York Times, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, MarketWatch, Huffington Post, NerdWallet.com and other top-tier outlets.

Erik J. Martin has written on real estate, business, tech and other topics for Reader's Digest, AARP The Magazine, and The Chicago Tribune.

Erik Sherman has written about business, technology, and personal finance for the Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, New York Times Magazine, Forbes.com, Inc.com, and many other publications.

Francine L. Huff is a freelance journalist, author and educator who covers financial topics for major media outlets. She has appeared on TV and radio shows, and is available for speaking engagements. Follow Francine on Twitter.

With more than 10 years in the mortgage industry, and another 10 years writing about it, Gina Freeman brings a wealth of knowledge to The Mortgage Reports as its Associate Editor. Gina works with a team of world-class real estate and finance writers to bring timely and helpful news and advice to the audience. Her specialty is helping consumers understand complex and intimidating topics.

Gustan Cho is a branch manager of USA MORTGAGE, creator of GustanCho.com, and a leading professional on The Mortgage Reports' Q&A Platform. Gustan specializes in helping clients with less than perfect credit and has approved home buyers who were denied elsewhere.

Jon Meyer is a mortgage loan officer (NMLS #1590010) with over five years in the lending industry. He currently works at Supreme Lending in Mill Valley, CA (NMLS #2129) and has served as an expert adviser for The Mortgage Reports’ editorial team.

Keith Flamer is a pop culture scribe who dabbles in celebrity real estate, travel, architecture and extraordinary design. He enjoys exploring attics, basements, exotic locales and history in search of provenance and treasures to share with curious readers. He’s been published in Forbes, Robb Report, Town & Country, Haute Living, Savoy, Veranda, Wristwatch, Art & Antiques, and Luxury Magazine. He’s also covered luxury brands such as Hermès, Chanel, Rolex, Cartier, Tiffany, Gucci, and Patek Philippe.

Kiana Curtis is a licensed mortgage professional and freelance writer. Her unique blend of practical experience and financial acumen allows her to transform complex topics into accessible advice for readers.

Kyle Hiscock is a REALTOR® in Rochester, NY with Nothnagle Realtors. Kyle is very active on social media as well as on his blog, Rochester's Real Estate Blog.

Larry Kirschner is with the Compardo Team at Moneta Group. Larry lives in Naples, Florida.

Larry is a mortgage and real estate writer with over 15 years of experience working in the mortgage industry as an underwriter. His work has appeared in publications such as LendingTree, Bankrate, Student Loan Hero and HeroPay.

Lee Nelson is a Chicago-based writer whose work has appeared on Realtor.org, Yahoo! Homes, MyMortgageInsider.com, and more.

Lou Barnes is a credit and mortgage market expert with nearly 30 years of experience.

Marcie Geffner is an award-winning freelance reporter, book editor and blogger whose work has been published by Yahoo! Finance, Fox Business, Bankrate.com, AOL Real Estate, Fidelity.com, Inman News and dozens of major U.S. newspapers.

Mark is a 25-year veteran of the mortgage origination industry and now writes about the inner workings of the industry for Forbes.

Mark Henricks writes about finance, business and other topics. His articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The New York Times and many other publications.

Michele Lerner, author of New Home 101, is an award-winning freelance journalist with more than two decades of experience. Her work appears in The Washington Post, New Home Source, Fox Business, MSN, Yahoo, Realtor.com, and more.

Mike Cox (NMLS# 269700) is a loan officer and branch manager with GSF Mortgage, where he has been a 10-time Loan Officer Of The Year.

Nathan Golden is a freelance personal finance writer in North Carolina. He enjoys writing simple sentences about complex financial products. Along with The Mortgage Reports, Nathan's work has been featured on home.com, money.com, and finder.com. Before becoming a freelance writer, Nathan worked as a newspaper reporter.

Paul Centopani is a writer and editor who started covering the lending and housing markets in 2018. Previous to joining The Mortgage Reports, he was a reporter for National Mortgage News. Paul grew up in Connecticut, graduated from Binghamton University and now lives in Chicago after a decade in New York and the D.C. area.

Paula Pant is a real estate investor and the founder of AffordAnything.com, a popular finance website.

Pete Gerardo is a business writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times and numerous trade magazines.

Peter G. Miller, author of The Common Sense Mortgage, is a real estate writer syndicated in more than ​50​ newspapers nationwide. Peter has been featured on Oprah, the Today Show, Money Magazine, CNN and more.

Peter Warden has been writing for a decade about mortgages, personal finance, credit cards, and insurance. His work has appeared across a wide range of media. He lives in a small town with his partner of 25 years.

Rania Efthemes is an award-winning journalist and content strategist with more than 20 years of experience in print and digital media.

Rose McMackin is a culture writer and architecture nerd. She lives in Seattle with a dog who performs all his own stunts.

Ryan Tronier is a personal finance writer and editor. His work has been published on NBC, ABC, USATODAY, Yahoo Finance, MSN Money, and more. Ryan is the former managing editor of the finance website Sapling, as well as the former personal finance editor at Slickdeals.

Shashank Shekhar is a mortgage broker/lender with 10+ years experience, licensed in the states of CA, WA and TX. NMLS ID 8176.

Thomas is a loan officer at Total Mortgage Services LLC with over 10 years of experience in the mortgage industry, is licensed in 19 states, and is an expert on mortgage rates and trends.

Tim Lucas spent 11 years in the mortgage industry before moving into the world of digital media. He's helped thousands of families buy and refinance real estate at banks and mortgage companies and now continues that mission through industry-leading content. Tim has been featured in national publications such as Time, U.S. News and World Report, MSN, Scotsman Guide, and more.

Tom is an author, talk-show host and newspaper columnist where he shares his expertise in real estate and reverse mortgages.

Valencia Higuera is a freelance writer from Chesapeake, Virginia. As a personal finance and health junkie, she enjoys all things related to budgeting, saving money, fitness, and healthy living.