ANDREW DORT: Founder and Owner of Pride Lending

BY DAVID “DIRK” SMITH, M.SC., SDL • HE | HIM

It’s additionally compounded for people of color who are also members of the LGBTQ+ community. So there’s definitely a need for this kind of representation. Compete’s mission to help grow that kind of representation seems like a worthwhile mission to support. That’s how I got involved with Compete.

DS: Are you still working in Denver?

AD: Before opening private lending I was working in Denver for a mortgage company wanting to open a branch in Vegas, so I moved here. When COVID hit I lost all support from that company’s home office. Ultimately it was a springboard to start my own company, Pride Lending.

Dirk Smith: I’m speaking with new Compete Sports Diversity member, Andrew Dort, founder/owner of Pride Lending about his new business in Las Vegas. Thanks for joining me, Andrew. Tell me about you and the work you do.

Andrew Dort: I’m primary loan officer and owner of Pride Lending, an LGBTQ+-focused mortgage brokerage. While we work with everyone, our market outreach is focused on the LGBTQ+ community since LGBTQ+ individuals trail their heterosexual counterparts dramatically in home ownership.

There’s also discrimination existing within the real estate industry, either directly from realtors, sellers or ancillary industries like appraisers and others. Lots of stories tell of appraisers discovering that a same sex couple lives in a home and then the home value goes down. It’s also common with people of color.

DS: It’s really neat to hear you’re not just working but as founder of Pride Lending, you’re able to start growing and expanding. Do you have particular goals or visions for Pride Lending?

AD: Yes, to work in the vast majority of states; to be THE gay lender. Part of our goals are to get our own setup to fund deals in-house. I also want to employ a diverse, representative group of people, to create a place where we can employ and work with the underserved communities we’re part of. I know that being cisgender, white, even gay, I still have lots of privilege, so I want to make sure I’m employing BIPOC and diverse gender identities in positions of leadership and authority.

I have big goals; sometimes it feels like I’m taking on more than I can handle but it’s all worthwhile, especially with all the new legislation throughout the country making it more difficult for LGBTQ+ people just to exist. That’s why we’re targeting southern states first because representation is most important in areas where it’s most needed.

SOMETIMES IT FEELS LIKE I’M TAKING ON MORE THAN I CAN HANDLE BUT IT’S ALL WORTHWHILE, ESPECIALLY WITH ALL THE NEW LEGISLATION THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY MAKING IT MORE DIFFICULT FOR LGBTQ+ PEOPLE JUST TO EXIST.

DS: Organizations like Pride Lending as well as nonprofit and for-profit organizations are important for building that community. In the past it’s been just bars and clubs. But now it’s businesses, organizations and nonprofits that offer more than drinking and partying. The last question. What does sports diversity mean to you?

AD: Personally, as a gay athlete it’s about finding a place where I could be authentically myself for the first time in my life. It wasn’t just cathartic, it was incredible; possibly up in the top three single most important internal interactions I’ve had in my life making me who I am today. It was directly through the power of sport giving me the confidence to be who I was; it also introduced me to many other people and viewpoints I never otherwise would have been exposed to. For me, it’s essential. That’s why I was so interested in joining Compete because I truly see the value in all this.

DS: Thank you, Andrew, we’re happy you’re part of the Compete family! •

Learn more about Pride Lending at www.mypridelending.com.