3 ways mortgage lenders can attract more AAPI homebuyers .

At the moment, many individuals from the AAPI community are becoming homeowners; however, they still face some barriers in their processes toward home buying or rental. One factor that has affected the AAPI community is that they are still being viewed as non-Americans, hence, they do experience challenges in the home buying process. Even though not all individuals from the AAPI community face the ‘non-American’ issue, it is worth mentioning it because it is a form of discrimination that has been sidelined. It is worth noting that there are other factors that affect the home buying process for individuals in the AAPI community and it’s not just the ‘non-American’ issue. On that note, the following three ways can be helpful for mortgage lenders in attracting more AAPI home buyers;

• Mortgage lenders companies to have loan officers who understand the AAPI community all through (culture and

language) – this is the most practical example because having a loan officer who understands the culture and needs of the AAPI will be an added advantage towards convincing a member from the AAPI community to buy a given house. On the same note, loan officers who have mastered the AAPI community language skills will be at ease while serving the customers, or even serving them better. According to (Lai, 2019), inadequate English proficiency is also a major issue that affects some individuals from the AAPI community; hence, having forms like residential loan application forms translated into a given language will be helpful in aiding the community to understand the detailed requirements.

Generally, the borrower characteristics will be understood, and, customer service will be at its best. There’s a higher probability that the AAPI community will be at ease with a mortgage company that has officers who understand their culture and even various aspects surrounding their needs.

• Offer credit education to the AAPI

community – research has it that members within the AAPI community don’t have substantial credit scores as they have

unlimited use of the credit system. In such a situation, the mortgage lenders can tap this untapped potential by educating members of this community on how their credit scores work and how it will help them secure a mortgage. Therefore, since most members of the community are ‘mortgage weak,’ they can’t be in a position to buy homes as the history of their credit cannot bring out satisfactory credit scores (Kong, 2021). Grabbing the opportunity to give credit education will be an easier way to attract the AAPI community as they will be convinced about the direction the process is taking, and, it resonates with quality customer service.

• Implementing down payment assistance

programs – a greater percentage of AAPI communities live in high-cost regions which have higher down payment schemes. With such high rates of down payments, they need more time to save for such, hence, it would be appropriate if mortgage lenders companies come up with a payment assistance program that will aid members of this community to an extent that they don’t consume a lot of timesaving for the down payment. On the same note, the down payment assistance program will always help individuals achieve financial stability (Hyun Choi & Ratcliffe 2021). Under such incentives, low-income homebuyers within the AAPI community will have the upper hand in understanding and managing the entire process. The essence is to ensure the process is not too expensive to the extent that they may give up with savings.

Generally, mortgage lenders can implement the above-mentioned strategies because they are the main challenges the AAPI community is facing or experiencing when it comes to homeownership/buying. Implementing them will be a major step toward motivating the community in understanding and appreciating home buying. Additionally, the strategies mentioned above can be amalgamated to achieve the desired outcome since they are interdependent.