Political Analysts Debate Stimulus' Success

SAN DIEGO-When King Kong had his grip on that screaming woman, many didn’t know if she would escape, said John Courson, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association. And like what happened with the screaming woman, “this grip on our industry will be released, our screams will stop, and they will turn into cheers,” he explained.

Courson launched the general session and start of MBA’s Commercial Real Estate Finance/Multifamily Housing Convention & Expo on Monday. The event, held here at the Manchester Grand Hyatt, attracted an audience of more than 2,000, and nearly every seat in the session was filled.

“We’ve taken responsibility for our piece in all of this,” said David Kittle, chairman of the MBA, who followed Courson’s introduction. Kittle, who also serves as EVP of Vision Mortgage Capital LLC, added that “We must deliver on the right approach, right now.” Kittle provided a bit of optimism, or at least some uplifting words of wisdom, as to how to move forward in today’s environment. “There is no easy fix. We must take action,” he said. “And if those actions don’t work, move on to new actions.”