Christy Moss, CMB

When did you earn your CMB designation?
2017.

How long did the process take you to complete?
It was a 4 year journey for me, once I decided to pursue the designation. 

Which type of CMB designation did you achieve (Residential/ Executive/ Master)? Residential.

What is your day-to-day job role in the industry?
I work with FormFree, driving utilization of our data validation tool in support of Fannie Mae's Day 1 Certainty and Freddie's AIM initiatives. Helping lenders use technology to verify a borrowers ability to pay via direct source data from financial institutions vs having the borrower collect and deliver paper to lenders. 

What originally influenced you to go forward with obtaining the CMB designation? It was on my "to do" list for about 10 years. I had a number of customers who had mentioned it to me and I just kept putting it off. In my previous role at Fannie Mae, I managed our relationship with the MBA and was encouraged by the MBA staff to pursue the designation. As I learned more about the designation, I came to the realization that if I wanted to be truly valuable to my customers and continue to be passionate about he industry I love, that achieving the highest professional designation was something I needed to do.

Did you experience challenges on the way to becoming a CMB? I did have challenges, the first time I took the prep class, I didn't set aside enough study time, so when the class was over I felt ill-prepared to take the exam. I retook the prep class and scheduled time each week to study ant that was the key for me.

Any advice for those considering CMB?
Advice for CMB candidates is to schedule study sessions and to participate in a group study session as well.

Did you experience challenges on the way to becoming a CMB? The Executive Program does not rely on past classes/testing so studying is a challenge.

Any advice for those considering CMB? 
Try to have a sponsor or co-sponsor that is very active in the CMB program or has received CMB in past year.

How has your professional life changed since going through the CMB program?  I will say that obtaining the highest professional designation that the mortgage industry has to offer has been the best thing I have done for my career. I wish I had pursued it 10 years earlier. It has afforded me the opportunity to meet a number of senior level industry executives, which has benefited my company. The designation has enabled me to connect with the other 1100+ CMBs creating significant networking opportunities. And, lastly, because of the CMB curriculum, I feel that I am better prepared to offer strategic guidance to my customers and industry partners in all aspects of the mortgage lending process.

Since obtaining your CMB, what have you done to give back to the mortgage banking industry? I have served as a CMB advisor to several CMB Prep Course groups, sponsored three CMB candidates, started a CMB education group at Fannie Mae, helped the MBA coordinate SOMB classes at Fannie Mae offices, participated in a number of educational events around the CMB designation and have encouraged a number of my coworkers and industry friends to pursue this highly regarded designation.

Do you hold any other designations or awards (inside or outside the mortgage banking industry) that you would like people to know about? 
Recently awarded NEXT #50over50 award. The award highlights women over 50 who have contributed and lead technology innovation in the mortgage industry. 

What do you enjoy doing when you are not at work?
I love spending time with my family and friends, mostly on the lake. Being on the water really rejuvenates me especially after a long week in the mortgage industry.