Mark Jones
Chairman
Mark Jones co-founded Amerifirst Home Mortgage in 1983, a company he grew
from an individual location in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to over 80 full-service
locations and 900 personnel nationwide. In January 2023, Amerifirst merged with
Union Home Mortgage to form a top 40 national mortgage lender, where Mark now serves as President.
Prior to the merger, Amerifirst was the No. 1 USDA
lender and the No. 3 FHA lender in Michigan, and the No. 13 FHA lender in
Florida. Amerifirst was also a Ginnie Mae issuer and serviced in-house a $6
billion loan portfolio. Amerifirst ranked as a Best & Brightest Company to
Work for in the Nation for five consecutive years (2016-2020) and was named one
of the top 50 Best Mortgage Companies to Work For in 2021. In 2016 Mark
received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award for Michigan and
Northwest Ohio.
In addition to his service as MBA’s Chairman-Elect,
Mark currently serves as Chairman of MBA’s DEI Advisory Committee. He
previously served as co-chair of MBA’s Independent Mortgage Bankers Executive
Council. Mark also serves as board member and Public Policy Committee Chair at
Southwest Michigan First and serves as Chair of Southwest Michigan First PAC.
Mark holds a Bachelor of Science in Business
Administration and Management from Virginia Commonwealth University, where he
competed on the Varsity Swimming & Diving team. In 1979, Jones won the 1979
Virginia Intercollegiate State Championship in 1 meter springboard diving and
was a two-time NCAA Regional Qualifier.
Jones lives in greater Kalamazoo with his wife, close
to three adult children, and two grandchildren.