GENERAL SESSION: Fireside Chat with the GSEs & FHLB

Laura Escobar

2025 MBA Chair; President, Lennar Mortgage

Laura Escobar is the 2025 MBA Chair and President of Lennar Mortgage. A 30-year mortgage industry veteran, Escobar has held leadership positions with both bank-owned and independent mortgage companies overseeing all aspects of mortgage banking, including production, operations, compliance, accounting, and training. Her personal ground level experience in every facet of mortgage lending has enabled her to manage and fully integrate all of these departments within Lennar Mortgage. Escobar is highly engaged in the industry, serves on MBA’s Board of Directors, and was co-chair of MBA’s IMB Executive Council from 2020–2022. She is also a director of the MBA Opens Doors Foundation, which she has supported by successfully fundraising for the foundation’s work and leading Lennar in company campaigns. Beyond her industry work, she is also a licensed mental health counselor and devotes much of her time to working with underprivileged women.

Michael Ericson

President & Chief Executive Officer, Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago

Michael A. Ericson has served as the President and CEO of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago since January 2021. He has worked at the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago since 2005 in roles of increasing responsibilities including as Executive Vice President and Chief Opera􀆟ng Officer in 2020; Executive Vice President and Group Head, Members and Markets from 2014 to 2020; and Chief Risk Officer of the Bank from July 2008 to December 2014. Mr. Ericson currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Office of Finance of the Federal Home Loan Banks where he is a member of the Planning, Technology and Operations Committee.

Kevin Kauffman

Senior Vice President - Seller Engagement, Freddie Mac

Kevin Kauffman is the Senior Vice President of Seller Engagement in the Freddie Mac Single-Family Acquisitions Division. He leads the sales and marketing teams, in addition to driving Seller and partner adoption of our products and services. Focusing on end-to-end Seller experience, he seamlessly connects Seller business needs with our innovative technology solutions. With a career spanning more than 20 years in both mortgage operations and technology, Mr. Kauffman gained a deep understanding of the loan manufacturing process in the primary mortgage market and combined his experience with building and marketing cutting-edge, end-to-end mortgage technology. His previous work experience includes various leadership roles with Citi, Chase, FIS and Fannie Mae.

Tim McCallum

Senior Vice President and Head of SF Business Account Management, Fannie Mae

Tim P. McCallum is Senior Vice President and Head of SF Business Account Management at Fannie Mae, reporting to the Executive Vice President and Head of Single Family. He leads the end-end strategy and relationship management for Fannie Mae’s Single-Family’s sellers and servicers, and digital product service providers. Customer management services are available in multiple forms ranging from customized team support to contact center phone / email support, to self-serve options. This includes origination, pricing, credit, strategy, operations, marketing, technology, and servicing. Specifically, Mr. McCallum is responsible for working with Fannie Mae’s partners to drive strategic alignment with the customers and industry digital management providers C-Suite to ensure that business, mission, and financial goals are met or exceeded. Previously, Mr. McCallum served as Vice President of Customer Management Solutions, Vice President of Real Estate Dispositions (REO, Short Sales, Third Party Sales and Deed in Lieu), Director of Short Sales, and Senior Manager of REO Alternative Disposition during his time at Fannie Mae since 2010. Prior to joining Fannie Mae, Mr. McCallum held senior roles at Fiberlink Communications, Wilmington Finance, Mortgage Lenders Network, and Wells Fargo Financial. Mr. McCallum has a Bachelor of Science in Finance with a Minor in Economics from The Pennsylvania State University.