Stevens will step down as head of mortgage bankers group next year

David Stevens, head of the Mortgage Bankers Association, plans to retire in 2018 after a battle with cancer.

Stevens, who joined MBA in May 2011, will leave the association Sept. 30 after steering the group through the rocky post-financial-crisis era when mortgage bankers were under fire for shoddy lending practices.

{mosads}”With my cancer in remission, focusing on family, friends and staying healthy is my priority,” Stevens said in a statement.

“This was a difficult decision; it’s hard to walk away from supporting an industry that shaped my career,” he said.

Stevens was first diagnosed with cancer in 2016.

During his six-year tenure, Stevens has been out front on urging Congress to complete an overhaul of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, which were taken under government control during the recession in 2008. 

Before joining the group, he led the Federal Housing Administration under the Obama administration starting in July 2009, playing a key role in shaping housing policy.

Under Stevens’s direction, the mortgage bankers group has surpassed membership growth expectations and its financial health is the best in its 104-year history. 

“We all support Dave in his decision,” said David Motley, the group’s 2018 chairman.

“Dave has given his heart and soul to [Mortgage Bankers Association] for nearly seven years and on behalf of the entire membership, we are incredibly grateful for his leadership,” Motley said.