Career Meets Purpose Hub

Lending and Credit

Overview

Lending and credit professionals at CDFIs operate at the intersection of mission and finance. They originate, underwrite, and manage loans that expand opportunity in under-resourced communities — financing everything from affordable housing and small businesses to community facilities and climate solutions.

Underwriting is a core function of these roles. Practitioners assess borrower capacity, feasibility, and risk factors to determine how to structure loans that are both financially sound and mission-aligned. Unlike commercial lenders who focus primarily on financial returns, CDFIs balance credit risk with the potential for community impact, ensuring each loan meets sound standards while advancing the organization’s mission.

Lending teams also act as product innovators and collaborative problem-solvers. Senior professionals design and test new loan products, structure financing programs, and adapt underwriting approaches to close capital gaps. Across the industry, lenders work in partnership with colleagues, community organizations, and other financial institutions to provide technical assistance, assemble financing, and ensure borrowers succeed.

The work of a CDFI lender can look different depending on the communities and projects they serve. Common focus areas include affordable housing, commercial real estate, community facilities, consumer lending, small business, and microenterprise — each contributing to stronger local economies.

Two women from Mountain Association holding notebooks, walking on a farm with a goat.
Image courtesy of Mountain Association, a CDFI based in Eastern Kentucky.

What Do Lenders Do?

  • Originate and underwrite loans. Source mission-aligned borrowers and projects, structure loan terms, and present recommendations to investment committees.
  • Conduct credit analysis. Evaluate financial viability and community impact of a borrower, preparing detailed credit memos and assessments to inform loan decisions.
  • Build borrower pipelines. Cultivate relationships with developers, entrepreneurs, community partners, and other key stakeholders in target markets.
  • Structure transactions. Navigate deal structures that may involve multiple funding sources, tax credits, and specialized financing products.
  • Design and refine loan products and programs. Develop new products or adapt existing ones to meet borrower needs and close capital gaps.
  • Leverage partnerships. Collaborate with other CDFIs, banks, foundations and other impact investors, public sector, and community organizations to assemble financing and expand reach.
  • Ensure quality control and compliance. Monitor and update lending policies and procedures, and ensure underwriting consistently meets internal and regulatory standards.
  • Coordinate loan closings. Work with legal teams, borrowers, and internal departments to finalize transactions smoothly.

Key Skills and Sample Job Titles

Analytical Skills

Lending professionals assess borrower and project information such as financial statements, market data, and community impact goals, and synthesize it into actionable insights. Strong analytical skills ensure that loans are underwritten with accuracy, depth, and mission alignment.

Professional Development Resources

Practitioner Resource Library

Access a curated library of tools and resources for CDFI lenders, including:

  • Purpose to Practice: Designing Loan Products
  • CDFI Loan Policy Guide
Find Resources

Trainings

Explore OFN’s growing course catalog of training, designed to help enhance the knowledge and skills you need to make greater impact in your role. Training specifically for lending practitioners includes:

  • Purpose to Practice: Assessing Lending Policies & Practices
  • Small Business Lending 101
  • Single-Family Housing Lending 101
  • Multifamily Housing Lending 101
  • Equity Lending 101
  • Climate Lending 101
Learn More

Peer Learning

OFN members are invited to join the following peer learning communities:

  • Directors of Lending: Affordable Housing, Commercial Real Estate, and Facilities
  • Directors of Lending: Micro and Small Business, Consumer

These are virtual spaces to network, share information, and problem-solve with peers on an ongoing basis.

Learn More

Faces of the Industry

Shellon Fraser headshot
Jaron Thexton headshot
Kelsie Bouchard headshot
Richard Reynoso headshot
Priscilla Woo headshot
Shellon Fraser headshot
Jaron Thexton headshot
Kelsie Bouchard headshot
Richard Reynoso headshot
Priscilla Woo headshot

“This role allows me the opportunity to make a difference in communities, by ensuring affordable housing projects can move forward. The capital provided by my team is oftentimes the critical piece that allows projects to work! There’s something satisfying about knowing this is what happens when I come to work!”

— Shellon Fraser, Senior Director of Lending and Investments, National Housing Trust

“What I appreciate most about my lending role at a CDFI is connecting with passionate business owners every day. Each conversation offers a chance to learn from their creativity, resilience, and drive. It’s deeply rewarding to support people who are pursuing their passions and to play a small part in helping their visions come to life.”

— Jaron Thexton, Credit Analyst, Pacific Community Ventures

“CDFIs are a vital part of Maine’s economic ecosystem, regularly fueling projects that wouldn’t happen without our resources. I care deeply about the state’s economic outlook and appreciate that CEI’s lending creates opportunity for people who live and work here – it is deeply meaningful to be part of an organization and industry committed to real, measurable impact.”

— Kelsie Bouchard, Chief Lending and Investment Officer, Coastal Enterprises Inc.

“After entering the job market in 2007 and seeing the topsy turvy banking world during the Great Recession I felt a sense of wanting to give back. Using the credit skills, I perfected after working at institutions like Citigroup, Barclays Capital, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi and CIT Healthcare, I decided to commit to the CDFI space and merge my love of credit with my love of community.”

— Richard Reynoso, Chief Lending Officer, Accompany Capital

“I see first-hand how our program adds to and creates impact in the stories of small businesses – to be the First to Believe in their business idea, goals, and new ventures, and seeing how the business grows and develops over time. I also see my own family in these stories and can see how my role at a CDFI can help empower and provide support from the beginning and throughout the life of a business owner’s journey.”

— Priscilla Woo, Director of Lending, Working Solutions CDFI

“This role allows me the opportunity to make a difference in communities, by ensuring affordable housing projects can move forward. The capital provided by my team is oftentimes the critical piece that allows projects to work! There’s something satisfying about knowing this is what happens when I come to work!”

— Shellon Fraser, Senior Director of Lending and Investments, National Housing Trust

“What I appreciate most about my lending role at a CDFI is connecting with passionate business owners every day. Each conversation offers a chance to learn from their creativity, resilience, and drive. It’s deeply rewarding to support people who are pursuing their passions and to play a small part in helping their visions come to life.”

— Jaron Thexton, Credit Analyst, Pacific Community Ventures

“CDFIs are a vital part of Maine’s economic ecosystem, regularly fueling projects that wouldn’t happen without our resources. I care deeply about the state’s economic outlook and appreciate that CEI’s lending creates opportunity for people who live and work here – it is deeply meaningful to be part of an organization and industry committed to real, measurable impact.”

— Kelsie Bouchard, Chief Lending and Investment Officer, Coastal Enterprises Inc.

“After entering the job market in 2007 and seeing the topsy turvy banking world during the Great Recession I felt a sense of wanting to give back. Using the credit skills, I perfected after working at institutions like Citigroup, Barclays Capital, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi and CIT Healthcare, I decided to commit to the CDFI space and merge my love of credit with my love of community.”

— Richard Reynoso, Chief Lending Officer, Accompany Capital

“I see first-hand how our program adds to and creates impact in the stories of small businesses – to be the First to Believe in their business idea, goals, and new ventures, and seeing how the business grows and develops over time. I also see my own family in these stories and can see how my role at a CDFI can help empower and provide support from the beginning and throughout the life of a business owner’s journey.”

— Priscilla Woo, Director of Lending, Working Solutions CDFI