Donating with loans

By Sarah Peters, <a href=”mailto:[email protected]”>[email protected]</a>

Oct. 4, 2010 8:12 PM PT

NEWPORT BEACH — What if buying a new home meant that you were doing something good for more than just your family?

A new home loan program called Loans4Love, a division of the American Financial Network, announced last week that it will donate a portion of the lending fee to a nonprofit organization for every loan it makes.

At a recent ribbon-cutting ceremony for Loans4Love’s offices on Van Karman Avenue in Newport Beach, $5,000 coming from loans made in the weeks prior to opening the new headquarters was presented to several local nonprofits.

“President John F. Kennedy said, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country,’” Mayor Keith Curry said at the event. “Loans[4]Love is doing just that with their unique business model, which puts words into practice.”

The Loans4Love program aims to become the largest donation vehicle in the country to help fund nonprofits and other entities such as local schools and public safety agencies, without requiring donors to write a check, according to loans4love.com.

The program allows people to choose their favorite nonprofit — as long as it’s registered and meets state and federal laws — to receive a percentage of their loan’s fee. Stressful home loan or refinance becomes a chance for people to give back to their communities, according to the website.

Up to 25% of the loan’s 1% origination fee will be donated to a charity of the borrower’s choice.

“Our mission is to empower people with a unique and very easy way to have a direct, positive impact in their community,” according to a statement from David Ludington, Community Outreach founder, president and chief executive. “And, at the same time, our approach to lending is designed to maintain the highest ethical standards in the industry.

“We also know that buying a home can be overwhelming. Our expertise in home purchasing and refinancing along with our consortium of FDIC lenders across the nation and the Loans4Love program ensure not only the best financing to fit each personal situation, but an opportunity to help rebuild the community in which people live and call home.”

Additionally, Loans4Love is able to offer consumers a low-cost, transparent loan with a standard fixed fee, Ludington said.

“Our movement is designed to challenge others to make a difference,” Ludington said. “We firmly believe that it is in giving that you receive.”