If you thought 2019 was a big year for AAPL, you ain’t seen nothing yet (to quote one of the top songs of the 70s and, yes, it’s Bachman Turner Overdrive, if you’re wracking your brain).

We’re opening the decade with our best foot forward as the private lending industry’s oldest and largest trade association. We remain strongly dedicated to promoting our members and the industry as viable alternatives for borrowing and investing. Every action we take supports that mission.

Here are just a few of the tangibles we already have for you in 2020:

We are launching the private lending industry’s first benchmark data survey this quarter in partnership with Zelman & Associates. If you are an owner-operator or C-suite-level executive in the private lending industry, you should be signing up to respond now at aaplonline.com/industry-survey. The survey is quarterly, with respondents gaining access to the aggregate reports from the AAPL/Zelman Private Lender survey and Zelman’s most popular report, the Housing Market Overview. To see why this is a true business gamechanger for any survey respondent, check out Zelman’s article on page 46.

Certified Fund Manager is now available as an online course for any and all AAPL members. As of the new year, you can watch videos, take the exam and download your certificate/CFM emblem from the comfort of anywhere you can access the internet. Our in-person courses will expand on the video course content.

We are hard at work fighting New York Senate tax bill SB3060E, which, if passed, is likely to snowball across the nation. Check out Matt Gunter’s article on page 8 for why this kind of legislation will destroy the fix-and-flip industry. Specialty Lending Group’s Case Study on page 20 sheds light on why legislators are misguided in thinking flippers hurt affordable housing. And, Kat Hungerford’s article on page 78 outlines our legislative strategy.

The 2020 AAPL Annual Conference is already off to a strong start. We launched our all-new conference site at aaplonline.com/conference, with registration now open for the nation’s single largest private lending event. We are also ecstatic to welcome back both 2019 Title sponsors: AlphaFlow for the third consecutive year, and Residential Capital Partners for the second. Check out our 2019 highlights with testimonials and photos on page 60.

As always, we appreciate the support of our members, sponsors and advertisers. Your dollars have helped us achieve some very big goals. Keep your eyes open, because really, you ain’t seen nothing yet!

Linda Hyde,

Managing Director, American Association of Private Lenders