The Need
US Mortgage Notes, Inc. (USMN) is a Scranton-based minority and women-owned fintech startup company that aims to help banks identify investment opportunities that will benefit low-moderate income (LMI) communities. Founded in 2021 by Jason Engerman, PhD (‘16, Penn State College of Education) and his partners, Jasmine Willois and Ethan Anthony, USMN is developing a data platform that will connect banks with local leaders who possess the in-depth, real-time insights needed to direct Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) funding effectively.
Making Connections
In October 2024, Jason attended a forum at Penn State hosted by PennTAP, where he met PennTAP technical advisor Krista Schneider. He shared that he was looking for an affordable way to get a prototype of the online platform designed. This online platform would help USMN connect their clients with the appropriate banks.
Krista connected Jason to the Penn State College of Engineering Learning Factory, a semester-long program that provides students with practical hands-on experience through industry-sponsored and client-based capstone design projects.
The Project
Thanks to grant funding provided by Penn State’s Farrell Center for Corporate Innovation and Entrepreneurship, USMN was able to sponsor a team of six computer science students during the spring 2024 semester through the Learning Factory to develop the framework for the web application. Led by instructor Steven Shaffer, the student team, composed of Chris Kurcz, Ramon Cruz, Tanner Piotrowski, Jeremiah Trest, Xiangting Li, and Garrett Fairman, designed a proof-of-concept prototype platform to simplify user communications and transactions. The students implemented AI technology to conduct matchmaking based on user profiles. Jason met with the student team weekly to guide them on platform needs, brainstorm solutions, and provide feedback on their progress.
The student team presented their project design at the Spring 2024 Learning Factory Showcase, which can be viewed here: Using AI to build a more efficient US mortgage notes exchange.
“It was a great experience all around,” said Jason. “The student team was highly skilled and a pleasure to work with, and I think they learned a lot too.”
Future Projects
Following completion of the student project, USMN utilized other grant funding they received to fund temporary follow-on employment for one of the Learning Factory graduates, who helped further refine the platform. Currently, USMN is working with a fellow participant of the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeast PA (BFTP-NEP) Scranton, TechVentures incubator, SHOtechnology Solutions, to launch a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) in 2025.
“PennTAP’s assistance was really valuable,” said Jason. “Beyond the grant Krista helped us secure, we were able to connect with community leaders and other Penn State resources like the Scranton LaunchBox, which pulled together client focus groups for us. This helped us refine our client profiles. The LaunchBox also helped us refine our strategic plan and connect with local banks.”
USMN is continuing to raise capital for its startup and is pursuing a funding opportunity through BFTP-NEP. The startup is also looking to connect with regulators within the banking industry to gain insight into the process lenders use to identify CRA compliant opportunities.
About the Client
US Mortgage Notes, Inc
Industry: Fintech
Contact: Jason Engerman
Location: Scranton, PA
Phone: 570-397-0170
Email: info@usmortgagenote.com