Freedom Mortgage CEO Stanley Middleman Presented with Henderson Real Estate Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award
From a vantage point among Center City skyscrapers, the Henderson Real Estate Institute (HREI) awarded its second annual Lifetime Achievement Award to an individual at the pinnacle of his profession.
Stanley Middleman, president and CEO of Freedom Mortgage, received this award at HREI’s Overcoming Barriers event, held in October at Philadelphia’s Pyramid Club. In addressing an audience of LeBow students, faculty, alumni, business leaders and HREI supporters, Middleman demonstrated the same down-to-earth and engaging manner he exhibited during a spring visit to Gerri C. LeBow Hall.
Middleman was recognized for his leadership in the mortgage-lending industry and for continuing to grow and lead the company he founded in 1990, Freedom Mortgage. First established in New Jersey and now headquartered in Florida, Freedom Mortgage is one of the largest mortgage lenders in the United States.
Carter Murdoch, PhD, executive director of the Henderson Real Estate Institute, noted the increased attendance by students for the second annual Overcoming Barriers event.
“This year’s event drew over 100 students, who not only heard life guidance from Stan Middleman but were also able to interact with established real estate executives on the HREI Advisory Board,” he says. “It was really a win-win for all who attended.”
Drawing on themes from his 2024 book, “Seeing Around Corners: Achieving Success in Business and Life,” Middleman took part in a Q&A session with Drexel President Antonio Merlo, PhD where he shared the qualities he feels are most important for achieving success, as well as his advice for educating and empowering the next generation of business leaders.
“Teach others what you learn,” he says, observing that sharing knowledge creates a personal feedback loop that strengthens your own understanding.
In addition, he defined leadership as being about confidence, empathy and accountability and noted that leaders must say what they mean, mean what they say and always take responsibility for the outcome.
“The hardest thing for a leader to do is get the whole team to put their oars in the water and pull at the same time,” he says, in an analogy that’s fitting for Drexel’s historical and recent accomplishments in rowing. “In order to do this, they have to trust you.”
He also noted that, at this stage in his career, he spends time thinking “What’s next? Who can I bring with me, and how can we succeed?”
