Andrew Housser
Encyclopedia
Andrew Housser is a financial expert and entrepreneur who co-founded, with Bradford Stroh
, Freedom Financial Network, which provides consumer finance services
through its divisions: Freedom Debt Relief
, Bills.com
, Freedom Tax Relief
and Freedom Mortgage.
, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society.
in New York City in the company's investment banking division.
Housser and his business partner, Brad Stroh
, founded Freedom Financial Network in 2002. Freedom Debt Relief, the largest division of Freedom Financial Network, provides debt settlement
services. Debt settlement, also known as debt arbitration or debt negotiation, is a unique approach to debt reduction in which the debtor and creditor agree on a reduced balance that will be regarded as payment in full.
The company was founded with the goal of providing consumers with a viable alternative to bankruptcy as a way to get out of debt. "We looked long and hard at the collection industry," Housser said. "You have the biggest companies in the world--banks, collectors law firms--all ganging up on the consumer who has no advocate. We saw an opportunity."
Freedom Debt Relief
is an accredited member of the American Fair Credit Council (AFCC). Andrew Housser serves on AFCC's Board of Directors, a position he has held since 2006, when it operated under the name The Association of Settlement Companies.. In 2010, he was awarded the association’s President's Award for outstanding voluntary service to the organization and contributions that “benefits the consumer”. Within the AFCC, Andrew plays a key role in promoting strong consumer legislation at the state and federal level, including important work the industry conducted with the Federal Trade Commission with respect to federal regulation for the industry. He played a vital role in reinventing the industry association to focus on its mission of credit advocacy, as well as strict compliance with the new federal regulations.
In 2005, Stroh and Housser purchased the Bills.com domain and relaunched it as a website that provides consumers with information and interactive tools dealing with personal finance
topics including debt relief assistance
, mortgage loans, and insurance
. In 2008, Entrepreneur magazine named Bills.com #3 in the Hot 100 Fastest Growing Companies in America.
Housser is also frequently called upon as an expert by the print, broadcast and online news media. He has been quoted in publications such as The New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, CNBC, BankRate and AOL Money & Finance. As part of his company's effort to help educate American consumers on credit, debt and personal finance management, Housser is a weekly contributor to WorldNow, one of the country's largest online media content producers. With WorldNow's online presence through more than 400 media companies - including CBS Radio, Cox, Dispatch, Entravision, Fisher, Gray, Griffin, Journal, Landmark, Media General, Quincy, Raycom Media, Schurz, Titan and Waterman & Young - Housser regularly reaches nearly 2 million readers each week with timely consumer finance information.
Housser's company was also recognized as one of the best places to work in 2008 and 2009 by the San Francisco Business Times and Phoenix Business Journal.
Bradford Stroh
Bradford G. Stroh is an entrepreneur, who has founded and led several companies, and also an author. Stroh co-founded Freedom Financial Network and several related specialty finance businesses...
, Freedom Financial Network, which provides consumer finance services
Financial services
Financial services refer to services provided by the finance industry. The finance industry encompasses a broad range of organizations that deal with the management of money. Among these organizations are credit unions, banks, credit card companies, insurance companies, consumer finance companies,...
through its divisions: Freedom Debt Relief
Freedom Debt Relief
Freedom Debt Relief is a debt settlement company based in San Mateo, California, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Freedom Financial Network, LLC a financial service company headquartered in San Mateo California. The company has served more than 100,000 clients since its inception in 2002...
, Bills.com
Bills.com
Bills.com provides consumers with information and interactive tools dealing with personal finance topics, including credit cards, insurance, debt relief assistance, mortgage loans, student loans and other personal loans. The company is one of the five divisions of Freedom Financial Network. ...
, Freedom Tax Relief
Freedom Tax Relief
FreedomTaxRelief.com provides tax resolution services including tax preparation, Internal Revenue Service payment plans, offer in compromise as well as other tax services for individuals and businesses that owe taxes.-History:...
and Freedom Mortgage.
Education
Housser received his MBA from Stanford Business School, where he was an Arjay Miller Scholar, and received a BA from Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society.
Career
Prior to founding Freedom Financial Network, Housser was an investor in a variety of services, manufacturing and distribution companies at Littlejohn & Company, a private equity firm based in Greenwich, Connecticut. Prior to Littlejohn & Company, he worked for Smith BarneySmith Barney
Morgan Stanley Smith Barney is a retail brokerage joint venture between Morgan Stanley and Citigroup.On January 13, 2009, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup announced that Citigroup would sell 51% of Smith Barney to Morgan Stanley, creating Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, which was formerly a division of...
in New York City in the company's investment banking division.
Housser and his business partner, Brad Stroh
Bradford Stroh
Bradford G. Stroh is an entrepreneur, who has founded and led several companies, and also an author. Stroh co-founded Freedom Financial Network and several related specialty finance businesses...
, founded Freedom Financial Network in 2002. Freedom Debt Relief, the largest division of Freedom Financial Network, provides debt settlement
Debt settlement
Debt settlement, also known as debt arbitration, debt negotiation or credit settlement, is an approach to debt reduction in which the debtor and creditor agree on a reduced balance that will be regarded as payment in full....
services. Debt settlement, also known as debt arbitration or debt negotiation, is a unique approach to debt reduction in which the debtor and creditor agree on a reduced balance that will be regarded as payment in full.
The company was founded with the goal of providing consumers with a viable alternative to bankruptcy as a way to get out of debt. "We looked long and hard at the collection industry," Housser said. "You have the biggest companies in the world--banks, collectors law firms--all ganging up on the consumer who has no advocate. We saw an opportunity."
Freedom Debt Relief
Freedom Debt Relief
Freedom Debt Relief is a debt settlement company based in San Mateo, California, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Freedom Financial Network, LLC a financial service company headquartered in San Mateo California. The company has served more than 100,000 clients since its inception in 2002...
is an accredited member of the American Fair Credit Council (AFCC). Andrew Housser serves on AFCC's Board of Directors, a position he has held since 2006, when it operated under the name The Association of Settlement Companies.. In 2010, he was awarded the association’s President's Award for outstanding voluntary service to the organization and contributions that “benefits the consumer”. Within the AFCC, Andrew plays a key role in promoting strong consumer legislation at the state and federal level, including important work the industry conducted with the Federal Trade Commission with respect to federal regulation for the industry. He played a vital role in reinventing the industry association to focus on its mission of credit advocacy, as well as strict compliance with the new federal regulations.
In 2005, Stroh and Housser purchased the Bills.com domain and relaunched it as a website that provides consumers with information and interactive tools dealing with personal finance
Personal finance
Personal finance is the application of the principles of finance to the monetary decisions of an individual or family unit. It addresses the ways in which individuals or families obtain, budget, save, and spend monetary resources over time, taking into account various financial risks and future...
topics including debt relief assistance
Debt relief
Debt relief is the partial or total forgiveness of debt, or the slowing or stopping of debt growth, owed by individuals, corporations, or nations. From antiquity through the 19th century, it refers to domestic debts, in particular agricultural debts and freeing of debt slaves...
, mortgage loans, and insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
. In 2008, Entrepreneur magazine named Bills.com #3 in the Hot 100 Fastest Growing Companies in America.
Housser is also frequently called upon as an expert by the print, broadcast and online news media. He has been quoted in publications such as The New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, CNBC, BankRate and AOL Money & Finance. As part of his company's effort to help educate American consumers on credit, debt and personal finance management, Housser is a weekly contributor to WorldNow, one of the country's largest online media content producers. With WorldNow's online presence through more than 400 media companies - including CBS Radio, Cox, Dispatch, Entravision, Fisher, Gray, Griffin, Journal, Landmark, Media General, Quincy, Raycom Media, Schurz, Titan and Waterman & Young - Housser regularly reaches nearly 2 million readers each week with timely consumer finance information.
Housser's company was also recognized as one of the best places to work in 2008 and 2009 by the San Francisco Business Times and Phoenix Business Journal.
Awards
- Winner of 2008 Ernst & Young Entrepreneurs of the Year for the Northern California region
- Named to the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal's "40 Under 40" list
- Bills.com was No. 17 on Inc. Magazine's Top 100 Financial Services Companies in the Bay Area in 2008
- Bills.com was No. 12 on Inc. Magazine's Top 100 Businesses in the Bay Area in 2008