FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, July 31, 2025
Media Contact: Penny Martin
Phone: 614.728.2911
Email: pmartin@ohiohome.org
Ohio Housing Finance Agency Announces New Staff
COLUMBUS, OH - The Ohio Housing Finance Agency (OHFA) is proud to share that Ryan Botson, Celestine Gunn, Benjamin Peyton, and Derrick Wilson have joined the agency.
Ryan Botson is a new housing examiner trainee in the Office of Multifamily Housing Programs, Compliance Division. After obtaining his degree in lodging and tourism management from Cuyahoga Community College, he spent eight years in multifamily property management in the downtown Cleveland market.
Celestine Gunn joins OHFA's Office of Residential Lending as a new administrative professional Prior to joining OHFA, she worked at Huntington National Bank as a mortgage loan processor, coordinating government loans for the purchase and refinance of properties and assisting with the training of colleagues for five years. Celestine graduated summa cum laude with two undergraduate degrees – one in business administration and the other in management and leadership – from Franklin University. Recently, she also earned her MBA from Franklin University.
Ben Peyton joins OHFA as the new 4% housing tax credit section chief. Before coming to OHFA, Ben was the assistant director of Housing Development at the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) of Pittsburgh where his residential lending team managed the gap-financing programs for multifamily and single-family developments. He also worked as a program officer with Local Initiatives Support Corp (LISC), a national Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), in Kansas City, Missouri, where he originated and underwrote loans and grants for residential and commercial projects. He majored in political science at The Ohio State University where he also earned a master's degree in public policy and management from the John Glenn College of Public Affairs in 2012.
Derrick Wilson is also a new housing examiner trainee in the Office of Multifamily Housing Programs, Compliance Division. Although his career began in automobile manufacturing, Derrick transitioned into the housing industry in 2018. He acquired a certification to perform real estate inspections for Multiple Listing Service (MLS) client listings as well as foreclosed distressed properties. Shortly after, he focused on subsidized housing receiving additional U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) certifications, such as Housing Quality Standards (HQS) and National Standards for the Physical Inspection of Real Estate (NSPIRE), which enabled him to inspect Housing Choice Voucher (HCV), public housing, and other properties in Ohio, Texas, and Arizona. He received an associate degree in architectural engineering and a bachelor's degree in industrial management from Baker College of Flint.
The Ohio Housing Finance Agency is an Equal Opportunity Housing entity. Loans are available on a fair and equal basis regardless of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, military status, disability or ancestry. Please visit www.ohiohome.org for more information.