Gurtler recently told Scotsman Guide that her wild growth was due to a lot of hard work and sacrifice. Her first two years, she had to hit the gas and learn as much as she could without falling behind. It was difficult, but she thrived in the high-pressure environment.

Now she’s hit her stride and is intimately familiar with the loan process in New York — which she calls “very long and unique” — as well as the other states she originates in. She studies constantly, keeping up with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac rules along with special guidelines for self-employed borrowers. And Gurtler is organized and proactive, with spreadsheets full of borrowers who locked in at higher rates and a calendar packed with reminders to follow up.

She spends her working hours in Manhattan’s Financial District, in an office she calls “inspiring” because of co-workers who are team players (even if they’re technically competing for loans). After hours, you can find her at a comedy show in the city or at home cuddling her dog, Jax.

As a loan consultant for Ally, which partners with Better Mortgage Corp. on its digital platform, Gurtler has one of the largest marketing forces in the industry behind her. She also has a built-in client base in Ally’s banking and auto loan customers. While business slowed a bit in 2023, she still faces a unique problem in the current market: a full pipeline and more loans than she can close by herself.

“There is a lot of volume, so being able to get to everyone can be a challenge,” Gurtler said. “That requires a lot of hard work, a lot of dedication, to sit down and make those phone calls, answer those emails and be available as much as I can.”

She said she had to learn to be a leader and delegate when she needs assistance. She mentions her team often and affectionately, attributing much of her success to their support. Gurtler’s team of loan officer assistants keep in touch with borrowers early in the home purchase process and provide round-the-clock customer service.

This frees her up to focus on more immediate matters like borrowers with accepted offers, closing dates within 90 days and refinance applications. The market slowdown has allowed her more time to interface with each client and to chat with people who are still shopping. She’s earned one of the top accolades among Ally originators for spending so much time on the phone.

“I’m enjoying (the job) more because I feel like I’m giving that personal attention to my clients,” Gurtler said. “I’m building better connections, and I feel happier when they get their offer accepted or they get out of a high adjustable rate, because I know them more personally.”

The slowdown has also offered her a chance to regroup and “get off the hamster wheel.” Her company, she said, is focused on launching new services, including fully underwritten preapproval letters and a 24-hour turnaround on commitment letters.

“Having that in our back pocket is all the rage,” Gurtler said. “The Realtors love hearing that.”

She also has more time to travel and pursue her favorite hobby, snowboarding. Gurtler has made a point to travel to cities that are seeing a lot of in-migration, like Charlotte. When she talks to borrowers buying homes in these cities, it’s easier to build rapport because she understands the area and its way of life.

“I might be the only loan officer that feels this way, but I enjoyed 2023. Maybe not volume-wise, but I’m not in this industry to just make money,” Gurtler said.

Her biggest reward comes from helping people, especially first-time buyers, get into their dream homes. “My favorite thing in the world is when we go over their monthly payment and they tell me that it’s cheaper than rent. Best feeling,” she said. ●

Tips of the Trade

Work with your team if you’re lucky enough to have one. It’s impossible to do everything on your own. You need to work well with others and delegate. Those qualities can really help you reach more clients. Remember how important this is for the client — they’re buying a house or saving money on a refi. This is a big deal, so don’t lose sight of how you’re helping others. Make sure you follow up as much as possible. Stay on top of the borrower so they feel important, because they are.

The post Featured Top Originator: Marissa Gurtler, Ally powered by Better appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

Its beauty encompasses ski-ready slopes, alpine lakes, sandy beaches and glittering skyscrapers. And it’s a cultural center, where stars are born and trends are set. But for the average Californian, the cost of living is too high. Only 15% of households could afford a median-priced home as of third-quarter 2023, according to the California Association of Realtors. Consequently, California has the second-lowest homeownership rate among all states, trailing only New York.

More construction is desperately needed, but zoning issues, expensive fees, high material costs and scarce land make it difficult for developers. New zoning rules and approval processes have been implemented since Gov. Gavin Newsom took office in 2019, but most changes focus on multifamily buildings in an attempt to ease the state’s rental affordability crisis.

The number of new homes built reached a 15-year high point in 2022, but demand still isn’t being met. State officials say 180,000 new units per year are needed, with about 123,000 built in 2022. About half of those were single-family homes. The state wasn’t on track to meet that number in 2023. From January through November, 53,000 permits were authorized for new single-family homes.

Californians are getting creative to achieve homeownership, despite the challenges and a more expensive mortgage market. Many buyers are choosing to put down more money, with help from family or local downpayment assistance programs. Those who can are paying in cash or buying down interest rates. And many are choosing to “house hack.”

House hacking came to prominence several years ago, and renting out extra bedrooms to help pay the mortgage has become a relatively common practice. But Californians are leading the charge on a different kind of house hacking: the construction of accessory dwelling units, or ADUs.

Zoning changes in 2017 made it much easier to add ADUs to single-family lots in California, and construction of these units grew from 1,100 in 2016 to 20,600 in 2022 — or nearly 17% of all units built that year. ADUs are faster and less expensive to build than traditional homes.

These units can be financed with home equity loans and cash-out refinances. In October 2023, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) property rehab financing program was updated to allow more ADUs to qualify. Additionally, FHA underwriting will now recognize both existing and anticipated rental income from ADUs to qualify borrowers. California even has a grant program to help lower-income homeowners build ADUs.

This trend may not solve the housing crisis in California, but ADUs can help homeowners afford their mortgage while raising their property value. Even if they’re not being rented, ADUs are a good option for homeowners looking to create multigenerational housing for family members without sacrificing privacy or space in their home. ●

Home sales in California, which slowed significantly in the second half of 2022, rebounded slightly in the second and third quarters of 2023 before falling again. According to the California Association of Realtors (CAR), the seasonally adjusted annual rate of existing single-family home sales in the state totaled 223,940 in November. This was the lowest rate recorded since the Great Recession and represented a 5.8% year-over-year decrease.

Bolstered by a lack of supply, median home prices rose last year. In January 2023, the median price was $751,330, the lowest since first-quarter 2021, according to CAR data. Prices wobbled but rose throughout the year to reach $822,200 in November.

Despite overall growth in home prices, California’s most expensive markets saw the most dramatic declines in the nation, according to a SmartAsset analysis of Zillow data. The Bay Area cities of Dublin, San Francisco, Palo Alto and Fremont were the four cities most impacted, with home values dropping by an estimated 13% to 15% during the year ending in May 2023.

What the Locals Say

The Greater Sacramento market has definitely slowed down in the past year, but it’s still a healthy market, in my opinion. We have a lack of resale homes on the market, but there’s a lot of new home construction in the area. Unlike the Bay Area, we have more land availability, so we have more developers who are taking some of the agricultural lands and expanding out. Our boundaries are pushing out, and we’ve got a lot of opportunity and a lot of growth.

Right now, I would say the majority of homes being purchased are new construction. They have more inventory and there’s more building going on. On the resale side, I would say it’s slowed down, but it’s still a very hot market. If homes are priced right, they’re selling in 10 to 15 days. The market is still strong, but new home construction is stronger than resale.

I’m seeing people from the Bay Area and other states that are wanting to move out of those locations. They want larger homes, larger yards, more community. We have that affordability compared to a lot of major cities in the United States. We have the ability to be outdoors all year round, with accessibility to Lake Tahoe, the Bay Area, San Francisco and Southern California. It’s a lot safer than a lot of other cities, and you have community support and that small-town feel.

3 Cities to Watch

ANAHEIM

Due to its status as an entertainment destination, Anaheim has an economy that differs from many of its Southern California neighbors. Disneyland generates billions of dollars each year for the regional economy. This once-affordable Orange County market saw a 14.2% increase in median home sales prices during the year ending in September 2023, the biggest uptick in the nation. The metro area’s median price is now $1.1 million, while the median price in the city is $875,000.

CHULA VISTA

The San Diego metro area is pricey, with households in nearly every city and suburb paying more than half of their income on major homeownership expenses. The exception is Chula Vista, the bayside city that’s south of San Diego and just north of the Mexican border. On average, homeowners here allocate 48% of their income to mortgage and real estate tax payments, with a median asking price of $725,000 and a median household income of $96,200.

BERKELEY

The Bay Area has seen home values tumble in the past year after prices shot up 36% from 2020 to 2022. Berkeley is no stranger to this phenomenon as the city’s estimated average home value fell by more than 11%, or $183,000, during the year ending in May 2023. But the highly desirable suburb, home to the University of California at Berkeley, was slightly more insulated than some of its more expensive neighbors, which saw prices plummet by as much as 15%.

Sources: Bankrate, California Association of Realtors, California Department of Finance, CalMatters, Forbes, John Burns Research and Consulting, KSWB-TV, Los Angeles Times, Office of Gov. Gavin Newsom, Orange County Register, San Francisco Chronicle, SmartAsset, The Real Deal, The Sacramento Bee

The post Spotlight: California appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

These even go as far as redeveloping entire districts. In Somerville, Massachusetts, 20 acres of the Union Square neighborhood is being redeveloped as part of a master plan. Centered around a new light rail station to connect the area to downtown Boston and beyond, the $2 billion project will bring 2.4 million square feet of space crafted for companies in the life sciences, technology, arts and innovation sectors.

Only 2 miles away in Boston’s Allston neighborhood, home of Harvard Business School, a 9-acre mixed-use development is underway. The Enterprise Research Campus will include two new laboratory buildings; hundreds of apartment units; hotel, retail and restaurant space; and a sustainably built conference center.

Outside of Boston, smaller developments are underway. On the Massachusetts border with New Hampshire, the city of Haverhill is redeveloping 3 acres of historic buildings and vacant property in its downtown. Under the tutelage of preservation society Historic New England, Haverhill is slated to gain new retail and commercial space, live-work spaces for artists, housing and a hotel.

Rise Development is planning a $100 million movie and TV studio in the Boston suburb of Braintree in its effort to create a “Hollywood East.” And in Concord, New Hampshire, nearly 1,000 units of housing are being planned for a 135-acre, mixed-use development along the Merrimack River.

Small towns are also getting in on adaptive reuse. In rural northern Vermont, the town of Hardwick is saving its iconic Yellow Barn. The historic building will be transformed into retail space, with a new food and agricultural business center to be constructed next door, providing community cold-storage and warehouse space for farmers.

The overall economy in New England was strong in 2023, with low unemployment rates and stable gross domestic product (GDP) growth. According to August 2023 data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, overall employment in New England has fully recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The leisure and hospitality sector across these states is about 6% behind pre-pandemic levels. But unemployment rates are below the U.S. average across the board, with no state topping 3.5%. Vermont (2%) and New Hampshire (2.1%) had some of the lowest jobless rates in the country as of October. ●

The vacancy rate for industrial properties in Greater Boston continued to climb in the third quarter of 2023, but net absorption rose sharply, according to Cushman & Wakefield. Vacancies reached 6.9%, partially due to a robust pipeline of new construction. Nearly 4 million square feet (msf) of inventory was delivered in the first three quarters of last year, with another 4.7 msf still under development.

Preleasing activity was slow at that time, with the pipeline only 17.7% leased. The impact is far from devastating, however, as Cushman & Wakefield predicted that even if the rest of the delivered inventory for 2023 went completely unleased, the vacancy rate would rise by a modest 60 basis points.

The 495 West submarket, encompassing Boston’s far western suburbs, saw the most marked improvement. The submarket accounted for 51% of Greater Boston’s total quarterly occupancy gains, lowering its vacancy rate by 440 basis points to only 2.2%.

What the Locals Say

The market is tough right now. The issue that we’ve seen on our end is not that rates are too high, it’s just that they went from historic lows to this level way too fast. It’s hard for business owners, now more than ever, to weigh purchasing over leasing.

Here in Boston, we see fairly drastic differences within neighborhoods. For instance, in the Back Bay, the office market has been strong. It’s insulated because it’s a highly desirable area with a live-work feel and a strong residential component. But the Financial District has been struggling and has seen high vacancy rates continuing after the pandemic. On the retail side, it’s similar. There are some areas that are doing well, with relatively low vacancies, whereas downtown — since the daily influx of workers is much lower than it was before — it’s harder for retail businesses to sustain themselves. So, there’s higher vacancy downtown.

Investors, developers and businesses do consistently want to be in Boston because there are so many industries and institutions located here. There are lots of highly regarded colleges and universities like Harvard, MIT, Boston University and others, as well as internationally recognized hospitals.

Life sciences are a big thing in Boston right now, with ground-up developments and office conversions. There’s a constant influx of people to the city, and on the investment side, we seem pretty well insulated from giant upturns and downturns.

3 Cities to Watch

New Haven

Connecticut’s second-largest city is home to nearly 140,000 people. Steeped in history, New Haven’s centerpiece is Yale University. The university and its attached hospital and medical system are the city’s largest employers, combining for about 45,000 jobs. Biotech is another key industry in New Haven, spurred by the redevelopment of former factories into a scientific research campus. Advanced manufacturing and food services are economically significant too.

Springfield

The “City of Firsts” is the third largest in Massachusetts and is famous for innovation. Springfield is the birthplace of basketball and of Dr. Seuss. It’s also the home of the first American-made automobile and the nation’s first military armory, an important facility during the Revolutionary War. Firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson traces its roots in the city to 1856. Other major industries in the metro area include health care, aerospace and financial services.

Portland

Artsy, outdoorsy Portland is Maine’s most populous city. Its metro area is home to 550,000 people. Originally a fishing and trading settlement, Portland still boasts a working waterfront in the heart of a trendy downtown. Portland has seen intense development interest in the past several years, including new housing, luxury hotels, a convention center, a 10-acre waterfront neighborhood, and the redevelopment of a famous downtown office building into modern mixed-use space.

Sources: Boston Real Estate Times, Business Wire, City of New Haven, City of Springfield, Connecticut by the Numbers, Connecticut History, Engineering News-Record, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Maine Business Magazine, National Parks Service, Patch.com, Portland Press Herald, Springfield Regional Chamber of Commerce, Visit Portland, WWLP-TV

The post Spotlight: New England Region appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

Goss said she wanted a strong pedigree to be a professional mortgage banker. She served in the U.S. Marine Corps for five years, earning a degree in finance during her service, and then went to grad school at Boston University. She had to leave the Marines due to an injury but spoke highly of her experience, calling it one of her “greatest accomplishments.” In fact, Goss was only a few hours away from attending a Marine Corps ball when she recently spoke to Scotsman Guide.

She started her career at Navy Federal Credit Union as a member service representative and transitioned into mortgages after managing a bank branch at BB&T. There, she attended the “retail academy,” which taught her from the ground up how to do all kinds of loans, from conventional to home equity and business loans.

“I was able to break into cold calling people and learned to build relationships. Making calls and having day-to-day banking experience before I got into actual mortgage banking gave me a lot of context,” Goss said. “Being in the finance world made my foundation when I came into mortgage funding really, really strong. … I feel empowered to be able to help (my clients) because of that knowledge.”

Ten years into her career, Goss specializes in U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) lending. There’s a lot that people don’t understand about VA loans, Goss said, so she aims to be a source of education — the first one people call when they have questions. She’s visible in her community of Jacksonville, North Carolina, and she’s a familiar face at nearby Camp Lejeune, where she runs classes and seminars for service members.

All of this is great for business, and military relationships are at the core of her business. Goss further expands her influence by serving on the military affairs committee of her local chamber of commerce, stays involved with organizations like Hope for the Warriors and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and is active in online groups for military women.

She’s worked hard to build relationships and is never afraid to “get her hands dirty” by doing the heavy lifting, but she credits a lot of her success to her team. “There’s no scenario that we really haven’t seen, collectively,” Goss said. “I feel like that makes us more powerful.”

Despite some challenges — including a difficult 2023 full of ups and downs for her business — Goss is grateful and loves the career she’s worked so hard to build. “I got to watch my mom do it, and she made a difference in so many people’s lives, so I just love making that difference and I feel like I do it for the right reasons,” she said. ●

Tips of the Trade

I tell people all the time in this industry — because everybody wants to be a loan officer — if you’re doing this for the money, you’re doing it for the wrong reasons, because you will eventually fail. And if you’re looking for something balanced, then you need to pick another career. This is very high stress and you take work with you everywhere you go, even on vacation. You have to be ready to work and you have to have thick skin.

The post Featured Top Originator: Amy Goss, Guild Mortgage Co. appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

“I loved Greece — I really did — and I didn’t see myself ever leaving. … The plan was go, start a career and transition back to Greece. But life has different plans sometimes,” Petritsis said. “This is where I met my wife and we made a home here.”

The couple had three daughters and settled down, but Petritsis and his wife Georgia are keeping their dream alive. They plan to return to Greece for half of each year when they retire.

Life also had plans to move him again, from Albuquerque to Houston, where Wells Fargo offered him a position as an area manager in 2010. He settled there with his family and worked in a nonproducing role for a few years, which gave him time to expand his Rolodex of referral partners and develop a system for building deep relationships with them.

Now he’s back to producing loans at Prosperity Bank, where he’s worked since 2018. He still uses the same building blocks to create mutually beneficial partnerships with Realtors and homebuilders. Making Realtors happy, he said, comes down to three simple things: no surprises, expedited service and a consistent loan process.

Builder relationships are especially important to Petritsis too, since one of the bank’s most popular products is its one-time-close construction loan. He’s eagerly pursued hundreds of these relationships.

“In the one-time-close space, you need to have a relationship with the builder. That was the main focus: ‘How do we become friends with the local builders?’” Petritsis said, adding that he and his team aggressively pursued builders, charmed them with sharp underwriting skills, delivered on promises and executed smoothly.

The construction product — along with other useful tools offered by Prosperity such as home equity lines of credit, lot loans and options for non-U.S. residents — even nets referrals for Petritsis from other mortgage originators. Among his friends and connections in the industry, the products he offers are well known, so when another lender doesn’t have what Petritsis has, the client is often referred to him.

Business has slowed this year in the Houston area, he said, but it hasn’t been as dramatic as some other markets. Houston is a “relocation sweet spot,” Petritsis said, and people are still moving there. He invests time in every client, having a long conversation with them at the beginning of the mortgage process. The 30 to 45 minutes he spends getting to know each client helps him to understand exactly what they need and works to prevent any possible hiccups down the road.

“I really believe that when you communicate with a customer that it’s not about rate, it’s not about terms, it’s about helping them understand the process — a predictable process, I would say, with no surprises,” he said. “That’s what customers are ultimately looking for, to do business with somebody that understands their wants and needs, and gets them to the finish line.” ●

Tips of the Trade

Learn the business. What I mean by that is, be the processor, be the underwriter, know how to analyze income. Know every aspect of the business, and that will really help you better level with the customers and with your internal partners. What I recommend to everybody is to make friends in the industry. Don’t build a transactional relationship; make long-lasting relationships in the marketplace. Your Realtors or builders, everybody’s going through the same obstacles, so it’s OK to be human. Go deep on your relationships.

The post Featured Top Originator: Spiro Petritsis, Prosperity Bank appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

Thousands of originators made the cut for this year’s Top Dollar Volume list, with entrants from all 50 states as well as Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, but only 52 can be crowned as State Champions. The exceptional originators on the following pages had the highest sales volumes in their respective states in this year’s Top Originators rankings (which measure last year’s volumes).

The past few years saw plenty of real estate shake-ups across the nation, with migration patterns shifting and housing costs increasing. Last year set a record for most interstate movers, with 8.2 million people switching states and another 31 million people relocating within the same state, according to StorageCafe. The relatively expensive states of Alaska, New York, Illinois and California experienced the most negative net migration. Conversely, states like Idaho, Vermont, Montana and South Carolina have had high levels of positive net migration and tend to offer more affordable real estate.

Amid a high interest rate environment, movers are understandably eager to save money. Closing costs have increased alongside home prices, but several states are still affordable in this regard, according to an Assurance report released this past August. The lowest closing costs were in West Virginia, Alabama, South Carolina and Arkansas, all clocking in at less than $2,500 on average.

On the other end of the spectrum, New York, California and New Jersey had the highest closing costs, with expenses in each of these states averaging more than $7,500. Measured as a percentage of home value, however, the most expensive states for closing costs were Texas, New Mexico, Michigan and Wisconsin, where these miscellaneous expenses averaged more than 2.5% of a home’s value.

The state champion from Alabama, Kim Moon of FirstBank Mortgage, noted that migration is up in her market of Huntsville. The city grew 3.3% during the past year, its highest growth rate in a decade. And the Kentucky state champion, Jesse Cronen of Northpointe Bank, highlighted how his state’s relative affordability helps him to close more loans.

For this month’s rankings feature, Scotsman Guide reached out to six originators from all corners of the nation — from coast to coast and north to south — to learn what it’s like to work in their markets. Hear from Moon, Cronen and the four other Featured State Champions on Page 39.

This list is the final installment of the 2023 Top Originators series. We’ll take a break from rankings content for the next few months as we gear up for next year. The submission period will open Jan. 1, 2024, and the new rankings will debut in April. Visit scotsmanguide.com/rankings now to see updated guidelines, including changes to the qualification thresholds for dollar volumes and closed loans.

We can’t wait to see your name in next year’s Top Originators rankings. For now, enjoy the holiday season, and best wishes for the new year ahead.

Disparate home price gains between states

National home prices should rise by 3.4% during the year ending in August 2024, according to a forecast this past October from CoreLogic. In August 2023, prices rose 3.7% year over year, but state-level gains were vastly different across the board.

CoreLogic noted that eight states (Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New York, Texas, Utah and Washington) posted annualized declines in home prices. Four other states in the West — California, Colorado, Oregon and Wyoming — saw gains of 1% to 3%.

Much of the Midwest and Eastern Seaboard, meanwhile, saw increases of 5% or more, with the highest gains clustered in New England. New Hampshire led the nation with 9.4% year-over-year growth, while Maine and Vermont each saw increases of 8.9%. Among large metros, Miami led the pack with an 8.3% price gain. Chicago, Washington, D.C., and San Diego each had growth of more than 4%.

CoreLogic also measured the markets that are most at risk of home price declines in the coming year. It ranked the metro areas of Spokane, Washington; Cape Coral, Florida; Youngstown, Ohio; Ocala, Florida; and Deltona, Florida, at the top of this list. The report estimated the probability of price declines in these metros at more than 70%.

The post 2023 State Champions appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

ARIZONA

Brent Nardecchia

High Place Mortgage Inc.

2022 Production Numbers

Closed Loans: 199

Total Dollar Volume: $204 million

“I do what I say I’m going to do, I always show up, I communicate and I do what is best for my clients. Instead of just chasing commissions, I forge long-term relationships. And I’m in a luxury market, which keeps me on my toes with all different types of clients. Although we average loan amounts in the jumbo market, we service every client, including first-time homebuyers, veterans and more.”

OREGON

Julee Felsman

Guaranteed Rate

2022 Production Numbers

Closed Loans: 405

Total Dollar Volume: $180.5 million

“We get to do a little bit of everything — from jumbo to USDA, from condos to new construction, from vintage properties to manufactured homes. Urban, suburban and rural, we really run the gamut. And Oregonians are a creative and entrepreneurial lot, so many of our clients are self-employed or freelance. I love the challenge of keeping up on everything and never knowing what puzzle we’ll have the opportunity to solve next.”

IOWA

Amber Ernst

New American Funding

2022 Production Numbers

Closed Loans: 352

Total Dollar Volume: $72.1 million

“Our market is saturated with portfolio lenders, so it is a challenge sometimes to help the customer understand the difference between fixed-rate financing and combo ARMs. I really try to break it down and show pros and cons, so they understand. In a stable market, things are easy — everything stays the same. But when things change like they have, man, it is a blessing to have a fixed-rate loan.”

ALABAMA

Kim Moon

FirstBank Mortgage

2022 Production Numbers

Closed Loans: 229

Total Dollar Volume: $77.8 million

“I have been in the industry for 40 years and know a lot of people in my market (Huntsville). That is one of the benefits of working in the market where I live. Our market has been named one of the top cities in the U.S. to live for affordability, and we are growing at 3%-plus per year. A challenge is that our market is very rate- and cost-conscious. You must be very competitive on every deal.”

KENTUCKY

Jesse Cronen

Northpointe Bank

2022 Production Numbers

Closed Loans: 546

Total Dollar Volume: $146.7 million

“Kentucky is a very affordable market, thus allowing more clients to achieve the dream of homeownership. With that said, I’m also armed with many products to help meet clients’ needs and ultimately close more loans. If you take care of your clients and put their needs first, your referral base will grow. And with a strong referral base and a strong work ethic, you can grow to whatever heights you put your mind to.”

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Chris Cox

First Savings Mortgage

2022 Production Numbers

Closed Loans: 279

Total Dollar Volume: $200 million

“I have been in this business for over 25 years, and I have built long-lasting relationships with agents and real estate offices in the D.C. metro area. I have a talented team and back room. I am beyond lucky to work in Washington, D.C. I set up an office on Capitol Hill in the early 2000s and it was the best decision of my career. I immediately became easy to reach, meet with and drop in on, and this changed everything for me.”

The post 2023 Featured State Champions appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

The government-sponsored enterprises, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, have triggered an increased number of buybacks this year as they process the loans sold during and after the pandemic-initiated purchase and refinance boom. The timing couldn’t be worse, with these extra expenses coming while lenders’ pockets are already thin. Too many repurchases can spell disaster, especially for smaller lenders. But this impact isn’t felt only at the corporate level — these buybacks impact individual originators too.

“When any lender puts credit restrictions onto their business model, it is the least represented borrower that first gets impacted.”

Taylor Stork, president, Community Home Lenders of America

If you’ve noticed increased calls from confused former clients, you’re not alone, says Taylor Stork, a longtime originator and president of the Community Home Lenders of America (CHLA). When a loan is repurchased, it changes hands at least once, if not twice, and usually changes servicers. This triggers a flood of “hello” and “goodbye” letters to the borrower, who is likely to call their mortgage originator for help figuring out where to send payments.

As the originator, you’re unlikely to know what’s going on and will have to dig for information. If you’re a broker, Stork says, it’s likely you won’t be able to get any information at all, since you’re not privy to the transaction and it’s protected by information security rules.

“(Clients) expect me to make sure that they are taken care of all the way through the process,” Stork says. “For originators, it creates a tremendous amount of confusion. It certainly tarnishes the relationship that we have with our customers and with our referral sources.”

There’s an impact on the originator even before the buyback happens, says Brendan McKay, president of advocacy for the Association of Independent Mortgage Experts (AIME). Before a buyback goes through, the loan is audited. This often means requests to the originator for additional documents from the borrower, sometimes months or years after closing.

The GSEs argue that these loans don’t meet their quality standards, with Freddie Mac citing miscalculated income and missing documents as the two leading causes of buybacks. But lenders and mortgage advocacy organizations argue that many are returned to the lender for minor issues on loans that are still performing well. “These are not bad loans,” Stork says. “These are good loans that may have little, tiny technical errors.”

Often, the repurchase request is not even due to error. “A lot of these, as we’ve gone through them, have been [due to] appraisals,” says Scott Olson, CHLA’s executive director. “People had two appraisals. They both are fine and (the GSEs) are claiming, ‘No, we disagree.’ … It’s just a difference in judgment.”

A lender being forced to take back a performing loan may not seem like a dangerous prospect, but lenders often aren’t equipped to hold loans on their balance sheets. This means they must resell the loan after the buyback, and most lenders turn to what McKay terms the “scratch and dent” market to do so. Loans sold this way incur massive losses for the lender. And this puts smaller lenders at higher risk of default since the losses on only a few buybacks can make a huge difference on their balance sheets. “Getting a loan bought back is absolute misery,” McKay says.

These costs averaged 8 basis points per loan in 2020 before rising to 68 bps in 2023, according to McKay. “That cost, if it continues, is getting passed along to the loan officer and the consumer,” he says. “All of us are going to have worse rates. That’s why originators should care about this.”

Stork says the natural response by lenders and originators is to tighten qualification standards in an attempt to bulletproof the loans and prevent them from being bought back. “When any lender puts credit restrictions onto their business model, it is the least represented borrower that first gets impacted,” he says. “Buybacks result in a tightening of the credit box.”

This past October, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) tweaked its buyback policy for loans subject to COVID-19 forbearance. It also reported that GSE repurchase requests have passed their peak, with buybacks now trending downward. But there’s still work to be done.

The CHLA has called for the ceasing of all pandemic-era repurchase requests that aren’t tied to fraud, if the borrower is current on their payments. AIME has called for refinement of the buyback policy, as well as increased transparency and consistency around its enforcement. The FHFA said in October that the GSEs must implement a “fair, consistent and predictable process.” The eventual goal is to create less ambiguity in underwriting, which should reduce buybacks in the long term.

Buybacks are important for originators to understand because they’re on the frontlines and are likely to deal with the fallout. These include a tighter credit box, loan audits and more document requests. In the most dire circumstances, lenders could lay off staff or fold.

“They need to understand their responsibility in helping to protect the industry, whether for everyone’s good or their own good,” McKay says. “This type of pain doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s going to get shared by everybody.” ●

The post Loan buybacks are harming the mortgage landscape appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

But mortgage professionals answered various needs in their communities. Mortgage companies and their employees raised money for and devoted time to veteran nonprofits, pediatric care and refugee programs, among many other worthwhile causes. At least two mortgage companies founded charities in the name of executives who have died.

In this article, read about some of the charitable efforts taken up by the people in the mortgage industry. Scotsman Guide plans to publish this feature online each quarter. If you or your company are holding an event or fundraiser, share the details at articles@scotsmanguide.com.

The MBA Opens Doors Foundation received $2,684,526 in corporate and individual donations this past September during its Annual Appeal fundraising campaign to kick off fiscal year 2024. The proceeds will support the foundation’s mission of helping vulnerable families with critically ill or injured children stay in their homes while their child is in treatment. The foundation, through its Home Grant Program, provides relief to these families with housing assistance grants of up to $2,000 per month.

During the three-day campaign, the foundation received pledges from 41 companies and 52 individuals. Six companies pledged $100,000 or more in support, led by CMG Financial, which pledged $200,000, and Pingora Asset Management, which pledged $150,000.

Additional companies pledging $100,000 or more were Arch MI, Citizens Bank, Freedom Mortgage, Lennar Mortgage, Radian Group Inc. and Pennymac. Four companies pledged $75,000, including AmeriHome, Intercontinental Exchange, Pulte Financial Services and Taylor Morrison Home Funding, while 25 companies pledged $25,000 or more. Personal pledges totaled $577,526 and exceeded last year’s personal commitments.

Mortgage lender Pennymac sponsored the second annual Stanford L. Kurland Memorial Golf Classic in partnership with the Sheila and Stanford L. Kurland Family Foundation. The two-day event this past July raised more than $2 million for brain cancer research that is conducted by the UCLA Neuro-Oncology Program. Stanford L. Kurland founded Pennymac in 2008. Under his leadership, it has become one of the largest residential mortgage lenders and servicers in the nation.

Kurland was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor in 2020 and received exceptional treatment and care at UCLA’s neuro-oncology facilities. Sheila Kurland, co-founder of the foundation, said she took comfort in knowing her husband’s legacy will help save lives due to UCLA and its doctors.

The Guild Giving Foundation, a nonprofit organization created by Guild Mortgage, hosted its fourth annual charity golf tournament, auction and dinner social in October 2022, raising a total of $380,000 for local charities. The proceeds from the 2022 event were awarded to local charities serving the San Diego community, including MyPath2Own Dedicated to Lisa Klika, the Urban Corps of San Diego County and Home Start.

MyPath2Own is a new charitable program that Guild launched in 2023 in honor of Lisa Klika, the company’s late chief compliance officer. It is designed to help potential borrowers become mortgage ready through homebuyer education, concierge service and closing cost assistance grants. Klika was a strong supporter of homeownership for communities in need. The charity will receive an initial check for $180,000 from the proceeds of the 2022 golf tournament. Guild Mortgage is headquartered in San Diego.

Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation recognized national real estate title and escrow company Title Alliance this past summer with a Top Fundraising Award. The recognition stems from the Pennsylvania-based company’s monthlong “TA Gives Back” campaign from 2022, when its team members, partners and clients raised nearly $9,600 for the charity, which supports patients and families affected by pediatric cancer. Many of the offices across the 12-state Title Alliance footprint held “Yellow Days” and participated in a lemon challenge to raise funds. For the Title Alliance Gives Back Lemon Challenge, participants were challenged to suck on a lemon for 30 seconds and/or make a campaign donation. The fundraising award is given by Alex’s Lemonade Stand to celebrate contributions of $5,000 or more.

Sun West Mortgage Co. was nominated for an award at the 2022 National Philanthropy Day for its outstanding effort, commitment and support for The Autism Community in Action. Sun West was nominated for the Outstanding Large Corporation or Business Award, which recognizes a business that has created a culture of philanthropy within its organization and has actively demonstrated its commitment to improving the community. For the past 10 years, the family-owned business has been dedicated to providing free education, support and hope to families living with autism. Through this effort, Sun West has provided life-changing resources to more than 50,000 families.

Real estate company Morguard gave back to communities across the U.S. with its North Pole Express initiative during the 2022 holiday season. Residents at Morguard properties collected books, bears, pajamas, blankets and essential hygiene items that were donated to international nonprofit Comfort Cases, an organization whose mission is to aid youth in foster care. The Canadian-based Morguard owns residential, retail, office, industrial and hotel properties, and it manages real estate and financial assets for institutional investors.

Freedom Alliance, U.S. Bank and True Homes partnered this past August to honor U.S. Army Pvt. Roy Garcia and his family with the gift of a mortgage-free home in Monroe, North Carolina. The newly built house was donated by U.S. Bank through its Housing Opportunities after Military Engagement program, in conjunction with Freedom Alliance’s Heroes to Homeowners program. Since 2013, U.S. Bank has donated 22 homes valued at $4.8 million to deserving military families in thriving communities across the country. Garcia enlisted in 2008 and was deployed to Kunar Province in Afghanistan in 2010. He and his unit participated in a joint operation with the Army Rangers and Afghan troops against the Taliban. The fighting was immediate and intense. Garcia’s unit lost their medic, and within 24 hours their numbers were reduced from 22 platoon members to nine due to injuries that required medical evacuation. During his deployment, Garcia also helped build a school for Afghan children, provided security for election day voting and established relations with village elders. Upon his return, he met his future wife, Allison, and they married in 2012.

The MBA Opens Doors Foundation announced this past July that it raised $234,536 at its annual Charity Wine Auction held during the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Chairman’s Conference in Manalapan, Florida. The funds raised will support the foundation’s mission of providing mortgage and rental-assistance grants to families with critically ill or injured children, allowing parents and guardians to be by a child’s side during treatment without fear of losing their home. The foundation has provided more than $22 million in mortgage and rental-payment assistance to nearly 15,000 families since its inception in 2011, making it a critical part of a family’s support structure while their child is ill. Grants of up to $2,000 are made monthly to families with a child in treatment at one of the foundation’s network of 13 children’s hospitals.

Freedom Mortgage and Radian Group Inc. extended their support this past August to the MBA Opens Doors Foundation, which has an alliance with Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Freedom Mortgage has committed an additional $600,000 over six years, and Radian has committed an additional $500,000 over five years. The foundation partners with the hospital’s social workers to identify families with critically ill or injured children in need of mortgage or rental-payment assistance as potential grant recipients. The first set of housing grants were made to the hospital in March 2020 and nearly $1 million in housing assistance to 660 families has been provided since then.

After a two-year hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Carrington Charitable Foundation held its 10th annual golf classic on Oct. 10, 2022, at The Resort at Pelican Hill in Newport Coast, California. The event raised more than $2 million for its initiatives that aid U.S. service members returning from post-9/11 battlefields. The foundation is the nonprofit arm of The Carrington Companies. More than 250 golfers participated, and the event culminated in a dinner and auction attended by more than 450 people. Since 2011, the charity golf tournament, together with its React 2020 and 2021 virtual events, has raised more $27 million for veterans and their families

Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit serving America’s military families, presented Cornerstone Awards in December 2022 to Ali Haralson, president of Auction.com, and Len McMorrow, senior vice president of default recovery and litigation at U.S. Bank. The awards are for individuals who have gone above and beyond to help Operation Homefront transform how it serves military families and delivers its mission. Haralson joined Auction.com in 2017, and her company has donated more than $850,000 in support of permanent and transitional housing programs. McMorrow has been with U.S. Bank for more than 10 years and has been a driving force in making a difference for military families. The nonprofit’s partnership with U.S. Bank began in 2019, and due to McMorrow’s leadership and vision, U.S. Bank has donated more than $1.3 million in cash and in-kind support to the nonprofit.

Lennar Mortgage raised more than $100,000 during its 10th Annual Derby, where company teams raised money in unique ways during the spring of 2023. The Miami-based mortgage company presented its gift to the MBA Opens Doors Foundation in May. Since 2019, the Lennar Mortgage Annual Derby has raised more than $300,000 for the foundation from 2,400 individual donations by Lennar Mortgage associates. Laura Escobar (president of Lennar Mortgage and the MBA’s 2023 vice chair) and her team bested their fundraising goals during the monthlong campaign, going from less than $12,000 in donations in 2019 to a whopping $100,000 this year.

Real estate executive and Legacy Partners chairman Preston Butcher, along with his wife Carolyn, donated $1.5 million in 2022 to the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Foundation to create the Homeless to Housed Initiative. As part of ULI’s Terwilliger Center for Housing, the initiative aims to identify and promote strategies that will enable communities to provide stable housing for those experiencing homelessness. The new program will build on the findings of ULI’s recent report on the issue, which Butcher co-authored and sponsored. Butcher intends for his gift to provide developers and policymakers with the tools they need to design and implement successful attainable housing programs — and ultimately reduce the number of people without shelter.

Scotsman Guide Inc. and its employees contributed several boxes of new toys to the Toys for Tots drive in December 2022. Toys for Tots is a program run by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. The mission of the program is to collect new, unwrapped toys and distribute them to less fortunate children at Christmas. In 1991, the Toys for Tots Foundation was created at the behest of the Marine Corps. Scotsman Guide plans to hold another toy drive this year.

Houston-based InterLinc Mortgage partnered in December 2022 with Feeding America for its first companywide fundraiser, with a goal of donating $15,000 to food banks across the country. The fundraiser encompassed online giving and local food bank volunteer opportunities, as well as a grant from the InterLinc Family Foundation, a nonprofit that focuses on assisting other organizations that make spiritual and physical impacts in the community.

Through a network of 200 food banks and more than 60,000 food pantries and meal programs, Feeding America provides meals to 40 million people each year. In addition, the foundation also helped several other nonprofits last year, including a partnership with Theatre Under the Stars, which provides accessible and affordable arts education to individuals with disabilities. The InterLinc Family Foundation also gave a $10,000 check and 40 welcome kits to Houston Welcomes Refugees, a Houston-based organization focused on rehoming refugees to the U.S.

Excite Credit Union and Excite Foundation announced this past July that they’ve been selected by California’s ScholarShare Investment Board to launch education and awareness programs that promote multiple college and career savings strategies for low-income families in the San Jose area. Research shows that low-income children with as little as $500 in a savings account are three times more likely to enroll in college and four times more likely to graduate. The grants will fund programs to educate eligible low-income families about college savings programs.

Nonprofit Citadel Credit Union doubled its annual contribution last year to $300,000 for the Cancer Care Center at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Since 2019, the credit union has been the presenting sponsor of the Parkway Run & Walk fundraiser for the children’s hospital, raising a total of $750,000 to fund critical childhood cancer research and care. About $43,000 of Citadel’s contributions last year were raised by its Building Strength Together Team of 170 employees, which more than doubled what the team raised in 2021. The fundraiser was held Sept. 25, 2022, along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, and it drew nearly 10,000 supporters, including more than 300 teams.

This past June, Silverton Mortgage celebrated the 10-year anniversary of its charitable organization, The Silverton Foundation, which supports families facing financial hardship due to medical crises. The foundation has provided a combined 150-plus years of mortgage and rental assistance to families with sick children who have been hospitalized, or who are receiving ongoing chronic or critical care treatments. Silverton Mortgage also announced in March 2023 its corporate sponsorship of the Kyle Pease Foundation, a nonprofit that provides opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in athletic events, enriching their lives and those who support them. The nonprofit provides scholarships, purchases medical or adaptive sports equipment, and participates in educational programs to create awareness of cerebral palsy and other disabilities.

Telephone Doctor and ServiceSkills gave an undisclosed donation to the Fisher House Foundation, which builds homes where military members, veterans and their families stay for free while loved ones are in the hospital. These homes are located at military and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers around the world. Since its inception more than 30 years ago, more than 455,000 families have been served. Telephone Doctor and ServiceSkills are customer service training series companies based in St. Louis that work with mortgage companies and other businesses. ●

The post Good Works appeared first on Scotsman Guide.

“Those clients that we really achieved something with … those are the ones that really make our job worthwhile.”

He loves educating clients, strategizing with them on a path to their goals and eventually seeing them reach their dream of homeownership. “I think (my favorite part) is really just working with clients, and that satisfaction you get out of educating someone and getting them to the point of being able to own their own home when they never thought it possible,” Marquis said.

Much of his business is in conventional and jumbo loans, given the high home prices in his local market. But he said his client base is wide — from first-time buyers trying to avoid high rents to investors seeking to snap up new properties. He sees a lot of clients in biotechnology, a huge industry in Boston, and does U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) loans regularly as well.

Because of his focus on education, Marquis and his team are deeply knowledgeable about guidelines and are more strict upfront so there are no surprise denials later. “We get a lot of business from other lenders, where they fail to structure the loan correctly from the get-go,” he said. “So, for example, they don’t poke holes in the loan the right way and figure out what could go wrong with it. … (They) are unable to close, the customer will come to us and we can help.”

Over the thousands of loans he’s closed in his career, Marquis said that the transactions that stick out the most are the ones where he has helped the client out of a tough spot in their life. “It could be a situation of a client that’s getting divorced and has to refinance to keep their home, or it could be a client that we had to work with on their credit, or they had to save for a downpayment,” Marquis said. “Those clients that we really achieved something with — that they did not think they could achieve, or we got them out of a really challenging spot — those are the ones that really make our job worthwhile.”

Marquis and his team also donate $25 from every transaction to the Friends of Boston’s Homeless housing startup fund. In three years, the team has donated more than $100,000 to the fund, which helps Bostonians experiencing homelessness to overcome the financial barriers to housing and get connected to vital support services.

“You know, we’re all on the earth, we’re all going to end up in the same place at some point,” Marquis said. “And you realize you’ve got to allow others to succeed in this world in the way that we have, right? (It takes) a lot of hard work, but not everyone’s been as fortunate and had the opportunities that we’ve been fortunate to have.”

Marquis is riding out the tough market and positioning himself to capitalize on the next up cycle. His team is active on social media to connect with borrowers and Realtors, and he’s always expanding his referral network through events and one-on-ones. Since joining CrossCountry two years ago, he said he’s had support and freedom to design his own processes that work best for his team and his market.

“I think there’s opportunity in the market for the right situation, but our industry is always challenging. … This cycle is very unique,” he said. “The market’s always developing. Now we have to be forward thinking. What’s our next step? Where do we go next?” ●

Tips of the Trade

When you pursue a certain angle, you’re ultimately going to achieve that if you have a focused and dedicated approach. Figure out what direction you want to go — first-time homebuyers, FHA loans, VA loans — and then be very dedicated to that. If you want to go after purchase business, you have to build that one by one. Realtors want a financing solution that’s going to work. Work as a partner who can help them do more business. Work with up-and-coming agents and build business with them. It doesn’t happen overnight, but if you know your guidelines, you do right by your referral partner and your borrower, you provide excellent communication and you follow up, you can really build a great business in this industry.

The post Featured Top Originator: Andrew Marquis, CrossCountry Mortgage appeared first on Scotsman Guide.