Tim Galu rose to being a leading originator by treating clients' loans as if they were his own.
There are more than a few examples of customers deciding to become active in an industry because of the pleasant experience they had using their product.
For top producer Tim Galu, the decision to become a mortgage originator came about after he purchased his house.
He joined the business in late 2003. Earlier that year, he bought his first house and found the loan origination process existing at that time very interesting to him.
At the time, Galu was working in sales for an event marketing company.
His enjoyment of the experience led him to pursue a career in the mortgage origination field.
Galu joined his current employer, Luxury Mortgage, Stamford, Conn., in November 2009. He is a senior mortgage loan originator in the company's Southport office. He has one assistant with whom he has worked with for the past couple of years.
He attributes a big part of his success to the underwriting, processing and closing departments at Luxury Mortgage.
He is licensed to originate loans in both Connecticut and New York. Nearly 80% of his business comes from Connecticut and most of that is from lower Fairfield County, which shares a border with New York.
Much of his New York business comes from New York City and Westchester County, whose eastern border abuts Connecticut. Luxury Mortgage also has offices in New York City, White Plains (part of Westchester) and on Long Island.
Familiarity with the market helps, as Galu grew up in Westchester, and that provided a comfort level of knowledge regarding both New York City and Connecticut.
In the Origination News Top 150 loan officer list for 2010, Galu ranked 90th with volume of $41 million.
Even though the company's name indicates the high end of the business and in fact the company is known for its jumbo and superjumbo niche products, Galu noted it does conforming mortgages, as well as Federal Housing Administration loans as well. The product menu covers loan amounts from $100,000 up to $10 million.
“We're a mortgage banker, so we have access to retail banking loans as well as wholesale, or brokered, loans,” he said, which he said is the best of both worlds.
Given the company's name and its market, one might think it would only be a high-end lender. But he notes there is a market for the FHA product.
Until Oct. 1, it was able to originate FHA loans up to $708,750. Given the 3.5% minimum down payment for these loans, there were people who were leveraging the product to be able to buy the most house.
But the FHA limits are very “county-specific,” and in the bigger cities in Fairfield County the FHA loan “is a perfect fit,” he said.
Like many top producers, Galu notes “referrals are a huge portion of my business. I have referrals coming from repeat clients, as well as Realtors, attorneys and financial planners.
“Past clients are a huge referral source of mine, so obviously making sure my clients are happy with the structure of their financing, as well as the service they get is a huge priority of mine.”
And after the transaction is finished, Galu notes, “I stay in touch accordingly, keep them updated with rates, keep them updated with market news and keep them updated with necessary information so they are aware of what is going on.”
He keeps in touch with his past clients through telephone calls or email. Email is a convenient way to keep in touch with people, and it is a very user-friendly way for them to receive the information, so this is the top method that Galu uses.
Another way he gets his name out there is by providing informational quotes for articles that appear in traditional media. He said he just starting to use social media vehicles such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
He does do “a minimal amount” of advertising, some online, some in magazines, “but the majority of my business is set up through referrals.”
On the B2B referral side, Galu belongs to some business development groups. Depending on the setup, he meets with them on either a monthly or quarterly basis. These groups are a cross-section of the community in different towns in his market. “You see what is happening in different, diverse areas of business, and you see if there are ways to refer business accordingly,” he said.
Galu is happily married with two young sons and he is active as a coach in their sports activities.
He has also started a charity organization, OnePutt2Win.org, which raises money to provide scholarships on a yearly basis for local schools.
In regards to current market conditions he said lowering the conforming loan limits on Oct. 1 have not helped business and he is hoping the recent action by U.S. Senate to restore the higher limits will be echoed in the House of Representatives.
Still, if the limits were to remain at the current level, Luxury Mortgage has products that can fill the gaps. “The product mix that we are able to offer is very diverse and we have many options when it comes to jumbo financing,” Galu said.
In this environment, “you have to be a student of loan products right now. You have to know what works, what doesn't work, what meets the guidelines and what doesn't meet the guidelines. The mortgage business has gone through a tremendous change over the last 18 months,” and Galu said Luxury Mortgage does a good job of communicating changes that need to be implemented accordingly.
Being up-to-date on what is going on in the business is something that is essential for success. “If you are not aware of all the changes that are going on, you will not be able to be a top originator in the area,” he said.
The mortgage business has undergone tremendous shifts between 2003 and today. Even so, Galu said, “I still enjoy the process of securing homes for people and securing mortgages for my clients.”
His philosophy remains to “treat my clients' loan like it was my own loan.
“I enjoy helping them set up the structure of their particular loan so they will be happy in their new home and have the experience that I had.” His goal is to provide such a high level of service where clients will be so pleased they will become repeat customers and refer him to their friends and family.
Yes the business is different but it is a return to the need for clients to show the documentation to help qualify for the loan and prove they can pay it back.
“When clients call me, they will ask for a lot of advice and guidance and I just try and be open and honest with them and to give them the options of what is out there and to help them choose which one would make the most sense for their particular needs.
“It is a communication process of finding out what their needs are for this particular property that they are buying and once I am able to gather all the facts that I need, structuring the loan is the thing that I enjoy,” Galu said.
