Customer service, first and foremost, is what Rob Irby believes sets him apart in the market place.
He has been doing first mortgage originations since May 2005, but before that he started at SouthTrust Bank (later acquired by Wachovia) in 1999 in its management training program.
After the training program was completed, Irby was originating home equity lines for almost six years. This led to him meeting Rob Henger and started working for his company, Henger Rast Mortgage.
Henger mentored him in the first mortgage business. “The principles I still use today, I learned from him,” Irby declared. Henger himself appeared on the top 200 list in Mortgage Originator magazine on multiple occasions. In hiring loan officers for his company, Henger handpicked several people from the SouthTrust/Wachovia operation.
But besides learning the business from Henger, Irby and the others attended the Xinnix School of Mortgage Banking in Atlanta. That is where his customer service philosophy was reinforced.
The motto of Xinnix, he noted, is “Through excellence there are infinite possibilities,” to which Irby added, “That goes hand-in-hand with the mortgage business.”
His first year in the business, Irby was No. 29 in Mortgage Originator’s top rookies list. That year he did 90 loans for $14.4 million.
Irby worked for Henger Rast until June 2010, at which time he moved over to Aliant.
For 2012, Irby did 150 loans for $35.5 million while the year before he did 69 units for $17.7 million. His primary market is in central Alabama.
Median sales price is between $140,000 and $150,000. “Every loan has a story to it, there is really no such thing as a slam dunk,” he said.
“I’ve always had a business philosophy of doing what I say I am going to do and trying to make a deal work. I’m not scared to make mistakes, we’re all human, and everybody makes mistakes.
“I don’t cherry pick loans. I’ve always had the philosophy of following the golden rule. We all get in our pants the same and everybody deserves the same respect, whether it is a $40,000 purchase or an $800,000 loan. I don’t compromise customer service,” Irby said.
“That is what’s really key in this business, is service and doing a good job for that client. Because, let’s face it, you do a good job once, they are going to come and send you repeat business, and send their friends and family.”
Referrals are his main source for business. He said he does very little marketing except for word-of-mouth marketing. The only mailing he does is each January. He sends his customers the HUD statements for the previous year, circling the tax deduction for the consumer.
Irby’s business-to-business referral base includes Realtors, financial planners and closing attorneys.
Ironically he does not get a lot of his clients through the bank. Rather, he operates more like an independent mortgage banker, much like he did during his days at Henger Rast.
Irby commented that when he got into first mortgage lending, he did not have any contacts with real estate agents or financial planners. So he took what he learned at Xinnix, both in its originator program and advanced program and put it to good use.
Among the lessons he still follows involves planning his next day’s activities during the prior day.
“They have a term, 'clearing the runway’—basically return all your calls, return all your messages, emails before you go home, and treat the next day like it is a brand new opportunity,” Irby declared.
He said he always tried to maintain a positive attitude, even during the bust years. “I’ve always earned a great living in the mortgage industry. I don’t know if it just comes from the work ethic that my folks instilled in me,” adding that he grew up as a military brat and as a result moved around from coast-to-coast.
The experience made him “a people person, not afraid to ask for somebody’s business. I’m not afraid to ask somebody on the grocery store line, 'What kind of interest rate are you paying on your mortgage. I might be able to help you out.’”
He added that it is very important for originators to never compromise on being honest with their customers. “It is easy to sugar coat something and gloss it over and make them feel good, but let’s face it, sometimes it’s not easy to get folks approved or if they are looking to refinance to reduce their term or save them money. Sometimes those come with their own challenges.”
The vast majority of his business is conforming mortgages, with about 15% being
During the bust years, home values in the Birmingham area declined by 10% to 15% in the center of town, and as much as 20% to 25% in the outlying areas. But as the market returned plus the lower interest rates, Irby saw an opportunity.
In 2012, he contacted his database of past clients and was able to refinance many of them, lowering their terms from the original 30-year loan down to a 15-year or 20-year new loan.
In fact, 2012 was the first year he personally saw the benefits from a refi boom. When he first got into the industry, he did not have the past client database to market to and take advantage of the boom back then.
Aliant Bank sells much of its product to aggregators, and turn-times remain an issue in dealing with these firms. Irby said he “takes the bull by the horns” and wants to be one communicating to his client if there is any issues with getting the loan purchased because of missing documents rather than someone from the buyer or the back office.
Overall, “I’ve got a great support staff. I’ve been very blessed and fortunate since (he started working at) SouthTrust Bank and Wachovia on the equity line side, I had a great support staff working with me then,” he said, and that continued at Henger Rast Mortgage and now today with Aliant.
Irby called himself a “plain-old vanilla” originator, something which might not be bad in today’s lending environment. He reiterated that customer service has been important for his success and that he always does for his clients what he tells them he is going to do.
