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March of 2021 Newsletter!

Welcome to the latest edition of the Agave newsletter. Here's a quick recap of how our February finished up:

• 68 new clients submitted into underwriting

• 58 new clients closed on either a refinance or purchase

• 37 new 5-star reviews between Google, Facebook, Zillow and the BBB

• 3 new hires of motivated individuals who share our philosophy on business

• Over $3,000 in donations made to employedandoverjoyed.org

• 2 new fully licensed loan originators who can help impact our clients

The sky's the limit when you have people aligned on a shared mission. Our mission is to raise the bar in helping people define and achieve their financial goals. Understanding that not all people should refinance or that some folks should wait to buy a home is sometimes the most sound advice. It speaks to our ideology and why a chunk of our business comes via word-of-mouth.

Our Vision

Doug Wang and I started meeting to discuss business plans at Lola's Coffee in November 2019. We'd just left our corporate jobs and knew we wanted to build something our employees enjoyed walking into each day. When employees are happy, they strive to make clients happy. When clients are happy, a business can grow through word-of-mouth. We decided to write out detailed vision statements for the business and our lives. We wanted to compare them once finished to make sure that we were on the same page about what Agave would look like years from now. It's been about 18 months since then, so I pulled up the Word doc up to see how we were doing. Here's a short excerpt:

"It’s 2021. We employ 10 loan officers, 2 processors, a technology officer, and a compliance advisor. Doug and I are busy but have structure, clear direction, and understand what pieces of the business we each take ownership over. I’m in full understanding of the business gauges and know where the adjustments need to be made. We’re building a strong culture and our employees recognize something special is happening. We're at the start of something big and we’re dependent on them. Every interaction our people have is aimed at leaving clients better than we found them. Whether we can write their loan or not, people leave with direction on improving their finances. We are long-term thinking. We do not bend for short-term satisfaction."

Well, it's 2021 and we just hired our 10th loan officer. We have three processors and just hired a fourth. We have a CTO, a compliance advisor, and are in process of building out software that gives us instant access into the metrics our company relies on for strong decision making. Our people work hard every day to ensure clients' lives are left better than we found them. Sometimes it's through purchasing their first home or saving money monthly. Most times it's by confirming they are in the best loan possible and anything different doesn’t make sense currently. I speak for our entire company for the appreciation we have for mentors, advisors, partners, family, friends and clients, most of whom overlap in each of those categories. Momentum, vision and belief are a powerful combination. - Marshall Gottlieb, CEO

After a slight increase in late February, mortgage applications dipped 1.3% in the week ending March 5, according to the latest report from the Mortgage Bankers Association. The purchase market sported its strongest showing in four weeks, with gains in both conventional and government applications, according to Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting. It has been roughly a year since the COVID-19 pandemic began in the United States, and more people than ever are buying residential real estate in vacation housing markets, per a report from Redfin.Source: Housing Wire

Stephen Elliott - President's Club Loan Officer

What it means to work at Agave Home Loans: I’ve worked in the mortgage industry for about 5 years, and I’ve worked for 3 different companies. So, I’ve gotten a good feel of what a good employer, bad employer and GREAT employer are. Agave Home Loans is a GREAT company to work for on all fronts. The culture is truly positive, caring, innovative and challenging. The leaders work together to ensure that everything has the employees’ best interest and lines up with their positive moral compass. The leadership team is emotionally intelligent and they move with a purpose from every conversation, feedback and action taken. You can tell they truly care about every single thing within your life. As soon as COVID-19 was getting serious, Agave was one of the first companies to implement a mandatory work-from-home policy. Our healthy and safety came first, and I felt so lucky our company had the opportunity to make that decision. I have the opportunity to work from home full time which allows me to maintain a great work-life balance. I can also come in when I want to enjoy the fervor and motivation in the office. Whether you’re at home or in the office the atmosphere here is electric. I feel valued, heard, and my work means something when I am at Agave Home Loans. I highly recommend working for the company if you have the chance. You won’t regret it and you’ll grow exponentially.

Mortgage business pet peeve: My phone sometimes automatically goes on mute and I end up talking to the wall because the client can’t hear me. Once I realize what’s happening it’s too late and the client has hung up or I have to call back.

Favorite restaurant: Taco Califia. They have the most authentic Mexican tacos in Arizona.

Favorite movie: The Count of Monte Cristo

Favorite musician: Earl Hagger

Favorite hobby or pastime: Drinking whisky and playing ping pong.

Favorite quote: “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” Benjamin Franklin

Hometown or where you’re from: I was born in Phoenix, AZ.

Fun fact: I used to be a Tennis Pro and I love ping pong.

AGAVE HOME LOANS

MORTGAGE BROKERAGE

PHONE 888.300.3440
EMAIL [email protected]
WEB www.agavehomeloans.com
AGAVE NMLS #1951574

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