How Reverse Took Forward Thinking

Mark Reeve
VP, Reverse Mortgage Division

Before coming to Plaza Home Mortgage^® in 2008, I had my own mortgage brokerage and used Plaza for forward mortgages. When I decided to begin specializing in reverse mortgages through wholesale, Plaza was at the top of my list to reach out to because of the reputation they had developed within the market. From our first conversation what I found, and really appreciated, was that Kevin Parra, James Cutri and Mike Fontaine were open to new ideas, reverse included. It was a little surprising, given that many other lenders were going out of business or pulling way back on product offerings at the time. And even though reverse mortgages carried a bit of a negative connotation at that time, they remained open minded and saw that the program had benefit to the senior homeowner and it opened up new opportunity for our clients, especially with the growing Baby Boomer demographic.

When you stop and think about it, starting the new Reverse Lending Division in the midst of the chaos of 2008 was a pretty bold move, but all along, Kevin, James and Mike had a strategy and a vision. We focused on what our clients needed for their senior borrowers, and as a result, our reverse volume grew and we’ve been able to expand beyond the traditional HECM to offer Jumbo Reverse in several states. I believe that’s why Plaza is the company it is today – Kevin, James and Mike are always ready to take the next step, always looking forward. And sure, there can be risk, but they have built a culture that helps to mitigate those risks by empowering our associates and trusting them to always do what is right for our clients.

As anyone in the industry knows, mortgage markets will change and programs will come and they will go. But what I know will remain the same at Plaza is we will continue to keep that forward vision and always maintain our focus on putting clients first.

December 2020