With The Dave Ortiz Group, service always comes first

The process of purchasing a new home or choosing to refinance your home can be overwhelming to say the least. There are many moving parts and steps to be completed before you can call the home your own. One of the most important things to have on your side during this process is a skilled, knowledgeable and efficient team.

We spoke with Dave Ortiz of The Dave Ortiz Group with Service 1st Mortgage, Inc to discuss how his team approaches helping someone purchase a home. Dave Ortiz is a licensed loan officer that operates with a broker and has 10 active licenses throughout several different states. Dave tells us, “I have built contacts over multiple years that I can recommend in almost every single state. I have a lot family and friends in the northern VA area and have done a lot of work here based of referrals and word-of-mouth. If I am not able to help you, I can point you in the right direction. These are professionals that I would recommend to my own mother.”

Dave Ortiz and his team take pride in being able to do what other brokers cannot. “80% of the time it has a lot less to do with the interest rate. You want your mortage to be a direct reflection of what your goals are for the property. We can assist you in getting the best program for your goals,” Dave says, “A lot of loan officers lose sight of that and become very rate focused. We do have the absolute lowest rates. We also have the product knowledge and that is what separates us from one broker to the next. Within the Dave Ortiz group we have extensive knowledge and are the absolute best when it comes to finding what you need.”

When giving advice to prospective borrowers, and those looking to refinance Dave says that research is key, “They always say ‘Do Your Homework’, but what is your homework? Your homework is to develop a basic familiarity with the loan terminology and the basic understanding of what the four main loan products are; VA, FHA, Conventional, and USDA. You want to reach out to the experts to have them discover the best product for you.”

During the pandemic, the Dave Ortiz Group is working harder than ever. “[Even prior to the pandemic], every member of my team works remotely. These are not amateur loan officers or employees in training. They excel while working from home,” Dave says.

The best part of the job for Dave and his group is solving the impossible. “Whenever I get a loan that requires me to think outside of the box and doing something that another loan officer might say requires a miracle is where I get the most satisfaction. When working with my group you can expect 100% top notch service product knowledge and the very best products on the market with that specific moment and that specific lender. Our goal is to accomplish your main goals and not leave a single thing out. We are not just here to drop your interest rate and say ‘You’ve got a loan.’ We are essentially here to put you in a better position to than you were before.”

The Dave Ortiz Group can help you from the very beginning of your journey to purchase a home. “If they want to bypass using a real estate agent first, they can contact me directly I have a network of realtors that I work with that I can set my clients’ up with. We are completely available 24-7 for our clients/borrowers. You can also tell your realtor that you want to use the Dave Ortiz Group.”

In his time as a loan officer, Dave Ortiz learned that there was a need for a streamlined, online loan application for borrowers. “I could not find where there was an online loan application to access brokerages with ease and no hassle. It is interesting because most borrowers start online when they go through any refinance or purchase

transaction. Whether you are trying to find a real estate agent or a loan officer. 92% of borrowers begin their search online and that is why we felt that it was important to have an online application,” Dave says, “The issue with [traditional applications] is that most borrowers do not know what type of loan they need. Then, when they go online to apply for a loan, it can often be confusing because they don’t know what to choose. The online application doesn’t force you to pick your own program, it asks you the right questions and provides a topnotch loan officer to help you. It doesn’t limit you to one lender. We have a whole matrix that can guide you and talk with you and figure out what your goals.”

Prior to the pandemic Dave began developing the technology for the website, “I reached out to my childhood friend who works for Homes. com that had extensive product knowledge and is an industry leader in developing online product applications for lenders to create a unique application that caters to mortgage brokers rather than lenders.” Homes.com provides digital solutions that simplify the home selling and buying processes for consumers and real estate professionals. Once the COVID-19 pandemic started shutting states down, Homes.com knew buyers and sellers would be uncertain about what the real estate process might look like, and uncertain about how to move forward. To help guide them through this new (and temporary) “normal,” the company knew they needed to provide resources.

“When the traditional steps of home buying and selling became unavailable, it was our mission to deliver what our consumers needed right where they were,” said Chris Horton, Senior Product Manager for Homes.com. “Our product and development teams quickly launched virtual home tours, video tours and virtual open houses in a user-friendly interface to make buying and selling during a pandemic a more effortless and stress-free experience. So far, engagement metrics of this

shift in strategy have proven that consumers prefer this simply smarter way to view these properties.”

The original launch date turned out to be the week that Covid-19 was announced in the US. Since then, there has been increased digitalization. Requests for virtual tours have increased exponentially. “We have tried to make the process completely accessible for all people whether they are tech savvy or not,” Dave says, “We are also able to speak to you, share your screen and guide you through the application within seconds. When you complete an application 100% instead of waiting for your loan officer we get the ball rolling immediately and request the documents needed for the loan program that accomplishes your goals.”

For more information or to discuss your purchase and refinance options, call 410-782-9820 or visit DaveOrtizGroup.com

How many friends or family members do you know that have a mortgage, but have yet to have their mortgage reviewed in the past in the last year? How about yourself? If you are one of the millions of Americans that hasn’t done so, you should have a review done. I believe that about 50% of the borrowers that need a refinance don’t do so because they don’t want to discuss their finances and feel judged. We are trying to make this process easier for everyone. A lot of people prefer to go through a broker so you have options. Most people decide to go through a broker to get the best deal and have an expert to guide them through the process.

BASIC TERMINOLOGY

Registered Loan Officers the loan officer in Citibank and Wells Fargo. He is greeting you when you come into the bank and is under the umbrella of the bank.

Licensed Loan Officers that is generally who you are going to talk to and they are licensed to talk in the state that you are licensed in. They are not legally able to discuss cost and benefits in the states that they are NOT licensed in.

Mortgage Brokers employ licensed loan officers and they have agreements with multiple lenders.

Lenders are the banks that are giving you the money. Lender can be substituted with the word bank.

The Dave Ortiz Group can assist with a variety of loans including the four main programs:

VA – Loans for Qualifying Service Members & Veterans with exclusive benefits. Purchase or refinance, our rates and flexibility set us apart from the competition. We have the ability to work with people with credit scores from 0-850.

USDA – Thinking about purchasing a home in a rural area? This unique government program offers the same great benefits as a VA loan program with its own twist. You can apply and our team of specialists will make it a seamless process.

FHA – Our low government rates make us the perfect fit for your first purchase. Bring 3% of the purchase as a down payment and let your mortgage advisor do the rest of the work. Our government rates are so low that we can assist with doing an FHA Streamline rate reduction when most others can’t.

Conventional – We create a loan around your specific needs and goals. You can waive appraisals, get your cash back from equity in the property, remove your mortgage insurance. from monthly obligations, and simply lower your interest rate without effecting the amount of time and money you’ve already spent on the home.