Allen Dye has been a mortgage broker with North Star Mortgage Network for five and a half years. Before there, he was with Bishop Lending as a mortgage consultant for about five months. He also worked for Prudential Healthcare (now Aetna Health Insurance,) where he did systems work supporting small employer health plans for 30 years.
HOW DID HE GET HIS START IN LENDING?
In 2002, his desire to leave the corporate world and a stroke of fate masked as downsizing led him to a career as a mortgage broker.
“After I was downsized, I took a little mini-break and then decided I would give mortgages a try. I started with Ben Bishop in early 2003. I’m very detailed-oriented and I liked the appeal of being able to help people achieve something significant, which is home ownership. During my entire career at Prudential/Aetna, I worked 8-to-5 but I had an unstructured job. There wasn’t a whole lot of structure to it, so I was used to having flexibility at how I approached things. This type of work obviously afforded me the opportunity to do that. The other lure is that I wasn’t working for a corporation and I was able to control my own destiny. After having been downsized, I knew now that the only person that could downsize me was me.”
FAVORITE THING ABOUT LENDING?
Dye said seeing his clients smile at closing is his favorite thing about being in the lending industry. “Getting paid is good, too. But, when you have a satisfied customer that thanks you for all your help, you just can’t top that. That’s great.”
HOW DOES HIS PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE HELP?
In his previous work, he had to manage people, processes, schedules, results and be very detailed-oriented.
“Now, I have to manage typically a 30-day schedule to make sure things are done. I have to contact people to make sure they are on top of it if I’m not directly controlling it. You have to have a sense of what is critical and what is not critical. And you have to have a sense of diplomacy and cooperation. That just comes from dealing with people for years and years. You have to take the responsibility and be proactive. You can’t just wait for something to happen.”
BEST PROFESSIONAL ADVICE?
“Be yourself.”
WHERE DOES HE GET BUSINESS?
Dye said he gets business from Realtors, neighbors, past customers and networking with other professionals.
HOW’S THE LENDING BUSINESS?
“Challenging. Guidelines are changing with great frequency. I tell my customers that I don’t profess to know all the answers, but I generally know who to call to get the answer if I don’t have it.”
ADVICE FOR NEW MORTGAGE BROKERS?
“Be prepared to work hard, be prepared to work smart and know that it is not easy. The other component is that you really need to stay in tune with what is happening because it’s changing on a daily basis. There’s more to mortgages than an interest rate.”
ADVICE FOR REALTORS WHEN DEALING WITH MORTGAGE BROKERS?
“Work with someone that you feel comfortable with personally, that will represent you in the best light and someone that you feel will work with your customer. That experience is a direct reflection on the choice of the Realtor so everyone needs to be comfortable and happy.”
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS?
Northeast Florida Association of Realtors and its Beaches Council and the Northeast Florida Builders Association’s Sales and Marketing Council.
- by Michele Newbern Gillis