May 15, 2025 • 34 mins
In this episode, Jack Bosch sits down with Andrew Russell, founder of RCG Mortgage, to dig into what’s really happening in the mortgage world right now. From cutting-edge tools like LoanSnap to how entrepreneurs can secure financing without a W-2, Andrew shares insights every real estate investor and business owner needs to hear. They talk trust, tech, and transparency in lending—and bust a few myths along the way.
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ABOUT JACK: From two suitcases, a nearly empty bank account, and a big dream to a multi-million-dollar land business, Jack Bosch is a true American success story. Originally from Germany, Jack moved to the U.S. to attend college and met his wife, Michelle. Now, they are successful real estate investors who have flipped over 4,500 land parcels and have built a successful multi-family rental portfolio (which has grown into nine figures). From their experience, they’ve created the “Forever Cash” model, which has helped over 1,000 people become millionaires through their free and paid educational programs.
Their new goal is to create 10,000 millionaires! Jack has been a guest on many popular shows, including Lifetime Cashflow Through Real Estate Investing with Rod Khleiff, Real Estate Disruptors with Steve Trang, Flip2Freedom with Sean Terry, Real Estate Investing Mastery with Joe McCall, Crushing Debt with Shawn Yesner, The1000houses.com with Mitch Stephen, and many more.
His expertise covers all aspects of finance and real estate, including land flipping, seller financing, and multi-family investing.
Jack is a financial expert, a #1 bestselling author, host of the Forever Cash Life (Real Estate Investing) Podcast, and an influencer with over 250k followers on social media.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
say you had a million dollars just lying around
and you had to give it to one of two people
who would you rather give it to
if you apply for a mortgage
you can apply with four types of sales people
at four types of places us as a broker company
we use this magical software called loansnap
is ultimately like hey Andrew
I hear about all these new loan types
is the crash coming all these crappy loans
so the answer is a big so it's almost the opposite
(00:21):
first for entrepreneurs say
oh my god I have a startup company
I have to put in 23 hours of the day
it's not the case
focus on getting your mind and your body right
and the rest is easy
hey there and welcome everyone
to another episode of The Jackpot Show
where we talk about all things real estate
finance and entrepreneurship
and today
we're gonna talk about all three things of that
(00:42):
because my guest
Andrew Russell is a mortgage visionary
psychology expert business trail blazer
so we're gonna talk mortgages today
and business and mortgage and everything involved
Andrew welcome to the show
thanks for having me Jack
wonderful so you are in beautiful New York City
and tell us what you do
(01:02):
so I own a mortgage broker company
we service clients on the residential side and you know
right now we're kicking butt
we're taking names and even in this market
we're doing very well
alright great
so let's jump right into that
so real estate interest rates are up
people are holding on to their 2.8% interest rates uh
not selling their house um
(01:25):
the economy is whatever
with the terrorists and things like that
people are a little bit scared out there
how do you
still taking names and kicking butt out there
so I mean listen
I feel like when you do something for a living
the riches are in the niches
so although to your point
you know I don't I don't remember the numbers
I should I do this for a living right
x amount of percent of people have a rate under 4%
(01:47):
and even more of them have a rate under 5 or 6%
you know right now
I feel and we're seeing in the marketplace
and a lot of the articles we've been reading
that a lot of clients are charging up Jack
their credit cards you know
there's a little bit more debt
so with the the rates where they are
with the lack of inventory
the values in America seem to be going up
especially in our local marketplace
(02:09):
so with that as equity goes up
it's a great time to I don't know
take out a home equity loan
you know so although you know
maybe some of these these clients aren't gonna sell
lose that low interest rate um
they're certainly you know
quote unquote
cash advancing their equity now because again
um due to the various reasons
it seems like debt scratch any debt is going up
so it's a very cheap way to pay down that debt
(02:31):
and it's kind of cyclical
you know that's something that we're seeing as well
so although it's frustrating that you know
some of the inventory
stuff hasn't really caught up with the demand
on the buy side people are definitely
taking advantage of their equity position
okay
so you're basically have probably pivoted from 202120
two or 2021 22
from a lots of new purchases to a lot more refinancing
(02:53):
second home second lines and and things like that
yeah so I wouldn't say we we fully pivoted
it's just you know
right now you can't be a one trick pony
so I own a mortgage broker company
we have access to all the products
what does that mean
that we really specialize in everything
so some of the things that I've picked up for sure
that have bridged the gap of
you know years ago to your point
(03:13):
if someone said hey Andrew
I got your information from Liz Cool
you know how can I help you
I have a rate of seven and a half percent
you know well
great news you know
rates are now at two and a half percent
that's what the conversation was
it's not all that difficult
it wasn't even necessarily sales
just it always made sense
you know now it's kind of morphed into
as you lost those refinances
non QM it's a super weird acronym non QM
(03:35):
but non QM non hyphen QM
it's just basically a mortgage type
where it's more reduced documentation
it's geared towards self employed clients
investment programs where it's on the market
rent versus actually showing your income
so that type of mortgage product
which has a bunch of stuff within it
that's taken market share
and of course to your point uh
heelocks just weren't really a thing
(03:55):
and now they're definitely a thing
you know some of the heelock lenders are allowing
higher percent to borrow
versus the all in value number
even with a first mortgage
so those have taken a little bit more market share
but to me
you have to be definitely diversified in this market
you can't just be a vanilla purchase shop
20% down two teachers high credit score
you know
we have to get a little bit more into the chocolate
(04:17):
that's what we've done alright
so let's let's unpack a lot of things because I um
I'm the I'm I'm known as being in land
so we flip land
we have a coaching company that teaches people how to
flip land most of our business is um
is happening outside of traditional banks
and mortgages do a lot of self financing
(04:38):
we create our own notes and things like that
and banks typically don't lend on land
so so notes is or or like the mortgage world
I have do I have experience with it
of course I have rental properties
I have apartment complexes
I have things like that
I have my own home and things like that but um
I've never really gotten that deep into
into the different kind of products
(04:59):
and stuff like that
but my audience is not all land our audience here
whoever watches this is not all in in land
there's there's people from all walks of life
listening to this and so uh
one of the things is let's talk about first of all
you said your your mortgage brokerage
what what kind of different mortgage people are there
(05:21):
let's say the orange conference out
but now we'll talk about let's write that
and then
I wanna talk about the different kind of things that
the abbreviations that you just saw about
with lower documentation this kind of things
let's dive into those two subjects
but one after the other perfect
so if you apply for a mortgage
you can apply with four types of sales people
at four types of places one is the big bank
(05:41):
I'm sure you've heard of them Chase Wells
you know city banks some of the larger institutions
they usually specialize in certain types of loan
programs but not all of them
but that's No. 1 No. 2 is a credit union
you know usually
typically local credit unions that will service clients
the third is a mortgage bank
you know these are lenders that actually fund the loan
with a warehouse line
almost like a line of credit and then they sell it off
(06:02):
they're non depository institutions
but again you're at one bank
and then the fourth
we save the best for last is a mortgage broker company
so we partner with banks
so we say like we're on with all the banks
so it is the truth what makes us unique and the best is
every client that comes through the door
has a different circumstance and scenario
low down payment high down payment
(06:23):
low credit high credit
show your income you know
I'm self employed and write all my income off
investment primary jumbo
there's a a kajillion types of loans out there
so what makes us unique is we take a step back
have a nice high level consultation
and make sure we align that client
with the best lender based on the loan type
and then we offer wholesale pricing versus retail
(06:45):
which means we typically are the low cost provider
as well but we're the one stop shop for mortgage
okay so now you mentioned the banks and the
and the credit unions I mean
aren't those kind of the same thing in a way from they
it's an employee that works there
they offer only the company's products and uh
how how come they're in two different categories
(07:05):
yeah
so it's just different you know big banks Wells Fargo
City Bank Chase
you know they're considered fdic's credit unions
I mean locally in this area
you know jovia uh Teachers Federal there
those are a little bit smaller versions
I feel of the fdic's but yes
you have an employee there uh
usually federally regulated
that just offers the product suite of that one bank
(07:26):
same thing goes for the third option
the mortgage bank you know
a loan officer works there and you're only
we're gonna be able to offer
what that one lender is comfortable doing
versus us as a broker company
we use this magical software called Loan Simulator
all it is is we put in the
the specifications of the purchase or refinance
we click submit shows us all the lenders we're on with
(07:46):
and who's the best priced
and that gives us access to the best pricing and
of course the widest product suite
okay very cool
so that's uh that that's a good thing to learn
so it's not always best to go to bank of America
to the loan guy no
he's chasing you um because I mean
it might be worth checking with them
and getting a quote but uh
(08:06):
but through you guys you can get
you can get a loan with bank of America too
because you cause they're
they're bidding on you guys'loan loan uh
loan typically
the big banks specialize in like the jumbo world
so if you have you know
a multi
multi million dollar property and you have a great job
you show all your income with great credit um
they're actually willing to lose money on the mortgage
(08:27):
so they can cross sell you after you close
no one can compete with that
but that's a super small
you know niche within the mortgage business yeah
like with my finances as entrepreneur
I think every time bank of America
with the guy calls me and says like
hey how about you refinance your mortgage
I just laugh I was like
you happy to look at my finances
but you're never gonna fuck off
(08:47):
give me a loan on that because it just
they're so restrictive uh
cause they have they're
they have 17 layers of bureaucracy there
and they can only approve one kind of thing
either something really
really complex or like a what you mentioned
or just a simple cookie cutter kind of thing right yeah
I mean sometimes too
it's the actual salesperson you work with
it's weird our business is not sales to me
(09:08):
it's more consultative
I've worked with over 10,000 people
we've hundreds of five star reviews
if you work with someone at bank of America
are you getting their cell phone number
do they have
do they have product knowledge through and through
have they worked with thousands if not 10,000
you know people has a reputation
you know that those type of things really matter
especially as you're purchasing
because no matter who you are
(09:29):
the you know
what always hits the fan
and you need access to the mortgage guy to save the day
so it's just a different caliber of salesperson
you work with when you work with a broker company
and the answer to all these questions is usually no
that they don't have all that experience
yeah so I'm not gonna say no
why they're not answering the email timely
correct yeah
I've actually have nothing
(09:49):
but bad experiences with those big banks uh
that's why I always go with a broker uh
or with a mortgage banker
if they have the right kind of product for me
um yeah
very good very good
so now that we understand the difference
now
you mentioned something about certain loans
(10:10):
are now available
that there are less documentation now
that sounds like 2007 all over
like what's the difference between those kind of things
uh or
or and what's being offered today
yeah it's a great question because ultimately like
hey Andrew I hear about all these new loan types
is the crash coming all these crappy loans
(10:31):
so the answer is a big fat no
so the reason is
is when you check for mortgage qualifications
it's credit income and assets right
credit income and assets
so typically especially
you know to your point
if you're self employed entrepreneur
businesses write offs they put you through the ringer
look at multiple year tax returns
they look at your net not your revenue
so if you write a lot of stuff off
(10:53):
you know you may not be able to finance a bike
let alone a house but you know
nonetheless some of these new products
they will look at your bank statements
look at your revenue instead of your tax returns
super cool so they go off the revenue and not your net
or a profit and loss where you write like hey
this is my revenue these are my expenses
this is my profit
but what's different about years past is
(11:13):
you have to typically put down at least 20%
so there's equity this isn't max financing you
that's a big you know
caveat for clients you need 20
25% down No. 1
and No. 2 they do look at your credit profile
it's a little bit more stringent up
typically minimal
credit scores for these options are in the 6
80 700 range or higher
(11:33):
they want to see
you have a lot of post closing liquidity
what's that mean if you close
you have money left to your name
say your mortgage payments 5,000
12 months of that is 60,000
they want to see 60
grand of cash left over for a rainy day
so the reason the
crash and all that stuff won't happen again is No. 1
equity positions are higher
people are putting more money down
No. 2
the credit profiles are way better and more so No. 3
(11:56):
these are fixed rate mortgages
typically not adjustables
no concern of the payment changing
alright thank you um
thank you really for for explaining that
because sometimes you hear and you see on social media
things people's like
oh my God the liar loans are back and and oh my God
everything's gonna crash so I
I I was hoping you would answer it
(12:16):
the way that you answered it
because it
it it showcases that that it's not the same thing
it is something creative it's good
it's it gives you
if you're in a more complex financial situation
that banks don't perhaps understand
it gives you the ability to
to get properties that perhaps otherwise
you wouldn't be able to get um
but if you're in a high liquidity
(12:39):
high liquidity and high credit situation
but perhaps the business is all that just
it just doesn't make sense to some of the owners
and if you're an entrepreneur
you know what I'm talking about if you have a W2 job
you're probably saying like
what is Jack rambling right now
because let me tell you when you have when you have um
like for example 2024
(13:00):
my income tax return is gonna report zero income
well that's not the reality right
the reality is that we got a huge write off
because of a multi
family property that was hit by a Hurricane
and that uh
was the insurance company didn't pay
so we we put a lot of money into this property
(13:22):
which is all capital expenditures
that you get to write off a good portion of
and that write off of that is
ends up being more than my income for the year
so as a result
my income for 2024 is zero just with that
if I go to bank of America now
when we sell that property
that money is gonna come back to me right
(13:43):
so it's not like I lost the money
you get to write it off
a bunch of air conditions on the roof
like 50 air conditions at $10,000 a pop is $500,000
things like that you talk about in brand new roof
that's a capital expenditure kind of item
a bunch of kitchens and things like that
well all of that flows through to us
(14:03):
and offsets whatever income I've had
and as a result my tax return says zero
well my tax returns is zero and uh
and and
and a couple of other things
but I got cash in the bank
and I got an 800 credit score
I probably would qualify for one of these things
but I definitely won't qualify at bank of America
(14:24):
well think about it Jack
I'll give you an example say you had a million dollars
just lying around
and you had to give it to one of two people
who would you rather give it to person number one
they're putting
three and a half percent down on the purchase
it's not their money it's their parents
they've never saved
(14:45):
they just graduated college six months ago
they're newly on the job and their credit score is a 5
90
never paid rent
buying a million dollar house max financing
you know you're gonna lend the money
or would you rather lend it to someone
who's an entrepreneur self employed
owns their business for five years
(15:05):
to your point shows $0 maybe even a loss
but you have 12 months of their bank statements
and you see every month 50,000 revenue comes in
every month 50,000 revenue
and they're putting down 25% all their own money
and they have a year of mortgage payments
left over in the bank for a rainy day
but they're getting a million dollars from you
which of those two
would you rather get your money on the street with
(15:27):
absolutely that's it's not a question
it's the second one it's a much
much stronger position from a lender point of view
yeah and that's the position of Wall Street
with these mortgages where they have equity
they have credit profile they have revenue coming in
now of course
they're not checking income in the more conservative
typical fashion but that's what you're working with
now the crazy thing is that first person
(15:49):
the rate for them today is six and a quarter
the rate for the second person who to me be if my money
I would do the same thing is seven and a quarter
that first person gets a better interest rate
and why is that
cause you get the big government stamp on the box right
so if you do an FHA mortgage
you know rates are in 30 year fix range
that's what they are they're in the low sixes
(16:10):
but that hits the sweet spot of the FHA guidelines
and FHA interest rates are typically
a little bit better than conventional rates
which are now in like the low to mid sixes where
you know these non QM
these bank statement program loans
are typically half a percent to one percent higher
so if for my money
I'm going with the person to all day long
to your point but that's the funny thing
person number one gets a better interest rate
(16:31):
wow
shows you the craziness of the financial market
sometimes so uh
how did you get into this
I had a really weird dream
and then I woke up and I was a mortgage guy
no so um
I actually have a master's in psychology
you know I was more into the psych side
um I got into right at the crash into mortgage
(16:53):
believe it or not um
I did one subprime loan in my career
just one it's pretty cool
just did one and ever since the business you know
there was that crash 0 7 0 8
it's always been more difficult
but to me I just love the journey of a purchase client
it's very psychological
it's very counseling as you know
you hold their hand they're super anxious
they've never done it you know
(17:13):
they are all you start throwing acronyms and things
they start getting you know anxiety
so I just love the journey of a new client
and then seeing them to the end
to the closing
it's just really exciting to me and ironically
make a good living doing it
so I started at a couple places
I was a salesperson there
decided in 2,015 16 to go into business for myself
become an entrepreneur everyone said I would fail
(17:34):
I have a huge problem
when someone says that I can't do something
I have to prove them wrong so you know
I applied for my mortgage license got in 17
we started me and only a couple people fast forward
we've won broker of the year in the country
a couple times you know
three years in a row ink 5,000 fast is growing
so and we're not done yet folks
but I could tell you
entrepreneurship is definitely for me wonderful
(17:56):
and I can tell that you have the right traits
because I see that sign on your
on your wall with the iceberg
uh and uh where the tip is the success
and you can't see the full thing
but it's okay I see it
but you for it yeah
and it has and it below it's like like uh
like late nights rejection
sacrifice discipline criticism doubts
failure risk
it's all the things under the surface that nobody sees
(18:18):
about entrepreneurship yeah
I saw a quote the other day
it says like entrepreneurship is hard
entrepreneurs know that entrepreneurship is hard
but then it's even harder than that
like something like that literally
and it's true it is
it is hard anything you start because there's
there's no employer rescuing you anymore and
(18:38):
and and so um
what did you do to to become entrepreneur uh
broker of the year and and
and do all these things
like how did you grow your business so um
so successful like how um
how yeah
what what
like you you have a master's in psychology
which helps you be be hopefully like
I expect more like a psychology expert
(19:00):
more like empathy and things and understanding
which right right
makes sense
that you love bringing people to the journey
cause the journey is an emotional roller coaster
like life is and with an
with a psychological and the master of psychology
you're trained in that
but that doesn't translate into business skill
automatically so
how did you build your business
in a way that's successful
(19:22):
do you have mentors did you follow a model
did you just trail blaze it
gotta just wing it in this life
you know but no
so I'm the type of person like I said
if I put my mind to something
I'm I'm always gonna succeed at it and find a way so
you know opening the company was
it was a super great experience
but to me it's always what's your strategy
what's your business plan
(19:42):
you know
my everyone all of us have these acronyms right
add OCD God knows what we all have but you know
I obsessed over for me to be successful
what would it take what would it look like
what's the thing I had to do
I planned it out I thought about it
I thought about it and that was one of the big keys
you know one of them as an entrepreneur
I kept you know
if we're hitting the entrepreneur you know dopamine
(20:02):
you know thing right now
it's I kept my fixed costs down
that's I think important for new entrepreneur
you know some come out Jack and they have
you know an amazing space a bloated
you know rent that they're doing
cause they have to have a cool place
in the middle of the cool spot
the middle of the cool town um
I kept my fixed cost very low I invested in tech
I had all the cool toys but I also did the non
(20:25):
negotiable things that weren't all that important
I didn't necessarily buy into those
which again is really most
people come out with a very expensive rent lease
you know so by doing that
I definitely position myself
for success from a financial perspective
and I feel like our business plan
you know our strategy to get clients and customers
was phenomenal you know
I've always been a realtor centric company
(20:46):
no matter what happens even a pandemic
people will buy houses I wasn't using internet leads
it was word of mouth but it was mostly realtors
so we created a great mouse trap
to entice agents to work with us
because we kick butt on the mortgage side
we're super communicative
we have great rates we reach out
you know we
build relationships with agents over and over
and over again and deliver great service
(21:08):
and that was the key to my growth
just sticking to the plan
you know having a great plan and just executing day in
day out it's the whole thing as an entrepreneur
it's it's motivation versus discipline
have you ever heard that
that whole motivation versus discipline
so the whole motivation is cool
but it's the discipline to do it when no one's looking
when it's annoying when you're tired
(21:28):
when you're you know
youngest of two daughters wakes you up
she had a nightmare and now you're shot
you know that's something where I just have that bug
you know I have that chip on my shoulder
and I'm super disciplined
wow so um
that's impressive um
were you always a disciplined person cause again
I'm a coach so I mean part of what we do is coach
(21:48):
I don't personally coach anymore
but we have a coaching company and I
for years and years I coached myself
and the biggest difference between
people that are ultimately successful
and people are not ultimately successful
as I find is can they stick it through
uh versus exactly is that motivation
(22:08):
motivation versus discipline
motivation is like deodorant
you need it every day uh
discipline is like that
the difference between running 100 hundred
hundred yard Marathon
like 100 meter race or a Marathon right
so and the Marathon you just walk
you just go and go and go
you will go much slower
but you don't just go to like run and stop
(22:31):
run and stop you just keep chipping away
they come rain or shine and where does this come from
uh have you always had that or is that
is that something you Learned
yeah I think discipline
has a little bit to do with confidence
as well you know
why do you stay the course when the chips are down
you know when the cards are stacked against you
why do you keep at it go to sleep
wake up you know
(22:51):
do the same thing
throw on your same you know suit and uh
and and keep at it just
I know when I put my mind to something
and I'm confident in the plan
like listen we're all human things happen
the market's crazy
you know this that the third may get in your way
but I just know I'm the type of person
if something gets in my way
I'm gonna find a way to get around it
and I'm just confident in myself
(23:13):
that when I put my mind to something
I'll succeed I've had plenty of it
I mean right when I rolled out
I did something wrong with the space that I leased
I won a 10,000 dollar grant for like this come up award
was a huge honor won 10 thousand when I first started
I took that money and put it into a space to lease
and it turns out I did it the wrong way
(23:33):
so I couldn't lease that space
and I burned 12,000 right out of the gate
so I do learn things the hard way at times track
I'm one of those people you know
I don't know if if you have kids
it's like do they learn it the easy way or the hard way
I'm the hard way guy
but I also like figuring things out myself
but I just have the confidence
I know that no matter what happens in our business
something might happen with a client
or with an interest rate
or they potentially entertain using somebody else
(23:56):
like things happen that's outside of your control
you just have to have the confidence
and the discipline to kind of
keep at it but that's just always been me
and when I put my mind to something
no matter what happens I'm gonna keep at it
hmm
okay uh
and so so I guess
this in okay
(24:16):
let's let's let that
that makes sense you
you're just that person so like if
if if
if you have a really bad day
what do you say to yourself
in order to not have that bad day
to get back out of that that hole
alright listen
we all ruminate you know
I just I've done this long enough to know
it's in the back of my mind
I surround myself with great people that like
listen Andrew
you're gonna get to the end goal
(24:37):
and you're gonna get there in one of two ways
way a you stress yourself out
you're frustrated you're pissed
you go home and have an extra glass of wine
maybe you order delivery Chinese food
I don't know kids are crazy these days
or you take path No. 2
which is you're gonna figure it out
nothing happens in this industry that you've never seen
and you take it with Grace and class and gratitude
(25:00):
and that's a recent thing for me
you know
I've recently rolled out that whole methodology
but I just know no matter what happens
it's gonna work out
it's just a lot of people in this life
you know and I coach same thing with my team
you know we're gonna get there
it's just you wanna enjoy the journey
or do you wanna be stressed out
frustrated with bad habits
you know I just
it's happened enough over time
that I always seem to get us there
(25:21):
that I just take it with Grace and gratitude
because I know the journey is everything
love that particularly you
you are able to tap back into past experiences
where it has worked out
that you just said a key sentence
I think it happened enough in the past
that I know I can do it again essentially right
so um
so that's that's a great thing
(25:42):
that's a great
great kind of a ha moment for for for many
hopefully for many people
like for you as you go through
there's like that's another thing I've not
something I haven't seen before
let's go through this one more thing
and I think over time
that's becomes a real strength for an entrepreneur
I agree with you on that so now um
(26:02):
tell us about like how big is your team now
our team is definitely big and growing
I feel like the company is around 40 now
you know we have a big venture right now
we're looking to compete with the biggest
teams in the country
do a billion dollars in production
you know a billion dollars in funded business
so you know
(26:22):
we're expanding to more states
we specialize in New York
I think that's a benefit
because New York and mortgage is typically one
of the most difficult
if not the most difficult to broil
pain in the butt attorney states
closings are kind of all over the place
from a timing perspective
so we're bringing the same zest
grit and grind and super caffeinated
you know
vibe to other states and they're loving it so far
(26:45):
so that's really been our
our big mission so our team is growing
it's the right people
we don't just open the doors and hire everybody
culture is super important
I'm sure you can empathize
one wrong person in the right seat
can destroy your company let alone culture
so we're growing the right way
but that's really our big focus
is growing with the right people
but also the right mission
the mission is you know
move over you know
(27:06):
some of you big producers out there
you know here comes RCG
I can tell you that
alright good
well I like that
I like the confidence there
but then how do you sustain that without burning out
uh it's a great question
so for me you know
the whole body business balance being
you know some of that stuff
I when I was young
(27:28):
probably a little more hair
I'm a little less white
so my kids say I look like Santa when this grows out
um shout out Danielle and Gabriella
my two little blondies so um
for me I feel I made a mistake
dropped the ball putting work first
meaning like say me and you Jack are on the team right
we're like cool
all this stuff's going on
I'm gonna wake up at 4 meet you at the diner at 4:30
(27:48):
we're gonna crush some omelettes and some coffee
get to the office 5:00am and just like
and I've done that
I made a mistake cause I sacrificed the body side
meaning I wasn't going to the gym
getting my mind right you know
getting my workouts in so I've actually reversed it
I wake up very early
I kind of get my mind right with some reading
and some journaling and all that good stuff
I really bought into that stuff and I go to the gym
(28:10):
you know I'm a
I like to weight lift you know
do some of that cardio stuff
but that's how I don't burn out
is I make sure that my body and my mind is right
because otherwise I'm a big caffeine guy
you know the energy drinks
if you don't go to the gym and do all the stuff
and eat right it affects you at work
so instead of focusing on the work side
I focus on my body my balance
(28:30):
you know some of my diets of me just not eating crap
you know I grew up eating Chinese food at McDonald's
so obviously we can't do that and by doing that
I find I have more energy at work
and I don't have burnout issues
and I sleep better so it's almost the opposite
first for entrepreneurs say
oh my god I have a startup company
I have to put in 23 hours of the day
it's not the case
focus on getting your mind and your body right
(28:51):
and the rest is easy and I just recently Learned that
and that's how I make sure I avoid burnout
very cool very cool
uh I like that
that's something I'm still struggling with myself
I'm I'm just not a morning person
so so I
I like to sleep in and uh
and then I get my daughter ready
and by the time that's ready
it's 8:00am and uh and but I
(29:14):
I have lately
I've taken the time
even between 7:30 when she leaves and 8:30
and just like get my mind
at least my mind right I still need to get the body fit
but the mind is right
so to me the morning routine is not the morning routine
not not that I'm giving you
you know nuggets here
but it's the night routine
so for me I can succeed and crush the morning
if my night routine is good
(29:34):
lay out my clothes don't eat late
I try to avoid wine at all cost now
even though obviously you know
there's nothing wrong with a glass here and there
and for me I have to go to bed early
it stinks in my 20s
I'm in my 40s now in my 20s I was cool
I was a night owl I was up
I was dancing living the dream
but for me I have to unwind early
I don't see the No. 10
(29:55):
I typically see the No. 9 when I try to go to sleep
that is hard that is not fun
there's no Netflix chilling
there's no death doom scrolling
it's if I can go to shut my eyes in the nines
a 4 to 5:00am wake up is good
if not I'm just like you
there's no Kryptonite is or my sleep is my Kryptonite
there's no shot I can wake up early
(30:15):
so for me it starts with the night and it's hard
yeah
that's like that's the other day I heard
I said somebody's I heard somebody say that
all
the thing that was a penalty when we were teenagers
is now something we thrive for
go to bed early um
like not like put the phone away
uh things like that
(30:35):
the exact opposite that's the exact turn off the TV
this is all things we're like yeah
let's let's do this and let's just go to sleep
so I'm with you on that I'm with you on that
um great
so now one last question is um
who is your perfect customer
who do you cater to what
what like
who are the people that
if somebody wants to work with you
like what is kind of a good situation for them to have
(30:56):
for the for
for them to fit with to fit your profile yeah
that's a great question so for the consumer
we work with consumers that are buying you know
move up buyers buying residential properties typically
you know one to four families condos
co op we work with investors
that's part of the magic non qm loan
we were talking about you know
people buying multiple properties investors
(31:16):
you know flippers
things of the sort that's our ideal consumer
someone that wants to work with the highly skilled
ninjas of the world at a discount
that's what we offer
and we're in a little less than 20 states
you know some of the largest states in the country
also our our customer is a realtor
right now we're seeing a huge gap in the marketplace
for great loan officers great sales people in mortgage
(31:39):
so realtors are our customer because of course
they're referring us our clients
so we cater to everything that a realtor looks for
we help them grow their business
with coaching and strategies
our communication is stellar
because at the end of the day
if you're an agent and you're showing properties
and the mortgage guy fails
guess what it was all for nothing
you know the client's gonna have a bad experience
(31:59):
might get some bad reviews and get
you might not be able to feed your family
you know make your commission check
so as much as the consumer
client is something that's important to us
the realtor is just as important
wonderful yeah
and I agree that's a multiplier
that's probably how you
amongst others grow your business significantly by
as you mentioned earlier
by having a really good package for the realtor
(32:20):
instead of you having to find customer after customer
you find the multipliers that have 35 customers a year
and or 50 customers a year
and they bring you their business
you're easy to work with the price are really good
a good strategy great
so how can people get a hold of you
if somebody wants to get in touch with you
and find out which which markets you're dealing with
which markets you're operating with
um
if somebody wants to work with a ninja set a discount
(32:43):
how can I get a hold of you
yeah so you know
I do a ton of electric
social media content on the gram and on TikTok
it's at I am Andrew Russell 2 SS two ls
that's where you can find us on social RCG mortgage.com
you know that's my company and that's the best spot
but mortgage guys right wrong are different
we're like on call doctors
the expectation is that we're available so reach out
(33:05):
we're huge with education
and we love working with both the realtor
and client alike alright wonderful
well with that said guys
go check it out
it's like I give us give us the Instagram handle again
I am Andrew I am Andrew Russell 2 SS's 2 LS baby
there we go Andrew Russell
I am Andrew Russell 2 SS's
2 LS go
(33:26):
check it out I'll definitely be following you
so with that said that concludes our episode
as always give us that 5 star review
share it with your friends
contact Andrew Russell um
play fallout have fun
and thank you very much for being on the show with me
thank you
say you had a million dollars just lying around
and you had to give it to one of two people
who would you rather give it to
if you apply for a mortgage
you can apply with four types of sales people
at four types of places us as a broker company
we use this magical software called loansnap
is ultimately like hey Andrew
I hear about all these new loan types
is the crash coming all these crappy loans
so the answer is a big so it's almost the opposite
(00:21):
first for entrepreneurs say
oh my god I have a startup company
I have to put in 23 hours of the day
it's not the case
focus on getting your mind and your body right
and the rest is easy
hey there and welcome everyone
to another episode of The Jackpot Show
where we talk about all things real estate
finance and entrepreneurship
and today
we're gonna talk about all three things of that
(00:42):
because my guest
Andrew Russell is a mortgage visionary
psychology expert business trail blazer
so we're gonna talk mortgages today
and business and mortgage and everything involved
Andrew welcome to the show
thanks for having me Jack
wonderful so you are in beautiful New York City
and tell us what you do
(01:02):
so I own a mortgage broker company
we service clients on the residential side and you know
right now we're kicking butt
we're taking names and even in this market
we're doing very well
alright great
so let's jump right into that
so real estate interest rates are up
people are holding on to their 2.8% interest rates uh
not selling their house um
(01:25):
the economy is whatever
with the terrorists and things like that
people are a little bit scared out there
how do you
still taking names and kicking butt out there
so I mean listen
I feel like when you do something for a living
the riches are in the niches
so although to your point
you know I don't I don't remember the numbers
I should I do this for a living right
x amount of percent of people have a rate under 4%
(01:47):
and even more of them have a rate under 5 or 6%
you know right now
I feel and we're seeing in the marketplace
and a lot of the articles we've been reading
that a lot of clients are charging up Jack
their credit cards you know
there's a little bit more debt
so with the the rates where they are
with the lack of inventory
the values in America seem to be going up
especially in our local marketplace
(02:09):
so with that as equity goes up
it's a great time to I don't know
take out a home equity loan
you know so although you know
maybe some of these these clients aren't gonna sell
lose that low interest rate um
they're certainly you know
quote unquote
cash advancing their equity now because again
um due to the various reasons
it seems like debt scratch any debt is going up
so it's a very cheap way to pay down that debt
(02:31):
and it's kind of cyclical
you know that's something that we're seeing as well
so although it's frustrating that you know
some of the inventory
stuff hasn't really caught up with the demand
on the buy side people are definitely
taking advantage of their equity position
okay
so you're basically have probably pivoted from 202120
two or 2021 22
from a lots of new purchases to a lot more refinancing
(02:53):
second home second lines and and things like that
yeah so I wouldn't say we we fully pivoted
it's just you know
right now you can't be a one trick pony
so I own a mortgage broker company
we have access to all the products
what does that mean
that we really specialize in everything
so some of the things that I've picked up for sure
that have bridged the gap of
you know years ago to your point
(03:13):
if someone said hey Andrew
I got your information from Liz Cool
you know how can I help you
I have a rate of seven and a half percent
you know well
great news you know
rates are now at two and a half percent
that's what the conversation was
it's not all that difficult
it wasn't even necessarily sales
just it always made sense
you know now it's kind of morphed into
as you lost those refinances
non QM it's a super weird acronym non QM
(03:35):
but non QM non hyphen QM
it's just basically a mortgage type
where it's more reduced documentation
it's geared towards self employed clients
investment programs where it's on the market
rent versus actually showing your income
so that type of mortgage product
which has a bunch of stuff within it
that's taken market share
and of course to your point uh
heelocks just weren't really a thing
(03:55):
and now they're definitely a thing
you know some of the heelock lenders are allowing
higher percent to borrow
versus the all in value number
even with a first mortgage
so those have taken a little bit more market share
but to me
you have to be definitely diversified in this market
you can't just be a vanilla purchase shop
20% down two teachers high credit score
you know
we have to get a little bit more into the chocolate
(04:17):
that's what we've done alright
so let's let's unpack a lot of things because I um
I'm the I'm I'm known as being in land
so we flip land
we have a coaching company that teaches people how to
flip land most of our business is um
is happening outside of traditional banks
and mortgages do a lot of self financing
(04:38):
we create our own notes and things like that
and banks typically don't lend on land
so so notes is or or like the mortgage world
I have do I have experience with it
of course I have rental properties
I have apartment complexes
I have things like that
I have my own home and things like that but um
I've never really gotten that deep into
into the different kind of products
(04:59):
and stuff like that
but my audience is not all land our audience here
whoever watches this is not all in in land
there's there's people from all walks of life
listening to this and so uh
one of the things is let's talk about first of all
you said your your mortgage brokerage
what what kind of different mortgage people are there
(05:21):
let's say the orange conference out
but now we'll talk about let's write that
and then
I wanna talk about the different kind of things that
the abbreviations that you just saw about
with lower documentation this kind of things
let's dive into those two subjects
but one after the other perfect
so if you apply for a mortgage
you can apply with four types of sales people
at four types of places one is the big bank
(05:41):
I'm sure you've heard of them Chase Wells
you know city banks some of the larger institutions
they usually specialize in certain types of loan
programs but not all of them
but that's No. 1 No. 2 is a credit union
you know usually
typically local credit unions that will service clients
the third is a mortgage bank
you know these are lenders that actually fund the loan
with a warehouse line
almost like a line of credit and then they sell it off
(06:02):
they're non depository institutions
but again you're at one bank
and then the fourth
we save the best for last is a mortgage broker company
so we partner with banks
so we say like we're on with all the banks
so it is the truth what makes us unique and the best is
every client that comes through the door
has a different circumstance and scenario
low down payment high down payment
(06:23):
low credit high credit
show your income you know
I'm self employed and write all my income off
investment primary jumbo
there's a a kajillion types of loans out there
so what makes us unique is we take a step back
have a nice high level consultation
and make sure we align that client
with the best lender based on the loan type
and then we offer wholesale pricing versus retail
(06:45):
which means we typically are the low cost provider
as well but we're the one stop shop for mortgage
okay so now you mentioned the banks and the
and the credit unions I mean
aren't those kind of the same thing in a way from they
it's an employee that works there
they offer only the company's products and uh
how how come they're in two different categories
(07:05):
yeah
so it's just different you know big banks Wells Fargo
City Bank Chase
you know they're considered fdic's credit unions
I mean locally in this area
you know jovia uh Teachers Federal there
those are a little bit smaller versions
I feel of the fdic's but yes
you have an employee there uh
usually federally regulated
that just offers the product suite of that one bank
(07:26):
same thing goes for the third option
the mortgage bank you know
a loan officer works there and you're only
we're gonna be able to offer
what that one lender is comfortable doing
versus us as a broker company
we use this magical software called Loan Simulator
all it is is we put in the
the specifications of the purchase or refinance
we click submit shows us all the lenders we're on with
(07:46):
and who's the best priced
and that gives us access to the best pricing and
of course the widest product suite
okay very cool
so that's uh that that's a good thing to learn
so it's not always best to go to bank of America
to the loan guy no
he's chasing you um because I mean
it might be worth checking with them
and getting a quote but uh
(08:06):
but through you guys you can get
you can get a loan with bank of America too
because you cause they're
they're bidding on you guys'loan loan uh
loan typically
the big banks specialize in like the jumbo world
so if you have you know
a multi
multi million dollar property and you have a great job
you show all your income with great credit um
they're actually willing to lose money on the mortgage
(08:27):
so they can cross sell you after you close
no one can compete with that
but that's a super small
you know niche within the mortgage business yeah
like with my finances as entrepreneur
I think every time bank of America
with the guy calls me and says like
hey how about you refinance your mortgage
I just laugh I was like
you happy to look at my finances
but you're never gonna fuck off
(08:47):
give me a loan on that because it just
they're so restrictive uh
cause they have they're
they have 17 layers of bureaucracy there
and they can only approve one kind of thing
either something really
really complex or like a what you mentioned
or just a simple cookie cutter kind of thing right yeah
I mean sometimes too
it's the actual salesperson you work with
it's weird our business is not sales to me
(09:08):
it's more consultative
I've worked with over 10,000 people
we've hundreds of five star reviews
if you work with someone at bank of America
are you getting their cell phone number
do they have
do they have product knowledge through and through
have they worked with thousands if not 10,000
you know people has a reputation
you know that those type of things really matter
especially as you're purchasing
because no matter who you are
(09:29):
the you know
what always hits the fan
and you need access to the mortgage guy to save the day
so it's just a different caliber of salesperson
you work with when you work with a broker company
and the answer to all these questions is usually no
that they don't have all that experience
yeah so I'm not gonna say no
why they're not answering the email timely
correct yeah
I've actually have nothing
(09:49):
but bad experiences with those big banks uh
that's why I always go with a broker uh
or with a mortgage banker
if they have the right kind of product for me
um yeah
very good very good
so now that we understand the difference
now
you mentioned something about certain loans
(10:10):
are now available
that there are less documentation now
that sounds like 2007 all over
like what's the difference between those kind of things
uh or
or and what's being offered today
yeah it's a great question because ultimately like
hey Andrew I hear about all these new loan types
is the crash coming all these crappy loans
(10:31):
so the answer is a big fat no
so the reason is
is when you check for mortgage qualifications
it's credit income and assets right
credit income and assets
so typically especially
you know to your point
if you're self employed entrepreneur
businesses write offs they put you through the ringer
look at multiple year tax returns
they look at your net not your revenue
so if you write a lot of stuff off
(10:53):
you know you may not be able to finance a bike
let alone a house but you know
nonetheless some of these new products
they will look at your bank statements
look at your revenue instead of your tax returns
super cool so they go off the revenue and not your net
or a profit and loss where you write like hey
this is my revenue these are my expenses
this is my profit
but what's different about years past is
(11:13):
you have to typically put down at least 20%
so there's equity this isn't max financing you
that's a big you know
caveat for clients you need 20
25% down No. 1
and No. 2 they do look at your credit profile
it's a little bit more stringent up
typically minimal
credit scores for these options are in the 6
80 700 range or higher
(11:33):
they want to see
you have a lot of post closing liquidity
what's that mean if you close
you have money left to your name
say your mortgage payments 5,000
12 months of that is 60,000
they want to see 60
grand of cash left over for a rainy day
so the reason the
crash and all that stuff won't happen again is No. 1
equity positions are higher
people are putting more money down
No. 2
the credit profiles are way better and more so No. 3
(11:56):
these are fixed rate mortgages
typically not adjustables
no concern of the payment changing
alright thank you um
thank you really for for explaining that
because sometimes you hear and you see on social media
things people's like
oh my God the liar loans are back and and oh my God
everything's gonna crash so I
I I was hoping you would answer it
(12:16):
the way that you answered it
because it
it it showcases that that it's not the same thing
it is something creative it's good
it's it gives you
if you're in a more complex financial situation
that banks don't perhaps understand
it gives you the ability to
to get properties that perhaps otherwise
you wouldn't be able to get um
but if you're in a high liquidity
(12:39):
high liquidity and high credit situation
but perhaps the business is all that just
it just doesn't make sense to some of the owners
and if you're an entrepreneur
you know what I'm talking about if you have a W2 job
you're probably saying like
what is Jack rambling right now
because let me tell you when you have when you have um
like for example 2024
(13:00):
my income tax return is gonna report zero income
well that's not the reality right
the reality is that we got a huge write off
because of a multi
family property that was hit by a Hurricane
and that uh
was the insurance company didn't pay
so we we put a lot of money into this property
(13:22):
which is all capital expenditures
that you get to write off a good portion of
and that write off of that is
ends up being more than my income for the year
so as a result
my income for 2024 is zero just with that
if I go to bank of America now
when we sell that property
that money is gonna come back to me right
(13:43):
so it's not like I lost the money
you get to write it off
a bunch of air conditions on the roof
like 50 air conditions at $10,000 a pop is $500,000
things like that you talk about in brand new roof
that's a capital expenditure kind of item
a bunch of kitchens and things like that
well all of that flows through to us
(14:03):
and offsets whatever income I've had
and as a result my tax return says zero
well my tax returns is zero and uh
and and
and a couple of other things
but I got cash in the bank
and I got an 800 credit score
I probably would qualify for one of these things
but I definitely won't qualify at bank of America
(14:24):
well think about it Jack
I'll give you an example say you had a million dollars
just lying around
and you had to give it to one of two people
who would you rather give it to person number one
they're putting
three and a half percent down on the purchase
it's not their money it's their parents
they've never saved
(14:45):
they just graduated college six months ago
they're newly on the job and their credit score is a 5
90
never paid rent
buying a million dollar house max financing
you know you're gonna lend the money
or would you rather lend it to someone
who's an entrepreneur self employed
owns their business for five years
(15:05):
to your point shows $0 maybe even a loss
but you have 12 months of their bank statements
and you see every month 50,000 revenue comes in
every month 50,000 revenue
and they're putting down 25% all their own money
and they have a year of mortgage payments
left over in the bank for a rainy day
but they're getting a million dollars from you
which of those two
would you rather get your money on the street with
(15:27):
absolutely that's it's not a question
it's the second one it's a much
much stronger position from a lender point of view
yeah and that's the position of Wall Street
with these mortgages where they have equity
they have credit profile they have revenue coming in
now of course
they're not checking income in the more conservative
typical fashion but that's what you're working with
now the crazy thing is that first person
(15:49):
the rate for them today is six and a quarter
the rate for the second person who to me be if my money
I would do the same thing is seven and a quarter
that first person gets a better interest rate
and why is that
cause you get the big government stamp on the box right
so if you do an FHA mortgage
you know rates are in 30 year fix range
that's what they are they're in the low sixes
(16:10):
but that hits the sweet spot of the FHA guidelines
and FHA interest rates are typically
a little bit better than conventional rates
which are now in like the low to mid sixes where
you know these non QM
these bank statement program loans
are typically half a percent to one percent higher
so if for my money
I'm going with the person to all day long
to your point but that's the funny thing
person number one gets a better interest rate
(16:31):
wow
shows you the craziness of the financial market
sometimes so uh
how did you get into this
I had a really weird dream
and then I woke up and I was a mortgage guy
no so um
I actually have a master's in psychology
you know I was more into the psych side
um I got into right at the crash into mortgage
(16:53):
believe it or not um
I did one subprime loan in my career
just one it's pretty cool
just did one and ever since the business you know
there was that crash 0 7 0 8
it's always been more difficult
but to me I just love the journey of a purchase client
it's very psychological
it's very counseling as you know
you hold their hand they're super anxious
they've never done it you know
(17:13):
they are all you start throwing acronyms and things
they start getting you know anxiety
so I just love the journey of a new client
and then seeing them to the end
to the closing
it's just really exciting to me and ironically
make a good living doing it
so I started at a couple places
I was a salesperson there
decided in 2,015 16 to go into business for myself
become an entrepreneur everyone said I would fail
(17:34):
I have a huge problem
when someone says that I can't do something
I have to prove them wrong so you know
I applied for my mortgage license got in 17
we started me and only a couple people fast forward
we've won broker of the year in the country
a couple times you know
three years in a row ink 5,000 fast is growing
so and we're not done yet folks
but I could tell you
entrepreneurship is definitely for me wonderful
(17:56):
and I can tell that you have the right traits
because I see that sign on your
on your wall with the iceberg
uh and uh where the tip is the success
and you can't see the full thing
but it's okay I see it
but you for it yeah
and it has and it below it's like like uh
like late nights rejection
sacrifice discipline criticism doubts
failure risk
it's all the things under the surface that nobody sees
(18:18):
about entrepreneurship yeah
I saw a quote the other day
it says like entrepreneurship is hard
entrepreneurs know that entrepreneurship is hard
but then it's even harder than that
like something like that literally
and it's true it is
it is hard anything you start because there's
there's no employer rescuing you anymore and
(18:38):
and and so um
what did you do to to become entrepreneur uh
broker of the year and and
and do all these things
like how did you grow your business so um
so successful like how um
how yeah
what what
like you you have a master's in psychology
which helps you be be hopefully like
I expect more like a psychology expert
(19:00):
more like empathy and things and understanding
which right right
makes sense
that you love bringing people to the journey
cause the journey is an emotional roller coaster
like life is and with an
with a psychological and the master of psychology
you're trained in that
but that doesn't translate into business skill
automatically so
how did you build your business
in a way that's successful
(19:22):
do you have mentors did you follow a model
did you just trail blaze it
gotta just wing it in this life
you know but no
so I'm the type of person like I said
if I put my mind to something
I'm I'm always gonna succeed at it and find a way so
you know opening the company was
it was a super great experience
but to me it's always what's your strategy
what's your business plan
(19:42):
you know
my everyone all of us have these acronyms right
add OCD God knows what we all have but you know
I obsessed over for me to be successful
what would it take what would it look like
what's the thing I had to do
I planned it out I thought about it
I thought about it and that was one of the big keys
you know one of them as an entrepreneur
I kept you know
if we're hitting the entrepreneur you know dopamine
(20:02):
you know thing right now
it's I kept my fixed costs down
that's I think important for new entrepreneur
you know some come out Jack and they have
you know an amazing space a bloated
you know rent that they're doing
cause they have to have a cool place
in the middle of the cool spot
the middle of the cool town um
I kept my fixed cost very low I invested in tech
I had all the cool toys but I also did the non
(20:25):
negotiable things that weren't all that important
I didn't necessarily buy into those
which again is really most
people come out with a very expensive rent lease
you know so by doing that
I definitely position myself
for success from a financial perspective
and I feel like our business plan
you know our strategy to get clients and customers
was phenomenal you know
I've always been a realtor centric company
(20:46):
no matter what happens even a pandemic
people will buy houses I wasn't using internet leads
it was word of mouth but it was mostly realtors
so we created a great mouse trap
to entice agents to work with us
because we kick butt on the mortgage side
we're super communicative
we have great rates we reach out
you know we
build relationships with agents over and over
and over again and deliver great service
(21:08):
and that was the key to my growth
just sticking to the plan
you know having a great plan and just executing day in
day out it's the whole thing as an entrepreneur
it's it's motivation versus discipline
have you ever heard that
that whole motivation versus discipline
so the whole motivation is cool
but it's the discipline to do it when no one's looking
when it's annoying when you're tired
(21:28):
when you're you know
youngest of two daughters wakes you up
she had a nightmare and now you're shot
you know that's something where I just have that bug
you know I have that chip on my shoulder
and I'm super disciplined
wow so um
that's impressive um
were you always a disciplined person cause again
I'm a coach so I mean part of what we do is coach
(21:48):
I don't personally coach anymore
but we have a coaching company and I
for years and years I coached myself
and the biggest difference between
people that are ultimately successful
and people are not ultimately successful
as I find is can they stick it through
uh versus exactly is that motivation
(22:08):
motivation versus discipline
motivation is like deodorant
you need it every day uh
discipline is like that
the difference between running 100 hundred
hundred yard Marathon
like 100 meter race or a Marathon right
so and the Marathon you just walk
you just go and go and go
you will go much slower
but you don't just go to like run and stop
(22:31):
run and stop you just keep chipping away
they come rain or shine and where does this come from
uh have you always had that or is that
is that something you Learned
yeah I think discipline
has a little bit to do with confidence
as well you know
why do you stay the course when the chips are down
you know when the cards are stacked against you
why do you keep at it go to sleep
wake up you know
(22:51):
do the same thing
throw on your same you know suit and uh
and and keep at it just
I know when I put my mind to something
and I'm confident in the plan
like listen we're all human things happen
the market's crazy
you know this that the third may get in your way
but I just know I'm the type of person
if something gets in my way
I'm gonna find a way to get around it
and I'm just confident in myself
(23:13):
that when I put my mind to something
I'll succeed I've had plenty of it
I mean right when I rolled out
I did something wrong with the space that I leased
I won a 10,000 dollar grant for like this come up award
was a huge honor won 10 thousand when I first started
I took that money and put it into a space to lease
and it turns out I did it the wrong way
(23:33):
so I couldn't lease that space
and I burned 12,000 right out of the gate
so I do learn things the hard way at times track
I'm one of those people you know
I don't know if if you have kids
it's like do they learn it the easy way or the hard way
I'm the hard way guy
but I also like figuring things out myself
but I just have the confidence
I know that no matter what happens in our business
something might happen with a client
or with an interest rate
or they potentially entertain using somebody else
(23:56):
like things happen that's outside of your control
you just have to have the confidence
and the discipline to kind of
keep at it but that's just always been me
and when I put my mind to something
no matter what happens I'm gonna keep at it
hmm
okay uh
and so so I guess
this in okay
(24:16):
let's let's let that
that makes sense you
you're just that person so like if
if if
if you have a really bad day
what do you say to yourself
in order to not have that bad day
to get back out of that that hole
alright listen
we all ruminate you know
I just I've done this long enough to know
it's in the back of my mind
I surround myself with great people that like
listen Andrew
you're gonna get to the end goal
(24:37):
and you're gonna get there in one of two ways
way a you stress yourself out
you're frustrated you're pissed
you go home and have an extra glass of wine
maybe you order delivery Chinese food
I don't know kids are crazy these days
or you take path No. 2
which is you're gonna figure it out
nothing happens in this industry that you've never seen
and you take it with Grace and class and gratitude
(25:00):
and that's a recent thing for me
you know
I've recently rolled out that whole methodology
but I just know no matter what happens
it's gonna work out
it's just a lot of people in this life
you know and I coach same thing with my team
you know we're gonna get there
it's just you wanna enjoy the journey
or do you wanna be stressed out
frustrated with bad habits
you know I just
it's happened enough over time
that I always seem to get us there
(25:21):
that I just take it with Grace and gratitude
because I know the journey is everything
love that particularly you
you are able to tap back into past experiences
where it has worked out
that you just said a key sentence
I think it happened enough in the past
that I know I can do it again essentially right
so um
so that's that's a great thing
(25:42):
that's a great
great kind of a ha moment for for for many
hopefully for many people
like for you as you go through
there's like that's another thing I've not
something I haven't seen before
let's go through this one more thing
and I think over time
that's becomes a real strength for an entrepreneur
I agree with you on that so now um
(26:02):
tell us about like how big is your team now
our team is definitely big and growing
I feel like the company is around 40 now
you know we have a big venture right now
we're looking to compete with the biggest
teams in the country
do a billion dollars in production
you know a billion dollars in funded business
so you know
(26:22):
we're expanding to more states
we specialize in New York
I think that's a benefit
because New York and mortgage is typically one
of the most difficult
if not the most difficult to broil
pain in the butt attorney states
closings are kind of all over the place
from a timing perspective
so we're bringing the same zest
grit and grind and super caffeinated
you know
vibe to other states and they're loving it so far
(26:45):
so that's really been our
our big mission so our team is growing
it's the right people
we don't just open the doors and hire everybody
culture is super important
I'm sure you can empathize
one wrong person in the right seat
can destroy your company let alone culture
so we're growing the right way
but that's really our big focus
is growing with the right people
but also the right mission
the mission is you know
move over you know
(27:06):
some of you big producers out there
you know here comes RCG
I can tell you that
alright good
well I like that
I like the confidence there
but then how do you sustain that without burning out
uh it's a great question
so for me you know
the whole body business balance being
you know some of that stuff
I when I was young
(27:28):
probably a little more hair
I'm a little less white
so my kids say I look like Santa when this grows out
um shout out Danielle and Gabriella
my two little blondies so um
for me I feel I made a mistake
dropped the ball putting work first
meaning like say me and you Jack are on the team right
we're like cool
all this stuff's going on
I'm gonna wake up at 4 meet you at the diner at 4:30
(27:48):
we're gonna crush some omelettes and some coffee
get to the office 5:00am and just like
and I've done that
I made a mistake cause I sacrificed the body side
meaning I wasn't going to the gym
getting my mind right you know
getting my workouts in so I've actually reversed it
I wake up very early
I kind of get my mind right with some reading
and some journaling and all that good stuff
I really bought into that stuff and I go to the gym
(28:10):
you know I'm a
I like to weight lift you know
do some of that cardio stuff
but that's how I don't burn out
is I make sure that my body and my mind is right
because otherwise I'm a big caffeine guy
you know the energy drinks
if you don't go to the gym and do all the stuff
and eat right it affects you at work
so instead of focusing on the work side
I focus on my body my balance
(28:30):
you know some of my diets of me just not eating crap
you know I grew up eating Chinese food at McDonald's
so obviously we can't do that and by doing that
I find I have more energy at work
and I don't have burnout issues
and I sleep better so it's almost the opposite
first for entrepreneurs say
oh my god I have a startup company
I have to put in 23 hours of the day
it's not the case
focus on getting your mind and your body right
(28:51):
and the rest is easy and I just recently Learned that
and that's how I make sure I avoid burnout
very cool very cool
uh I like that
that's something I'm still struggling with myself
I'm I'm just not a morning person
so so I
I like to sleep in and uh
and then I get my daughter ready
and by the time that's ready
it's 8:00am and uh and but I
(29:14):
I have lately
I've taken the time
even between 7:30 when she leaves and 8:30
and just like get my mind
at least my mind right I still need to get the body fit
but the mind is right
so to me the morning routine is not the morning routine
not not that I'm giving you
you know nuggets here
but it's the night routine
so for me I can succeed and crush the morning
if my night routine is good
(29:34):
lay out my clothes don't eat late
I try to avoid wine at all cost now
even though obviously you know
there's nothing wrong with a glass here and there
and for me I have to go to bed early
it stinks in my 20s
I'm in my 40s now in my 20s I was cool
I was a night owl I was up
I was dancing living the dream
but for me I have to unwind early
I don't see the No. 10
(29:55):
I typically see the No. 9 when I try to go to sleep
that is hard that is not fun
there's no Netflix chilling
there's no death doom scrolling
it's if I can go to shut my eyes in the nines
a 4 to 5:00am wake up is good
if not I'm just like you
there's no Kryptonite is or my sleep is my Kryptonite
there's no shot I can wake up early
(30:15):
so for me it starts with the night and it's hard
yeah
that's like that's the other day I heard
I said somebody's I heard somebody say that
all
the thing that was a penalty when we were teenagers
is now something we thrive for
go to bed early um
like not like put the phone away
uh things like that
(30:35):
the exact opposite that's the exact turn off the TV
this is all things we're like yeah
let's let's do this and let's just go to sleep
so I'm with you on that I'm with you on that
um great
so now one last question is um
who is your perfect customer
who do you cater to what
what like
who are the people that
if somebody wants to work with you
like what is kind of a good situation for them to have
(30:56):
for the for
for them to fit with to fit your profile yeah
that's a great question so for the consumer
we work with consumers that are buying you know
move up buyers buying residential properties typically
you know one to four families condos
co op we work with investors
that's part of the magic non qm loan
we were talking about you know
people buying multiple properties investors
(31:16):
you know flippers
things of the sort that's our ideal consumer
someone that wants to work with the highly skilled
ninjas of the world at a discount
that's what we offer
and we're in a little less than 20 states
you know some of the largest states in the country
also our our customer is a realtor
right now we're seeing a huge gap in the marketplace
for great loan officers great sales people in mortgage
(31:39):
so realtors are our customer because of course
they're referring us our clients
so we cater to everything that a realtor looks for
we help them grow their business
with coaching and strategies
our communication is stellar
because at the end of the day
if you're an agent and you're showing properties
and the mortgage guy fails
guess what it was all for nothing
you know the client's gonna have a bad experience
(31:59):
might get some bad reviews and get
you might not be able to feed your family
you know make your commission check
so as much as the consumer
client is something that's important to us
the realtor is just as important
wonderful yeah
and I agree that's a multiplier
that's probably how you
amongst others grow your business significantly by
as you mentioned earlier
by having a really good package for the realtor
(32:20):
instead of you having to find customer after customer
you find the multipliers that have 35 customers a year
and or 50 customers a year
and they bring you their business
you're easy to work with the price are really good
a good strategy great
so how can people get a hold of you
if somebody wants to get in touch with you
and find out which which markets you're dealing with
which markets you're operating with
um
if somebody wants to work with a ninja set a discount
(32:43):
how can I get a hold of you
yeah so you know
I do a ton of electric
social media content on the gram and on TikTok
it's at I am Andrew Russell 2 SS two ls
that's where you can find us on social RCG mortgage.com
you know that's my company and that's the best spot
but mortgage guys right wrong are different
we're like on call doctors
the expectation is that we're available so reach out
(33:05):
we're huge with education
and we love working with both the realtor
and client alike alright wonderful
well with that said guys
go check it out
it's like I give us give us the Instagram handle again
I am Andrew I am Andrew Russell 2 SS's 2 LS baby
there we go Andrew Russell
I am Andrew Russell 2 SS's
2 LS go
(33:26):
check it out I'll definitely be following you
so with that said that concludes our episode
as always give us that 5 star review
share it with your friends
contact Andrew Russell um
play fallout have fun
and thank you very much for being on the show with me
thank you
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