Ep. 84 - Building Trust, Not Just Loans: Community Banking in Action

Deals don’t get done by accident; they get done with clarity, trust, and timely capital. We sit down with Armstrong Bank’s Alec Tahy to reveal how relationship banking unlocks real estate momentum across Northwest Arkansas, from multifamily value-add to ground-up construction and portfolio roll-ups. Alec shares his path from D1 golf to Walmart to community banking, and how competitive focus plus operator discipline translates into faster decisions, cleaner structures, and fewer surprises.

We pull back the curtain on underwriting: why a 1.25x DSCR still anchors approvals, how rising taxes and insurance should shape your proformas, and where banks will flex when assumptions are credible and experience is real. You’ll learn what to send first, rent rolls, personal financial statements, realistic expense loads, and how those documents inform terms, rates, and timelines. We also walk through credit committee flow, appraisal bottlenecks, and why construction draws can be a strategic advantage when the bank’s communication is tight, and treasury tools work from your phone.

The market pulse is clear: modest rate relief is nudging refinancing, GP/LP structures are making larger deals workable, and fundamentals across Rogers, Bentonville, Springdale, Fort Smith, and Fayetteville remain resilient even as A-class supply tests absorption. Deposits matter, experience matters, and proactive prep matters most, especially for 2026. If you want better terms next year, start the relationship now, pressure-test your deals, and keep your financials current so you can move the moment a good asset hits.

Subscribe for more NWA real estate strategy, share this with a partner who’s lining up capital, and leave a quick review to help other investors find the show. Got a deal or a question we should dig into next? Send it our way.

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_03 (00:07):
Welcome to Northwest Arkansas Investing Podcast, your
go-to source for real estateinvesting in Northwest Arkansas.

SPEAKER_01 (00:12):
Whether you're a seasoned investor just starting
out, we bring you expertinsights, market trends, and
practical strategies to help youbuild wealth through real
estate.

SPEAKER_00 (00:20):
From buying and selling to property management
and long-term investmentplanning, we cover it all so you
can make smart, informeddecision in this fast growing
market.
Let's dive in.

SPEAKER_03 (00:30):
Welcome back to Northwest Arkansas Investing
Podcast.
We have our wonderful co-hosts,Brian Wagers, Brandon Still, and
we have our wonderful guesttoday, Alex Tay, VP of
Relationship, VP RelationshipBanker at Armstrong Bank, a
great local bank here.
Alex, we're really happy to haveyou.
I'd like to get started with aquick overview of just a quick

(00:51):
background of how you got towhere you are, um, and then a
little just give us a little bitof about Armstrong Bank as well.

SPEAKER_04 (00:57):
Yeah, absolutely.
So I appreciate you guys havingme today.
I've uh listened for uh the lastcouple months as I've kind of
stepped into this new venture ofcommunity banking, and it's been
it's been kind of a breath offresh air to get um kind of
perspective on how you guysthink about things.
Yes, it's been a nice listen.
Sweet.
Um so I was originally born andraised in in Dayton, Ohio.
Um, and I actually came down toa lot of people who were like

(01:19):
Ohio to Arkansas.
How do how does that happen?
Um I grew up playing golf andwas fortunate to play play golf
here at the university.
Whoopig.
Um pig, maybe.
Um so I uh was recruited kind ofacross the country and really
just fell in love, was lookingfor good balance of business
school and and athletic program,and um fell in love with it when
I when I came down and had thechance to to visit and ended up

(01:40):
making the making the choice toto come down to to be a to be a
hog.
And um I I guess kind of therest is history.
So I played played golf here forfour years, um, then uh played
professionally for about eightmonths or so, kind of drew me to
actually fall out of love withthe game, but kind of have have
uh found kind of a new love forit.
But um I had a had developedrelationships uh um through golf

(02:04):
actually and got my foot in thedoor at Walmart.
Yeah.
And I spent about eight years uhworking through Walmart in
various roles acrossmerchandising.
Um most of my time at Sam'sClub, uh most recently uh worked
in in the Walmart US uhe-commerce business.
Yeah.
Um and about five months ago Iactually made the leap to
community banking.
Wow.
Um so I was very, very fortunateto and thankful for my my time

(02:25):
at at Walmart.
I think it was a good place tokind of grow up and and learn
the the ins and outs ofbusiness.
Yep.
Um but was excited about kind ofthe new opportunity and the new
venture to to really kind of umhave a more entrepreneurial um
day-to-day and and get in frontof people and ways that we may
be able to support uh bothindividuals and and businesses
and their growth here and andand into the future.

SPEAKER_03 (02:46):
Yeah.
How how do you feel?
Um do you feel like you'rehaving to learn a lot right now,
or do you feel like it was apretty natural transition for
you going into relationshipbanking?

SPEAKER_04 (02:56):
I think it's a little of both, right?
I I won't I won't uh uh say thatI'm an expert by any means, but
I think uh it's it's similar towhat I was doing.
I'm saying eight years atWalmart, I was not an expert in
what I was doing there.
It's just kind of continuouslearning.
So great to be surrounded by auh a great team of experienced
people within the Armstrong Bankcommunity.
And yeah, I'm fortunate to um tohave kind of the opportunity to

(03:18):
learn underneath of uh of somepeople that have been in the
industry for a long time.
So learning for sure, day today, trying to meet people and
really um uh kind of understandways that we may be able to
differentiate ourselves withinuh the market and and and within
kind of the product mix that wecan bring to the table.
So it's been um definitely a alearning curve, but but nothing

(03:39):
uh nothing uh too crazy oroutside of the norm and
something I've really enjoyed.

SPEAKER_03 (03:42):
But you're uh being VP of relationship banking that
uh being out of golf actuallyhelps a lot.

SPEAKER_04 (03:49):
I uh for for the first time I've been uh I've
been encouraged to get out andplay some golf.

SPEAKER_03 (03:54):
Is it like is it rekindling that love for it for
you of the game again?

SPEAKER_04 (03:58):
It's definitely I I spent the first um kind of eight
to ten weeks really uh on theroad, actually uh through
onboarding and at differentlocations and and kind of
getting up to speed.
Um I've had the opportunityrecently to get out and um and
play some golf with uh withcustomers and potential
customers, which has been niceand the ability to kind of um uh
use or leverage some of thatthat skill set.

(04:19):
Yeah um it's it's a good placeto to do business and something
I've always uh uh I mean it's ait's a game that I've I've I've
loved and spent a lot of timeand had a lot of cool
opportunities through mylifetime to play cool places and
visit awesome awesome spots.
So it's nice to kind of havethat built into the uh work week
at times.
Yeah, I won't push my buttonsand and uh and and do it too

(04:43):
much, right?
But it's a it's a good way to uhto get out and uh spend some
time with uh potential customershearing stories and all that.
So I've enjoyed that for sure.

SPEAKER_03 (04:51):
I know Tyler Spoon over at uh Bank of Favel.
I love I love Tyler.
He's like, man, I my part of myjob is get to golf.
He went me up.
He signed me up.
G give us a little overview ofArmstrong Bank.
Um, just I know you're new toArmstrong Bank, but if a little
bit of the history, I know theystarted over in Oklahoma and now

(05:11):
they're venturing.
When when did they get theirfirst office here in Northwest
Arkansas?

SPEAKER_04 (05:16):
So a little over 10 years ago um by way of
acquisition.
Okay.
Uh we acquired a bank calledBenefit Bank, uh, had locations
in Port Smith and then a loanproduction office in Springdale.
Um, and and it was uh anacquisition, I think in 2014,
2015, about 10 years ago or so.
It was kind of our first entryhere.
Um Armstrong was founded uh1909, 1910, um, in a small town

(05:38):
uh Vienne, Oklahoma.
Yeah.
It was known as Vianne StateBank up through, I believe it
was the early 80s.
Um, and and we had uh really onelocation.
Um, and then through kind ofleadership transition, the bank
is still um, the family is stillmajority shareholder and
majority board members today.
Yeah.
Um, and and still very active inin the bank.

(05:59):
Um so we really do get that kindof family feel, which I think uh
community banking goes kind ofhand in hand, which is is uh is
nice and something that I'vereally felt as I've uh had the
chance to come on board.
Um, but but really kind of grewthe core across the state of
Oklahoma.
Um uh today, uh by way ofacquisition of a benefit bank,
uh, entered the Arkansas marketabout 10 years ago, um, and

(06:20):
acquired a couple branchesacross the states of Oklahoma
over the last uh the last coupleof years or so, wanting
Clairmore and then over inOklahoma City market as well.
Um, and then about eight to tenmonths ago, we opened the loan
production office in Rogers,which was kind of our first
initial uh expansion withinNorthwest Arkansas outside of
our current Springdale branch.

(06:41):
Um, and that's where I'm housedout, housed uh today.
Um Springdale branch.
Uh in Rogers.
Okay, in Rogers, yeah.
Yeah, a loan production officeup here kind of pinnacle area.
Okay.
So real close by.
Um and as we look to the future,um, looking to Rogers, have
plans to to open uh anotherbranch here in the next um
couple of years.

(07:01):
So I'm excited about thatopportunity as we think about
the expansion opportunity andthe ability to serve the market
in a more meaningful way.
That's awesome.
Um we also just opened a loanproduction office in Dallas
probably two months ago also.
So um a lot of kind of appetiteas we think to uh to organic
growth and um banks in anextremely uh healthy financial
position and yeah, excited kindof for the future as we as we

(07:24):
look to to continue to grow.

SPEAKER_03 (07:25):
Do you uh does Armstrong Bank view Northwest,
are they I'm I'm assuming, andthen more so placating to the
question, uh do they are theypretty bullish on Northwest
Arkansas?
Good good long-term plans.
Absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 (07:36):
I think I think uh it would be hard not to be for
anybody.
Um as we think about just thethe economic opportunity um here
close by, it's it's pretty it'spretty crazy.
You see the pictures of thelandscapes of even the Pinnacle
Hills area 20, 25 years ago towhat it is today.
I mean, who would have thoughtwe'd have um multiple 10, 12, 15
story office buildings at topgolfs and yes, it's everywhere

(08:00):
you look, uh just economicactivity taking place.
Um there there's definite um abullish stance on Northwest
Arkansas as we think aboutgrowth potential and expansion
into the future.
So excited to have theopportunity to be a part of that
with Armstrong.

SPEAKER_03 (08:15):
I'm just gonna kind of dive in here.
I mean, there's a lot ofquestions on the page, but I'm
gonna, I mean, I can kind ofrelate to some of them, but I'm
just gonna dive in with like mygenuine questions, which is
like, who's Armstrong Bank goingafter?
Um, what what kind of borrowerdoes Armstrong Bank um is
Armstrong Bank bullish on?
And then maybe a follow-up intothat is like who are you trying
to be in relationship with?

SPEAKER_04 (08:35):
I I uh I think I I don't want to give the uh the
blanket answer, but I thinkwe're we're open to doing
business for the vast majorityof uh of anybody.

SPEAKER_05 (08:42):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (08:42):
Um both individuals and businesses.
Right.
Uh today, as you think aboutNorthwest Arkansas, we do have
uh real estate as a pretty heavyconcentration for us.
I think we we do have appetiteto continue to uh to diversify
kind of our our base of who wedo business with.
Um when you think about bankingin general, deposits is a core
uh core kind of uh input to ourability to loan money.

(09:04):
So we're we're we'recontinuously thoughtful uh about
how uh how those relationshipscome to life.
And my title of relationshipbanker really does kind of play
out.
I mean, it's all about buildingrelationships with individuals
and businesses.
I mean, today, everything from Imean individual checking
accounts to car loans to um SBAloans to to CRE owner-occupied

(09:26):
development, we're we're very umdiversified.
But I would say that our our mixin Northwest Arkansas has been
heavily real estate.
Um so I I think still going tocontinue to be bullish there,
but looking for ways that we canuh diversify and expand that mix
in a meaningful, um in ameaningful way.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (09:46):
Yeah, well, uh it seems like a lot of a lot of
banks have differentspecialties, if you will.
Some are interested inconstruction, some are, you
know, maybe are solely focusedon multifamily, you know, so on
and so forth.
That I know that that part waskind of part of your question,
but yeah, what do you feel likethe biggest appetite for our
strong bank is in the in any ofthose categories?

SPEAKER_04 (10:09):
Yeah, I think for from the bank's perspective,
amortizing debt is is great debtfor us.
Um now, with that, I I know wewe do carry a uh a solid uh
construction development booktoday.
Um, I think when you think aboutkind of the regulations that
banks are held upon, and we dohave capital um kind of buckets
that we have to be thoughtfulof.
And I think our our presidentalways always says we're we're

(10:31):
capital allocators.
We have to be thoughtful aboutwhere we are investing capital
and all of that fun stuff.
So we don't get too concentratedin certain mixes, but yeah, um
uh we are seeing strength in inmultifamily, a lot of value add
stuff is is working.
Um if if it's uh uh incomeproducing, I think we're seeing
a lot of a lot of umopportunities on that front.

(10:54):
Um as you look to development,um there's I mean, every corner
you look, there's there'svertical structures going up or
land being cleared and dirt worktaking place.
So I think there's no shortageof opportunity on that front
too.
Um but I I think we're we'revery open to a diversified mix
of uh of opportunities both inreal estate and outside of.
And I think we're we'repositioned well into the future

(11:16):
for uh to support all that.

SPEAKER_02 (11:18):
They said they said no to my mobile home park
development and all myarchitecture.
But they did they did say yes touh multifamily acquisition.
So so there's yeah, open tosupport that some some things in
there, no.

SPEAKER_00 (11:33):
Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (11:33):
It's in and I think that I mean, it's uh in in
commercial, in the commercialspace, right?
It's uh when we we do play inkind of a a gray area in which
we're we're able to, I mean,does the project cash flow is is
one of the things that can bethoughtful of.
What is the under what are theunderwriting assumptions look
like?
Um how big of a bite are wegonna have to take on uh on this

(11:54):
opportunity as we look to tokind of the investment of
capital?
And yeah, what does the timetime horizon look like?
Is the borrower looking for forinterest only, all that stuff
are things that are verydeal-dependent?
So I won't I won't uh shoot onyour your mobile home deal to
think there is opportunity onthat front as well.

SPEAKER_03 (12:11):
But brand like I could start a wedding venue
planner and see if we'll saycash flows.

SPEAKER_02 (12:16):
What advice do you have to investors when they are
showing you these projects?

SPEAKER_04 (12:20):
Yeah, I I think um it's it's interesting.
I I think we I mean we we havethe ability or the opportunity,
I guess, to um to look at uh alot of deals that that are
taking place as people arelooking to secure um financing
and capital, as they look to thecapital stack for for deals and
and opportunities.
Um I would say that as we thinkabout there there are kind of

(12:42):
minimum debt servicerequirements and there they are
stated, but there are there issome flexibility here and there.
Yeah.
Um and debt service would be theum the net operating income that
you are ginning out of the theinvestment that would cover your
um the your mortgage payment orthe payment that you would have
uh to on the actual debt thatyou are uh securing from the

(13:05):
bank.
Right.
Um, but but there are kind of uhwritten underwritten rules where
we will kind of draw lines inthe sand to say, does this make
sense for the bank to take onthe risk and where we are
lending money, et cetera.
Um so one, two, five is kind ofthe the baseline that the that
we will look at.
And obviously there's there'sfactors that will in that will
impact that, such as lease up orum uh vacancy timelines,

(13:28):
interest only periods, etcetera.
So we're not gonna say no toeverything, but but that is kind
of a uh a baseline.
I would also say as we thinkabout kind of um uh as you look
to underwriting or proformas,not being overly um uh I guess
aggressive would be the rightword, or maybe not being
aggressive enough on operatingexpenses as we think about um

(13:51):
kind of stabilization ofproperties.
I know sometimes we'll get dealspresented to ourselves where it
uh cash flows at 125 with a 10%opex kind of assumption.
And that's probably not realityas we think about uh the
long-term impact.
I mean, it may be it may bereality in year one, but as you
look to the the loan term or theterm of the the debt that you're

(14:13):
acquiring, like we we need to bea little more conservative on
that front.
So I think conservatives is isnice from a banking standpoint.
I mean, banks tend to beconservative in general as we
underwrite, but um just beingpressure testing and stress
testing uh proformas and andmodels and your assumptions, I
think is very impactful as youthink about uh diving into uh

(14:35):
not even just acquisitions butdevelopment, et cetera.
Um so I think that's that'sprobably something that I would
I would think through.

SPEAKER_03 (14:42):
I speak, I I I can speak on this for myself and it
feels when it comes tounderwriting, like I deal with
Heather Long a lot.
And when it comes to theunderwriting process, uh it
feels like Armstrong and likeit's this isn't an ad rate, I'll
just say this this is real life.
Like I I feel like ArmstrongBank like has my back a lot.

(15:02):
And so I'll I sometimes I'llbring something to Heather and
it'll be as personal as like,hey Zach, you got a lot of stuff
going on in life right now.
I don't think as your likefriend and banker and
underwriter, underwriter all inone, like I don't think you need
to do this.
And sometimes she she she'llpoke and prod me.
Like right now, she's poking andprodding me on some affordable
housing that I I've done herperforming um and saying, hey,

(15:26):
like I really think this couldwork.
Like our bank would lend onthis.
Um and so I do love thepersonalized field Armstrong
Bank has.
And like, and there's some stuffthat's like really tight, and
she's like, Zach, it's reallytight, but you know, we see this
cash in the bank, you know, wewell, we can we can push this
forward for you.
Um and it it feels less like I'mtrying to like talk to these

(15:47):
people like 5,000 miles away,and more like whoever I'm
talking with is like who canhelp make decisions done, which
is uh a great part of ArmstrongBank.
It feels very local when itcomes on on the uh, I guess like
personal side of it and likedoing like my deposits and
cashing my checks.
People remember your name whenyou come in.

(16:07):
Um, like my I what made me dothe switch is like I was going
into R Vest for years, saw thesame girl for years, and she
never remembered my name.
I was like, sister, I'm in hereevery week three times.
Um how'd it say Armstrong Bank?
No, it says uh yeah.
Uh but it and it and then I waslike, you know what?

(16:27):
No one knows my name here.
I feel like I'm just gonna tryrandom bank.
Um, Colton Kennedy, who'sanother lender here with uh flat
branch.
Um, he's like, hey, you need tocheck out Heather Long.
Um and it's like the day two Icame in, they knew my name, um,
which is something really it'sit was an interesting thing for
me.
It's like because they remembermy name, I was like, all right,
I'm gonna give you all mydeposits.

(16:48):
Uh all my commercial banking isgonna go with you guys.
And it came from something justas small as like, you remember
my name, you made me feelimportant.
And like that was the baselinefor like the business.
I've done I do all my car loanswith Heather.
Like it's it's really cool.

SPEAKER_04 (17:01):
Yeah, I know we we we try and we try and preach
that, but I think actuallyseeing that, hearing, hearing
kind of your experience and thatcome to life, I think is is is
impactful.
Yeah.
Um and I think that's that's howwe, I mean, it's the story that
we have to tell um as you thinkabout kind of they're like my my
title of relationship anchor isreally actually, I mean, knowing
what's going on in your familylife.
Like yeah, kind of being able tobe that advocate financially and

(17:23):
and just um it goes a long way,just the the the slight personal
touch um that we can provide.
So I it's kind of cool to hearyour experience.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (17:31):
Do you think that stems from good leadership uh at
the band?
I think uh Sam Harris is a is agreat leader there.
I know he's pretty involved in alot in NW, not just banking, but
I know he was involved in someof the the real estate
communities and everything likethat.
How how is that relationship?
And you know, I'm sure youprobably see him as a mentor.

(17:51):
Absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 (17:52):
So Sam Sam is actually my uh my market
president here in Pledgers.
So he's uh I'm I'm a I'm a hugeSam Sam Harris fan.
And he um I mean always open toto kind of just pick pick his
brain and then and uh bounceideas off of him and and get uh
I mean years of of perspectiveand learning.
And um, I it's funny hearing hada conversation with uh kind of

(18:13):
an executive within the bank,and they said, man, if anybody,
if we needed a uh kind of a CFOto step in and if they had to,
like Sam would be an awesomeperson to do so, just with the
wealth knowledge that he has.
Um and I think that um ourpresident Ryan Quidley kind of
preaches it and is is uh a verybig advocate for you know our
our um kind of motto or sayingis strength runs in our family.

(18:36):
And I feel the more that we canbring that to life, the more
that we can um really try andput the community in 280 bank.
And um I I think that you canget lost in the um the
30,000-foot view of being anumber at a a larger
institution.
So that's really how we have todifferentiate ourselves and
really build those relationshipswith our uh customers or or

(18:57):
potential customers to becauseat the end of the day, um banks
are uh banking is a can be acommodity when you think about
we're all lending.
There's it's very turn-drivenfor some people.
Um and we've got to do a solidjob of really building those
relationships and being able tobe kind of a full service
operation for um not just youryour business needs, but how can

(19:19):
we support your car loans or howcan we how can we support a
money market for you?
So I I think that um theleadership is has really
instilled and played out thosevalues, and I've seen it just in
the the short time that I've hadthe opportunity to be here.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 (19:32):
When someone comes to you for a loan, what's that
process look like?
You're not the one, you're notthe only one looking at that.
And you know, how what what doesthat process look like?
Are you talking to Sam?
Are you talking to your creditcommittee?
Do you look at you're looking atthe deal, you're looking at the
individual?

SPEAKER_04 (19:47):
So we so we we have as as you look to kind of the
bank, we have um we have a loanproduction committee, the a
meeting that goes on uh weeklywhere we will present uh what we
call Opportunities or creditmemorandums if they meet certain
dollar requirements orthresholds.

(20:07):
So outside of that, we do haveapprovals for what we call kind
of subcommittee where we'll sendsend through deals for uh
regional presidents to vote onand take a look through to say
you want to move forward, etcetera.
Yeah.
It's a very involved process.
I would say that that's onething that I've been very
appreciative of is, I mean, forme, it really starts with either
an email or a conversation witha potential uh borrower or

(20:29):
somebody that's looking tosource capital for an
opportunity.
We try and make sure we ask asmany questions as we can uh
early to try and get a sense ofwhat uh what they're looking for
and and how we can position tobring them a solution that meets
their needs.
Um, I would say from there we'llask various questions around
underwriting assumptions.
We'll ask for proformos.

(20:50):
If it's a um, maybe it's aretail or commercial space, and
do you have LOIs for uh forlease tenants, et cetera?
We'll pressure test and ask kindof credit uh underwriting or
credit analysts what uh marketvacancies or rents look like and
how does this, how does thisstack up?
But initially it'll start withkind of a high-level loan um uh

(21:11):
relationship banker orcommercial lender really doing a
high level SNF test.
Yeah, SNF test or presentationto uh our executive committee to
get a sense on is this somethingthat we want to potentially
present terms on.
Um from there, we'll go throughand work um maybe secure
personal financial statements,tax returns to really get a more
uh more in the weeds on theunderwriting sense of things of

(21:33):
okay, this is what we we'veheard in our initial
conversation, but how is thatplaying out?
How does this compare to themarket, et cetera?
So we'll work closely with thecredit analyst that'll be
assigned to the deal to workthrough spreads um of the last
two years based off of your taxreturns.
What income are you bringing totable?
Have you taken distributions?
All of that fun stuff.
Um, how does the what is yourliquidity position look like as

(21:56):
a borrower?

SPEAKER_03 (21:57):
And that gets easier with time too.
Because when I've come when I'vecome to Heather with all my
stuff, now it's just, hey, can Iget an updated this?
Can I get an updated that?
Okay, you're good.
Like our my last loan wasliterally, I gave her like one
piece of paper and we closed.
Like it was about that simple.
So as you build thisrelationship and it's you're,
you know, you're not you're notjust giving them crap deal after

(22:19):
crap deal, you're giving them agood deal.
We did this, and it's like, hey,it's Mr.
Smith again.
He's got this deal and he runshis numbers like this, it
becomes easier and easier.
Absolutely.
Correct.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 (22:28):
Yeah.
For me, I'm I'm kind ofstarting, starting from scratch.
So having to get a lot of thethe documents up front to do so.
Um, but from there, we'll gothrough underwriting uh order
appraisals for properties to getthe um kind of the unbiased
valuation based off of both ASand stabilized.
Um, and then we will uh workwith credit to actually bring
that back to committee topresent kind of the final terms

(22:49):
of the deal um based off of whatif it's a line if it's a lot, if
it's a line of credit or if it'suh an amortizing deal, we'll
work through kind of next stepsof uh what is needed for title
work and and all that fun stuff.
Um, and and hopefully close andand and move on to the the next
opportunity that you're lookingto uh to bring to the table.
So it's yeah, it can be, as youmentioned, Zach, I think the

(23:12):
initial uh the initial upfrontcan be a little heavy of a lift,
but as you kind of get in theflow of uh we start to learn uh
more about you and about yourbusiness.
Um give me your tax return,we'll get the piece of paper.
And the table we can move alittle bit.

SPEAKER_02 (23:25):
Yeah, where would you put a time frame on that
from me sending you the deal togetting it to final loan
committee?

SPEAKER_04 (23:30):
Um so the opportunity, we we meet every
Wednesday.
Um, and and it can be as simpleas, hey, this is very high level
what we're thinking.
So we'll put together kind of aone pager about the borrower,
about the opportunity images ofthe property.
If you have kind of a high-levelunderwriting model, we'll
include that just to talkthrough kind of uh assumptions.
Um and if I if I get a uh if Iget a deal from you on Monday

(23:55):
and we meet Wednesday, I canhave it there and get terms back
to you in two days.
Yeah.
And then we'll secure documentsfor tax returns if we haven't
already.
I mean, it's as simple as getcredit to um to move forward
with uh spreading or includingthis updated debt service in
your in your spreads.
Um if it makes sense from aglobal standpoint, obviously our
biggest, our biggest timeactually turns out to be

(24:16):
appraisal in that in that worldof things, which is actually, I
mean, around here we can getcommercial appraisals back in 15
days or so.
Yeah.
That may be aggressivesometimes, but yeah, yeah.
That's uh that's pretty good.
It's it's three weeks isprobably what you want to give
me.
Yeah, two to three weeks.
It's pretty solid.
And then that that's really thebig, and if anything, something
whack wild comes back from theappraisal and maybe another

(24:38):
conversation.
Um but but outside of that, um,title work checks out.
We close a couple of days afterappraisal.

SPEAKER_03 (24:45):
Alec, how how long have you said you've been in the
banking, the banking world now?
Six months?
Yeah, so this is actually Ithink month four for me.
Okay.
So well, you're you're passingevery conversation test as far
to do.
You're doing a great job.
You're spitting it off likeyou've been in it your whole
life.
So um I can I can see what theysaw when they hired you.
Um when it when it comes tounderwriting standards right
now, are you seeing that loosen,tighten as we go into the next

(25:07):
six months or so?

SPEAKER_04 (25:09):
You know, I I don't necessarily see any um any
loosening.
Okay.
Obviously, inputs will change tothe to the model based off of
interest rates, and we've seensome easing over the last uh the
last two months or so now.
I have no crystal ball aboutwhat the the future may hold as
you probably don't either.
I think today I even saw, Imean, looking three weeks back,
it I think there was a uh polymarket had like a 92% chance of

(25:32):
another cut in December, andthen today it dropped to 44% or
something along those lines.
So wow.
I think we get with thegovernment shutdown.
Obviously that threw some uhsome unknowns into things.
I think we're gonna getSeptember data Thursday.
Are they back?

SPEAKER_03 (25:46):
I I don't know.

SPEAKER_04 (25:47):
Are they I believe so, yeah.
Okay.
I just haven't been.
So we'll see what comes back uhwhat comes back Thursday from
from the uh the jobs printSeptember.
Um people wait on that.
Well but but long story short, Ithink the I think underwriting
will will I don't think we'llsee much of a change on our end.
I think we're has I mean ifanything, we've seen taxes and

(26:11):
insurance increase over the lastuh the last couple of years here
locally um as we look tounderwrite deals.
So we we we typically will we'lltake kind of a blanket haircut
for vacancy and in opex if wedon't get a detailed
understanding of what uh whatcomes to the table.
But I don't I don't necessarilysee much easing on that front as
we look to to deals in thefuture.

(26:32):
I think it's uh it's it's reallyabout trust, though, right?
Like it's how do we build trustwith with borrowers or potential
borrowers, investors and um areis what we're hearing from them
initially coming to fruition asdeals kind of close and move on,
and that builds trust witheverybody into the future for
for other deals or opportunitiesas they present themselves.

SPEAKER_03 (26:50):
So as we kind of head into the last part of this
year, which we know as a wholeis like a time where people kind
of Thanksgiving, Christmastighten up a little bit.
How are you seeing buyerbehavior right now in the
present day?
Are you seeing people morebullish and borrowing more
money?
Are you seeing people pull back?
I know you've only been in therefor four months, but I mean, you
see the ups and flows of thingsprobably immediately.

(27:10):
What are you seeing borrowersact like right now?

SPEAKER_04 (27:13):
Yeah, I I think it's uh we've actually as as we've
seen some rate stabilization oras rates have come down
slightly, we have seen someincrease in refi activity.
And we're kind of at the at theat the junction where you've got
some three to five year lockedrates that may be kind of
coming, uh coming new.
So we have seen that on ondifferent, even one to four
portfolios of multifamily stuffhere and there.

(27:36):
Um, as we think about kind ofthe the acquisition side of
things, Northwest Arkansas isstill active.
Um now I think that a deal thatpenciled five years ago, we are
seeing potential struggles if ifthey are coming up to refi,
maybe they secured it at threeand a half and prime seven
today, like how how our deal iskind of coming to fruition on

(27:57):
that front.
So uh it's gonna be interestingto see.
I think a lot of what we'reseeing is we're seeing a lot
more JPLP splits come to thetable to inject more equity in
deals to make them pencil andmake sense.
Yep on on that front.
And I think we will continue tosee that in the northwest
Arkansas as we look to, I mean,shoot, you see and hear about

(28:19):
40, 50 million dollar deals umweekly, and there's not that
many people that have 20% of 25%of equity to just stroke a check
for that.
So as we think about kind ofpooling some of that capital
together, I do think we willcontinue to see more of that in
the future.
Um and but but we we are stillit it still from a banking

(28:40):
standpoint feels active.
Yeah.
Um it it just kind of depends onthe uh the opportunities that
that we're seeing on that front.

SPEAKER_03 (28:48):
You aren't necessarily sitting around
totaling your sums.

SPEAKER_02 (28:50):
No, trying to stay busy.
Yeah.
That's interesting.
You say you're seeing more ofthe GPLP sh sh like come into
fruition because it's no longerthe mom and pop, you know, yeah,
one guy puts in all the moneyand the other guy runs it.
You know, you have this kind ofmore complex structure to quote
unquote syndicate it, you know,where you're pooling investors,

(29:10):
multiple investors together.

SPEAKER_04 (29:12):
Yeah, I think I I would I'm I'm seeing a lot of
that on on our end as we look atpotential deals.
Yeah.
Um and and not necessarily um20, 30 people coming to the
table, but um smaller pools oflarger chunks of capital as you
look to the structure.
Um, and it's been interesting tosee that.
I think from from even upfrontto pro rata guarantees have been

(29:35):
like requests on the back endand none of that as we think
about the guarantee structure.
Yeah, um, I do think we willcontinue to see a little more
complexity as the market uhcontinues to evolve.
Um and as you have more outsideuh capital coming in, I think
we'll continue to see that.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (29:52):
One thing I've I've heard from you is uh, and
correct me if I'm wrong, isArmstrong Bank's a very
well-rounded bank.
Like we're gonna do, we can doyour car loan, we can do um 50
units, we can do um, I mean, II'm equity line of credit.

SPEAKER_02 (30:05):
I think someone reached out to the podcast.
Yeah, yeah.
ELOGs for sure.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (30:09):
Yeah.
HE logs, primary homes,anything.
Is is so you guys offer avariety of different things.
What what are you seeing withthe variety of different things
you offer?
You're able to see a big sectionof the borrower base.
Are you seeing something in yourlast four months?
Has there been something thatArmstrong Bank's done a lot of?
I mean, are do you necessarilygo after any of those sectors?

(30:30):
Like, hey, I I know sometimeslike Bank of Fable get says,
hey, we got a bucket right nowfor primary residents where
we're doing 5.5 and the marketrate 6.5 or something.
Like, is is that a strategyArmstrong Armstrong Bank in
that's I think it's kind ofproduct specific.

SPEAKER_04 (30:45):
Okay.
Right now we've got a uh achattel promotion going on for
combo commercial and um uh andpersonal uh consumer uh auto and
and equipment, et cetera.
That's like 5749 if you set upan AMT, which is solid.
Um yeah, as we think about uhspecific kind of products and
and promotions, it's it'sprobably case by case.

(31:07):
Um not something that I've seenuh a ton of.
I would say that as we thinkabout opportunities right now,
um, we are looking a lot uh andhave been supporting a lot of
kind of the investment portfoliorefinances um for uh potential
customers and also customerstoday.
Um we've done uh a lot of uhkind of commercial development
for uh residential homebuilding, yeah.

(31:29):
Um, but also maybe one-offinvestment properties, et
cetera.
Um a lot of the value add stuff.
When we think about multifamily,I I don't know that I've seen
just a pure straightforwardacquisition come to my desk.
It's been very um, and I think alot of that is due to the is due
to how how deals are pencilingat current rates.
I don't think that rents haverents have kept up to the point

(31:51):
uh needed to offset the theinterest rate environment that
we live in.
That's in a super meaningfulway.
Now, maybe a little skinny, butum that's that's kind of
something that we've seen uh asI think about kind of deals on
on our front.
So yeah, amortizing investmentportfolios have been have been
great for us both on the refiside of things or even just uh
the purchase side.
Yeah um and we have seen somepeople roll up individual

(32:14):
properties, right?
Like maybe over the last fiveyears, you've acquired one
property in 2010, one in orsorry, one in 2020, 21 and 22.
How do we maybe simplify thatentire portfolio and just leave
it to one payment a month androll up kind of the the total
portfolio uh of your uhinvestment properties and uh

(32:34):
maybe to maybe simplify um onyour end what the interest rate
payment or what the uh PIpayment looks like for your
total portfolio as opposed toyou having to deal with
individual banks across um thethe uh the investments that
you've made?

SPEAKER_03 (32:48):
That's huge.
If I'm coming to you and I'm I'myou know, I have 25 units and
what as a borrower, and andwe're we're hitting this from a
high level perspective because alot of people listening in are
are listening from a high levelperspective, you know, getting
to know Armstrong.
Um how can I help you in theunderwriter bringing stuff to

(33:08):
you?
I have 25 units.
What do I need to bring you tomake your life easier, which
would then in turn make my lifeeasier?

SPEAKER_04 (33:14):
Yeah, for sure.
For me, um, I like to be verykind of transparent
conversations that I have at thebar.
I don't think it does anybody aservice to uh to not be
transparent in thoseconversations.
I think, I mean, rent role iskey for us today.
Like what does your specificrent role look like for the
portfolio that you're trying totry to um to actually roll up so
we can get a sense of vacancy,um, get a sense of kind of where

(33:38):
the properties are, what is yourestimated market value, what is
your remaining mortgage balancethat we are trying to refinance?
So effectively, how much equitydo you have in the deal today?
Um, and that would allow us thento say, uh, Zach, you've got
these 25 units based off ofwhere interest rates are today,
based off of uh kind of theproject as it stands.

(33:58):
Um what what would the debtservice be like at X rate?
Yeah.
We will need personal financialstatements from you as well to
understand kind of the um thefinancial strength that you
bring to the table for theliquidity side of things, et
cetera.
Out of the gate, we don'ttypically ask for tax returns,
but as we get to the moredetailed level of underwriting,
it allows us then to understandum kind of your historical

(34:19):
performance of whether it be W-2income, whether it be
distribution that you're takingfrom a business, yeah, um, et
cetera.
How does that kind of marry upwith your current personal
financial statement?

SPEAKER_03 (34:30):
Are you looking at if I've done something like this
before?

SPEAKER_04 (34:33):
Yeah, yeah.
Experience for sure.
If you think about that's that'sa story we tell a lot within
committee, right?
Like if um if we've got JoeSchmoe who's buying his first uh
25 unit apartment complex for uhset round numbers, five million
dollars.
Yeah.
You've never done this before,and you're you're gonna put two

(34:54):
million dollars into theproject, and like it may raise
some questions.
Yeah.
Um, even if you are in a strongfinancial position, like we as a
bank are allocating capital andtaking on a risk to loan you
this money.
Um, so we have to ask some ofthose diligent questions to
understand um it are we going tobe repaid?
Can we trust you?
Can we trust you?
Yeah, this is a trust businessfor sure.

(35:15):
And I think that's where a lotof like the relationship comes
in.
Yeah, rent roll, pro forma, um,personal financial statement um
can really help us get ahigh-level sense of where we may
be able to a position rate andterm.
We like to get expectations fromfrom customers too.
Yeah, like if I'm if I'm at ifI'm like, you know what, Zach's

(35:37):
a Zach's a prime customer andyou're expecting to pay prime
minus one, and then we're off onthe wrong foot to begin with.
So we do like to be kind ofupfront and transparent about um
just what what you're expectinginitially to so I think we can
we can glean some of that fromthe performance.
Um, but but I think those thoseare kind of the main things that
we need initially to get out ofthe gate uh and kick off kind of

(36:00):
the high-level understanding ofum does this project work?
But how does this then projectas we get to more a deeper level
of underwriting, how does thisproject work for for Zach?
Right as we think about thetotal picture.

SPEAKER_02 (36:13):
I think it I think it's smart to get a part like a
partner who like I was literallygonna add like myself, like for
more not a plug for myself, butlike if if for example you are
like going into multifamily andyou have someone with a ton of
multifamily experience, it'sprobably not a bad idea to have
them as a partner because youprobably can get better terms

(36:33):
and better service from the bankthan you would by yourself if
you are going to, and they wouldfeel more comfortable with that
too.

SPEAKER_00 (36:40):
Yeah, you you even extending off of like you know,
potential for better terms.
You mentioned deposits beingimportant, or I mean having a
strong partner, depositrelationship, or those kind of
you know, things, dominoes thathelp someone to get the best
deal they can, I guess, if youwill.
Absolutely.

SPEAKER_04 (36:57):
Depot deposits are a lovely, a lovely thing for the
bank, right?
Especially uh non-interestdeposits.
It's like the the gold thateverybody's got.
Yeah, right.
Um now, obviously um, weunderstand that it's uh and
that's why we position it reallyas a relationship.
It's operating accounts are keyas we think about um as we think

(37:17):
about lending money for uh amultifamily property.
How are we thinking about thensupporting kind of the
day-to-day for that propertyonce it gets stabilized?
Uh interest reserves, if you areworking through an interest-only
period and you may have vacancy,like those are a part of the
conversations that we'rethinking through.
But experience is crucial andkey as we think about maybe even
a more risky kind of project orsomething that's not completely

(37:40):
stabilized today.
Um, how do we get a sense or anunderstanding of the past track
record of a borrower or thepotential borrower and partner?
And um, deposits is uh is alwaysa they call they call it in
banking compensating balances.
How for for the money that we'relending you, how are you
compensating the the balance ofuh uh and in and kind of

(38:02):
investing back for us to be ableto continue to lend that money
to you, but but kind of the poolof of uh of the bank in and of
itself.
And we I mean we we are aconservative bank by by nature.
I mean, we're we're still onlyat about 80% on a deposit today.
So still a lot of liquidity umfrom the Armstrong side of
things, and we're in a reallysolid financial position on on

(38:24):
that front, which is exciting aswe as we think about entering uh
this market in a more meaningfulway.

SPEAKER_03 (38:30):
I I I I would like to speak on the, you know, when
someone gets a loan with youguys, especially when it comes
to the construction loan side,I've done most of my
construction loans withArmstrong Bank.
Um, and that experience frombank to bank is very different
on the construction loan side ofthe side of things.
How quickly can I get money?
How quickly can I get an invoiceto you and can I get money back

(38:51):
in my account?
And how open is that line ofcommunication there?
Um, and for me, I mean, I'veI've done a few construction
loans with a few differentbanks, and Armstrong's been my
favorite uh because I I mean Isend an email to Heather.
Hey, I need this in the account.
I the I mean, all of mysubcontractors are like, you're
the quickest anyone ever paysus.
Um and it's Heather just seesit.

(39:13):
We have the relationship whereyou know, at the start of the
project, they go out, or it'slike, hey, my painter just
painted this.
Here's a here's a cool video ofthe outside.
She's like, okay, we we'll putit in the account, sort of
thing.
And so that that's really cool.
And you get a debit card, youget checks.
It's they make it really easy toget money in the account.
And so from a construction, um,the user-friendly side of it,

(39:34):
from a construction one side andeven from like just normal
banking, like I need to deposita check, I need to put in money,
I need to call and get a wiredone.
It's been it's been very easy.
Um, and it's something thatcoming from our best was uh a
worry because they're so they'rereally good.
I mean, our best is great withtheir the user friendly side of
things.
Um an Armstrong Bank has beenjust as just as good.

(39:56):
I guess it's not really a realtalking talk conversation, but
from my perspective it's beennice to have these subs be like
yeah we're getting checks quickand easy and we and we like it a
lot.

SPEAKER_04 (40:06):
That's awesome.
Yeah and I think one so I mymost recent role at at Walmart I
worked in e com and kind of themanaged uh a portion or had a uh
of the Walmart app and I wouldsay our digital banking
interface is extremely like Iwas very impressed coming on
board to a community bank Ithink we have invested a lot in
the the technology side ofthings which I think has been um

(40:29):
cool to kind of see play out aswe think about treasury
management for small businessesor um for real estate investors
the ability to generate ACH andwires from your phone and accept
payments and Zell and all thatstuff I think is it's all it's
it's table sticks for a lot ofpeople today.
But as you think about kind of acommunity bank, I think it feels

(40:50):
like it shows and kind of comesthrough that we are investing on
the tech side of things from adigital interface perspective.
I mean um I think digital isgoing to continue to to to be a
play.
It is it already is but but willcontinue even more so in the
future.

SPEAKER_03 (41:06):
It 100% is now you guys are starting in Oklahoma
you're here in Arkansas you saidyou just opened a branch in
Dallas is are those the onlythree states or are we further
than that?

SPEAKER_04 (41:16):
So so today it's just those three.
Okay the office in Dallas todayis just a loan production office
as well.
So the the lion share ofArmstrong's presence is Oklahoma
I believe 27 locations rightaround there.
Then we've got uh two in FortSmith one in Springdew uh as
actual full service branches umand then we've got the loan

(41:39):
production office in in Rogersand we've got the loan
production office in in Dallasas well.
Wow so wow it's it's interestingtoo to to see um and here as you
think about kind of the marketdynamics and specifics like it
it's a very uh it's a very kindof portfolio management play as
you think about and hear some ofthe opportunities that are
presented across variousmarkets.

(42:01):
I mean everything from um fromag loans of of purchasing cattle
to um more complex load on loandeals that are taking place are
being considered down in Dallas.
So it's it's very it's a verywide breadth and I think that
our core kind of business todayallows us to really um service

(42:22):
kind of the the broad portfolioof things.

SPEAKER_03 (42:24):
Yeah I think we like to be creative on uh structures
and and how we can help peoplesolve solve needs of the explain
uh explain explain to the userlistening and even to me what's
a loan on loan um I I I will Iwill be by no means an expert in
in explaining this so it may bebetter if I actually don't but
it effectively is a way for umit's a way for funds to be able

(42:50):
to uh secure financing from a abank or another financial
institution that they'veactually loaned out in trade for
um in trade for for differentcovenants of um of those actual
loan proceeds from fund one andtwo it's a spread game
effectively um I did a horriblejob explaining that um and by no

(43:13):
means again am I an expert therebut uh it's it it's very it's a
little complex in a sense butit's it's in in a sense you
trade for uh kind of yourmembership interests that you
are secured or the thecollateral pool which you secure
got it um but it allows you toleverage against the leverage
that you have got it um toeffectively make a spread in

(43:33):
between the two um it'sinteresting yeah crystal yeah
that was that was shatteredglass um what let's talk a
little bit 2026 uh we're we'reabout to all gain 10 pounds for
Thanksgiving and I'm working onme in the gym cold bank um we're

(43:57):
gonna be uh I I like kind ofyour your outlook you know
you're being on board I'd sayonward you're onboarding into
this this role this feel gettinga rhythm of things 2026 is right
on the on the horizon what areyou seeing for um I don't know
what are you seeing for uh youryour at the bank Armstrong bank

(44:17):
like what are you seeing forpotential outlooks uh what do
you see borrowers being I guessthe economic climate being in
2026 so what what are you guysgearing up for um in 2026?

SPEAKER_04 (44:29):
Yeah I think I mean exciting stuff on on our horizon
as we kind of enter into uhobviously the new market I think
uh we have so much potential andopportunity of just even kind of
getting our name out there um Iknow we've got the we've got the
branch in Springdale that hashas been um an awesome operation
but as we expand presence withinnorthwest Arkansas how do we how

(44:51):
do we continue to um attracteven a I mean we got 14,000
people moving in a a year or 40people a day to to kind of the
expansion in this area.
There's so much opportunity forus to come in and capitalize or
um uh position ourselves to tosupport uh both individual and
and and business needs so um Ithink there's I'm excited about

(45:14):
the opportunity um especially aswe think about kind of northwest
Arkansas um as we think aboutkind of economic environment I I
think it's uh it's it it's alittle uncertain um I know
you've got a lot of the the thetariff talk has kind of subdued
a little bit I know there was umthere's been kind of some
turbulence but it feels it feelslike we are at a relatively uh

(45:36):
stable point of time from anenvironment standpoint um I
think that there is potentialfor continued uh kind of
interest rate cuts but I'm notgoing to sit here and take a
guess at at what that looks likeif there's some uncertainty
still on that front but as wethink about Armstrong Northwest
Arkansas and even just umbanking in general I think we we

(45:58):
have a lot of opportunity thatwe can continue to capitalize on
um and excited to to to kind ofbe on the forefront of that here
in northwest Arkansas.

SPEAKER_02 (46:06):
Any markets that you guys like I didn't realize you
guys had two two offices in FortSmith too um any any uh markets
that you like in NWA uh thatyou're bullish on I guess you
you guys are expanding here inRogers.

SPEAKER_04 (46:20):
We are yeah expanding here in Rogers um I
know Fayetteville is also uhkind of always in in talks as we
think about kind of the the thefull spread of northwest
Arkansas um but I I think thatit's I mean there's so much I
think it it definitely dependsby um by opportunity or by um by

(46:40):
yeah by asset class right um isa couple hundred unit facility
in uh West Fork the the rightthing today probably not but as
you think about just the theexpansion the growth that we
we've seen I know Springdale uhif you look at multifamily
vacancies extremely solid umFort Smith is actually
surprisingly and still continuesto be just kind of tried and

(47:03):
true solid as well I do we'vegot a lot of um more higher uh
as it's really to kind of marketrents there's a lot of units
coming online and now in in thenear future that will be priced
differently than a lot of kindof the historical multifamily

(47:23):
properties have so it's going tobe interesting to see how we
absorb some of that here inRogers and um in Bentonville.
So I think more to come there.
But as we think about just justthe kind of the corridors in
general there's there's no noarea that we want to shy away
from I think we want to supportum every opportunity but um I I
definitely do think that thereis uh it's gonna be interesting

(47:46):
to see like uh over the next sixto twelve months how how things
continue to progress withincertain asset classes.

SPEAKER_02 (47:53):
I agree on that.
Yeah I mean I love like thePinnacle Rogers area you know
super sexy delivery where youyou're close to everything you
got a lot of amenities but youhave like the Whole Foods
apartments that are comingonline.
You have the Ruth Chrisapartments that are coming
online.
You just had the Grafton uhapartments over there coming
online so there's a lot beingbuilt here and it's all A class

(48:16):
products so it's gonna beinteresting to see I know I've I
saw some like in like two monthsfree already being advertised uh
on the ones over by uh RuthChris.
So interesting I think it'll beinteresting to see if they
really hit these numbers andit's just a product that I I
don't think we've really seenbefore.
I mean beautiful properties umbut just a price point that's

(48:37):
maybe a little different thanthan we felt now no shortage of
people coming but um it's gonnabe interesting to see over over
the next uh little bit of timehow how well that that shakes
out I think we we had uh Mervinon and he had some cool thoughts
on on that too including ourapartments aren't our A class
isn't the same as like a DallasA class yeah one of these big

(48:58):
cities A class like and it'shard to build that uh ability
yeah hopefully that'll be theshow yeah and then I I I've
heard even down in Fayettevilleeven like the student housing um
side of things I mean the theuniversity has grown so
drastically even since I came umand I know we do have uh product
coming online there but yeah butI do think not enough kids got

(49:21):
to live somewhere.

SPEAKER_04 (49:21):
Yeah how do we think about that is going to be
interesting to see too.

SPEAKER_03 (49:25):
Wait I we could talk for a while on that.
How can investors start theconversation with you um or
someone with Armstrong bankearly right now to be ready for
Windows for next year?
Can they be getting you taxreturns all pre you know what
what what are some of thosethings?

SPEAKER_04 (49:41):
Yeah I I know I mentioned earlier we don't
necessarily request tax returnsright but but as we think about
I I think staying proactive asopposed to reactive is is key as
you think about just jumping onany opportunity quickly.
I I think you see you see a lotof people kind of sitting around
there's dry powder in inpeople's pockets to deploy and

(50:01):
invest.
And I think there's been somewaiting on as people have gone
through and maybe underwrittendeals themselves, does this
necessarily make sense at ratesin July?
Maybe not but 50 basis pointsdown here, maybe it's starting
to become a little morepalatable for for themselves and
financial institutions.
Right.
So I think just stayingproactive and um even just

(50:22):
kicking off high levelconversations of how you're
thinking about justopportunities or investments
into next year.
I mean I'm I'm no financialplanner by any means but I I
would love to be your financialplanner for investment
opportunities on the real estatefront.
And um I I try and stay up todate on uh kind of what's going
on and what's taking place andthen keep kind of a pulse there.

(50:44):
So yeah um just stayingproactive I think is key as you
think about opportunities.

SPEAKER_03 (50:48):
Yeah I 100% think so as well.
Able to jump quickly.
I I agree I agree guys I'm gonnago into the rapid fire round
anything before I go into thatas we trend towards the end.
Okay.
We're gonna hit just with acouple questions, take as little
as much time as you want on it.
Favorite part of working withNorthwest Arkansas borrowers?

SPEAKER_04 (51:06):
I think it's um I really do think it's kind of the
the community and theauthenticity.
I think there's still kind ofthe there's still really like
the this it's a solid group ofpeople.
I'm I'm learning that more andmore that it's it's very tight
knit.
There's there's a lot of peopleit's it's a smaller community
than than you think.
Yes.
And I think that while we dohave institutional capital

(51:27):
coming in uh I do think there isstill kind of the the handshake
community then that existstoday.
So um but it's fun just reallyhaving the ability to um to
interact with people on on theday to day and see how we can
support those those differentdeals that they're considering
and the community's good.
100% biggest misconceptionborrowers have right now um I I

(51:48):
think this one I know we talkeda little bit about the crystal
ball earlier but I that ratesare going to to just tumble
overnight I think is aninteresting one.
I do think we there is potentialfor them to continue to uh to
soften slightly how far doesthat go not 100% sure but I do
think there will be anormalization that is higher

(52:09):
than we saw um five six yearsago if it was my uh if it was my
crystal ball that I was readingfor sure some people are talking
like two and a half don't don'twait to necessarily capitalize
on the the opportunity thinkingthat rates are going to have
tomorrow.
Yes 100% uh what's one red flagthat kills deals instantly I

(52:31):
think um I know we talked abouttrust earlier right it's like
saying one thing and and uh andnot necessarily following
through is something that cankill kind of the the trust
aspect of things or um maybeinitial conversation versus
underwritten assumptions maybeare night and day different like

(52:53):
what what am I missing here iskind of the the the question and
I think that can just be uh itjust can cause the the trust
piece to to to fall intoquestion trust is a two-way
street yeah for sure you know itit it works both ways what's one
financial trend you expectdominate 2026 I I touched on
this a little earlier but Ithink the the GPLP structures

(53:16):
will continue to be veryprevalent as we think about the
real estate investing side ofthings for sure.
I do think some more complexityand complexity for for maybe not
a bad word in this regard butbut just more um kind of not
accredited but experienced kindof investors getting into the
market I think is something thatyou will continue to see as we

(53:37):
continue to be one of the bestplaces to live.
Yeah pump money into theeconomic impact that we have
here thankful to the the theWalton family and the the hunts
and the Tysons and they continueto bring people here in the
spark community but yeah um Ithink that that that will
continue to be kind of front andcenter as we think about deals
in the future.

SPEAKER_03 (53:55):
100% Alex you've been great uh that that's all we
have um I'm pumped that you'rean Armstrong bank I think you're
gonna kill it you obviously havea wealth of knowledge already
with just like four months onboard I can't wait to see you
five 10 years in and killing itand I'm uh we're honored to have
you on the show.

SPEAKER_04 (54:11):
Well I really appreciate the time it was a
pleasure sitting down with youguys and and walking through
this and yeah um thank you againfor having me.

SPEAKER_03 (54:17):
Of course thank you Alec and uh Armstrong Bank we
appreciate you thank you thanksguys again thank you guys for
tuning in I'm gonna go ahead anduh list some sponsors off here
we're gonna start with WinstonePrivate Lending.
This episode is brought to youby Winstone Private Lending one
of the top private and hardmoney lenders now serving
Northwest Arkansas.

(54:38):
Whether you need short-termcapital for a flip a bridge loan
or creative financing they'vegot you covered with very
flexible products to fit nearlyany deal including 100%
financing what sets them apartis their deep expertise fast
response times and ability tothink outside of the box to help
investors like us close quicklyand efficiently if you're

(54:59):
looking for a real lendingpartner check out Winstone
Private Lending link is in theshow notes.
Our next sponsor is AdvantageTitle and Escrow.
They're a local company they dogreat work specifically Kayla
Phillips I can speak personallyon this sponsor because I use
Kayla for all of my transactionsit's been two three four years

(55:21):
now and Kayla and I have done aton of deals.
We probably do between 65 to 80deals a year together and they
do a great job.
The sit the SOPs so systems andprocessing that they have over
Advantage title is justincredible.
Clients love it they do a greatjob from start to end
communicating when I give a dealto Advantage Title and escrow, I

(55:44):
know that it's going to be takencare of there's no second
guessing I almost am able totreat them like a second
transaction coordinator to mytransaction coordinator that I
already have.
I know that they're going tohandle the systems and processes
correctly as an agent as ahomeowner as a buyer or seller
they do an incredible job ofhandling your transaction and
communicating throughout theprocess they do a great job with

(56:06):
communication especially KaylaPhillips over there.
I would highly encourage you ifyou're looking to close on a
home buy a home if you're anagent listening to use advantage
title in escrow specificallyKayla Phillips.
So you're going to reach Kaylabest at 501 3581601 or you can

(56:28):
email her Kayla C A Y L A atgoadvantage title dot com.
Advantage is A D V A N T A G Etitle dot com.
If you enjoyed the show makesure to give us a follow on your
favorite podcast platform so younever miss an update.

SPEAKER_01 (56:48):
Don't forget to connect with us on Instagram
Facebook and LinkedIn for morereal estate insights and behind
the scenes content.

SPEAKER_00 (56:54):
Have a question you want us to cover, send it our
way and if you're interested insponsoring the show visit
nwainvesting.com to get intouch.
Thanks for listening and we'llsee you next time.