July 10, 2026 • 41 mins
- On today's show Beaumont Police Sergeant Haley Morrow shares information on the Real Crime Center and Kimberly Pieper has the latest in home morgages.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, hello Southeast Texas. Thank you for joining us today.
We have an incredible show where we are going to
talk all things Beaumont and mortgages. Doesn't that sound fun.
We have Hayley Morrow who is with the Bump Police Department.
She's going to be talking about things that are coming
up in the department as well as some things that
(00:21):
you may need to know with us as well is
Kimberly Piper and she is with First Financial Bank and
she is one of our mortgage brokers there. She's going
to be giving you tips, tools and information if you
are looking to buy a house. What are some of
the new programs coming up that may fit you just perfectly,
so you don't want to miss that. But before we
(00:41):
do that, I'd love to give you a little update
on what is the market doing.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Well.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
We have seen the market begin to pick up, although
in the last month we did see a little bit
of a drop in our number of closings. We went
from three hundred and seventy one the year before to
three hundred and twenty six the same time this year,
so we're at a little bit of reduction. But I
can guarantee you what we are seeing an increase. In
(01:09):
the next two months, you are going to be seeing
those numbers go up. The market has moved and has
shifted to where buyers are now out there, and we
are super excited about that. That's great for our sellers
and great for our buyers too. We're still in a
decent months of inventory, Like right now we're at five
months of inventory, and that is a really even market.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
When we get.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Under five months of inventory, we're more in a seller's market.
When we get over that, when we're over the six
month mark, we're more into a buyer's market. But an
even market really is the best market. I was talking
to a friend yesterday who is an Abilene and Abiline's
market is not fun right now. Do you know that
they have, Like, for instance, we have total number of
(01:54):
houses on the market for US right now fifteen hundred
and seventy seven's that's a good number. That's a good
even number. In Abilene, they have less than one hundred
houses on the market. Houses are selling in less than
ten days for over asking price. Listen sellers may say, oh,
that's great, But if you're a seller and you're not
(02:15):
moving out of the area, you have to buy and
that's not great. So that's a hard market to be in. So, guys,
we are in a wonderful situation here in Southeast Texas.
Our values are at a good place, are months of
inventory or at a good place. So if you're thinking
about buying or selling, I say, give us a call.
Let us see if now it's the right time for you.
(02:35):
Four o nine eight six six eight three two six.
We can visit with you about that. Or we have
a tool on our website that's really cool. You can
go on there and get an estimate. Now, of course
it's an AI generated estimate. It's not as good as me.
I'm just gonna tell you it's really not, but it
gives you an idea. So you can go on there
Dana Simmons real estate dot com and use that tool.
(02:58):
But if you want a really good, good market analysis,
call our office and let me come out and see
what is the market value of your house. I've been
doing it thirty years. I can promise you I might
be able to give you a better number than that AI.
So give us a call four nine eight six six
eight three two six. So we're going to visit a
little bit with Kimberly Piper. Now, Kimberly, you've been in
(03:20):
Beaumont not that long, but you've been in mortgages a
really long time so and you have some connections here
with KLBI, so talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 4 (03:30):
Yes, Dana, thanks for having me on the show today.
My name is Kimberly Piper. I'm a certified mortgage advisor
for First Financial Mortgage. It is a division of First
Financial Bank. And how I got to Southeast Texas is
my husband's family is here. Jack Piper is my father
in law. So he's been in radio for a long
(03:51):
long time. And I met my husband about four years ago.
He was semi retired, so he moved to pen where
I was at and was there with me for about
a year and a half and then we moved here
to be closer to his family. So it's and we
have grandkids here and so it's been a lot of fun.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
Well, so the.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
Greatest thing about that is you've recently been a buyer. Yes,
you know, so you know what that whole experience is like.
You know some of us, you know when you've not
purchased a house in a while. You and I sat
into closing just the other day and we were talking
to a gentleman who was saying, uh, you know, I
(04:33):
remember when I could walk in the bank and just
shake someone's hand and get alone. And we all went, yeah, yeah,
that used to be the case thirty years ago, but
it's not the case anymore. So you know what is required,
especially when you're self employed or you know, you you
work on commission, and so that brings a whole different aspect.
(04:55):
It's understanding, Yes, it really does.
Speaker 4 (04:58):
And then here, you know, we have a a lot
of gig workers, people that work variable income because they're
on at the refineries. Maybe they work five days or
eight days on and then they have two weeks off,
so the income becomes variable and can be a little
bit tricky. But we do have a whole new product
suite of programs. It's called our eighteen ninety series. All
(05:21):
of our loans are underwritten in house, so you don't
have to worry that we're having to go outside of
the bank. Outside of our four walls. We can we
have a fit for a barrow, or whether they're self employed,
a first time home buyer, they need a bank statement
loan or a ten ninety nine loan. DSCR loans which
are good for investors looking to just purchase a rental
(05:44):
property where we use the rental income to qualify versus
having to rely on those tax returns or pay stubs.
So we just have a really wide range of products
to suit just about anyone.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Yeah, and I love that you're here locally. So what
someone can do is connect with you. You can meet
them in any one of your seven almost eight branches,
since there's a new branch that's going to be opening
up over there on College, not too far from all
the hospitals and HGB and so that to me is priceless. Yes,
(06:19):
being able to sit in front of someone, not just
that being able to sit in front of someone who
I'm going to see at the grocery store. I'm going
to see at the Lamar football games or baseball games.
I'm going to see them out in our community. And
you want your reputation to hold on because you're a
member of this community. When people use those companies that
(06:41):
are national companies that the people don't live here, they
don't work here, there's really not a big care about
what you think. The other side of that is you
give where you live exactly. There's a big difference in
being able to make sure you're involved in the community,
which I know all of you at first Financial do.
Speaker 4 (07:02):
Yes, Yeah, it's really important to you know, as the
market starts to pick up, you start to see a
lot of new online mortgage companies. And you know, I'm
old school because, like you, I've been doing this thirty years.
You know, I'm used to the customer coming in in
person taking the application. Now because of life and how
things just aren't done in person anymore. But I'm always happy,
(07:25):
you know, if your schedule doesn't allow that to do
a phone application, it's just so much more. It's so
important to get the client's story because if they just
fill out an online application and you're looking at it,
there's so much that gets left out, absolutely, so knowing
those details is very very important. And then too just
having good communication, like you said, being the local person,
(07:47):
having those relationships with the local agents and knowing you
can call me on the evening or a weekend and
that I'm going to reply back.
Speaker 5 (07:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, the closing we just had this week. That was
one of the things that over the holiday weekend that
we had several weeks ago, they said, you know, we
were bugging her on the holiday weekend and she still answered,
And so.
Speaker 4 (08:10):
Yeah, it's just part of the job, and I really
enjoy it. I enjoy helping people. And you know, it's
not just about getting another deal. It's personal and I
try to treat every transaction like as if it were
my own.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Yeah, it's what we all do.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
You know, what we do in our careers is build relationships.
You know, like the people that we just were talking
about that we just closed, I mean, I feel like
they're family now, you know, we have built a They've
been clients almost since the beginning, so almost thirty years.
I've helped them buy and sell over that time period.
(08:46):
I mean, I feel like their family. They're a part
of my family. And I make that connection with our
clients too. And I agree with you. Having someone sit
in front of me so much easier for me to
go through the contract, to explain the listing, to be
able to do all of that in person. I understand
technology makes life easy, but it makes it fast, right,
(09:07):
and there are oftentimes people don't read all of it,
so they don't understand all the nuances of it. So
exactly for me, I love that face to face interaction
and it helps to ask questions.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
I just I agree, so much better to do it
that way.
Speaker 4 (09:20):
Definitely, So I'll always ask them would you like to
come in person? Or can I come to you? Or
you know how, what's the best way to get this done?
Speaker 3 (09:29):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Great point is that you can come to them, yes,
I mean, if you need to, you can meet them
where they are, Yes, ma'am, So kimberly talk a little
bit about if someone had questions, how would they reach
out to you.
Speaker 4 (09:42):
You can call me. I am normally at the Lumberton office,
but I kind of work at all the different offices
as I can. I try to travel around a little bit.
But you can reach me on my cell phone at
four oh nine to zero one five one eight seven.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
You can also call my office because we have your
number two and we can connect you. But one of
the great things is that there are seven location First
Financial locations And while First Financial is a Texas based bank,
it's just in Texas. The local offices are run locally.
(10:18):
Every decision that is made is made locally here with
a board of directors that is here locally. It's the
people in the community who are making those decisions. So
what are the locations of the First Financial branches. I
know there's Romberton where you.
Speaker 4 (10:37):
Are, Lumberton where I live there, so I chose to
house myself out of that main office. We have Orange,
which is the original one that was in this area.
We have the one on Dallen. Uh. We have one
in Port Arthur Vier Vider Yeah.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Yeah, Mauriceville, Mauriceville, and then there's one more than trying
to we'll.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
Have to go google it.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
There are locations wherever you are, you can find a
First Financial bank there. So appreciate you sharing that, and
we'll talk more later in the show. But when we
come back, Hailey Morrow, Now you are either brand new
to Southeast Texas or you live under a rock if
you do not.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
Know who Haley is.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
But we're going to introduce her anyway, because maybe you
are brand new to Southeast Texas. So when we come back,
you'll get to know Haley.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
Don't go away. This is the Dana Simmons Show. Welcome back.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
This is Dana Simmons, and we have been visiting with
Kimberly Piper about some of the exciting new loans that
they have. We may we have time later in the
show get back to that and let her explain it
a little deeper. But right now, I'm going to introduce
you to Hailey Morrow. And like I said, you probably
already all know her because we see her on TV,
we hear on the radio. She's everywhere.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
But if you don't, Haley, tell everyone a little bit
about you.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
Thank you for having me back, Dana. Yeah, my name
is Haley Morrow. I am the sergeant of the police
Community Relations Unit at the Beaumont Police Department. I've been
with the agency for twelve and.
Speaker 5 (12:07):
A half years.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
Did two years as a patrol officer and then moved
into community relations, which is my passions where my heart is.
Last July promoted to sergeant, went back to patrol for
a little while, and now I'm back in community relations.
Speaker 1 (12:20):
Congratulations and we're so happy to.
Speaker 5 (12:22):
Have you back. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Yes, a lot of people didn't even know that I
ever left, because you know, I was still out there.
But now I have an amazing team of five people
underneath me, So there definitely is something to be said
for moving from that grade one officer position into supervision
because I have to continuously remind myself, like you have
to delegate, you're doing everything now and so, but it's
(12:45):
fantastic and so love what I do. I work in
an office mostly Monday through Friday, but you know, go
out to scenes and you know, community relations is exactly
what y'all were talking about, relationships with lending and being
a relator here in the community, and it's what we
do at bonwont Pede.
Speaker 5 (13:02):
So well in your blood, Oh it's in my blood. Yeah,
it started.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
Media is a fantastic you know helper as well. So
all of my guys have their own Facebook pages and
so we kind of you know, make it personal and
approachable more than just that robotic like we are police
officers or the people we arrest, you know, and so
we're constantly putting out, you know, all the fun events
that we do. We really have the best job in
the police department. We get to do all of the
(13:29):
rainbows and butterflies things. And then of course we're public
information officers also, so we go to you know, the
bad things and talk to the media about you know,
crime and the horrible things that unfortunately happen in our community,
but do our best to spread the positive.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
Yes, I just have a quick question, how in the
world do you say stay is so tiny with all
of those things that you eat, because I do see
those food posts and they look amazing.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Yeah so, and yet you don't gain a pound.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
People follow me for the police content, but I fear
that a lot of the followers have now turned into
the food content, because you know, I was talking about
it this morning a couple of years ago at the fair.
I'm working it for ten days straight. I'm like, hey,
I'm out here eating every day. I might as well
share it what I'm eating. And then it became a thing. Yes,
and I am a foodie, like I love food, So
now I every now and then I'll just be like,
(14:17):
oh what am I gonn eat for lunch? And I'll
post on Facebook. I'm currently hyper fixated on Hole in
the Wall, which is on Colder at seventh and it's
like a Chinese Asian fusion. Oh my gosh, I saw
I'm eating.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
It again today. I'm going to tell you I'm eating
it again today. And they've told me.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
Apparently it's working because they're like everyone who's calling, they say,
I want what Hailey moro?
Speaker 4 (14:36):
You know.
Speaker 5 (14:37):
So it's fun.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
But again, I'm just trying to be personable to create
that relationship with the community. So yes, I stay tiny
just because I don't know, I don't I'll and make it,
you know, last for three days. But yeah, I should
say I work out, but I don't have time for that,
so I'm not currently working out anyways. But I would
(14:58):
love to talk about some of the exciting events that
we have coming up. You know, Beaumont Pede were really
big about community relations and engagement, and we have our
own programs that we've designed and we put on, but
then we also just hitch our wagon to a lot
of other events that are going on. And so Sunday,
July twelfth, just tomorrow, we are having our Funday in
(15:19):
the Park at Rogers Park. That's from two to five pm.
We bring ConA ice, we bring yard games, and we
don't really advertise our fun days in the park super
far in advance because our goal is to really connect
with that community. So the Friday before the event, signs
go up at the park and then we'll post on
social media, trying to do like a last minute pop
up so that people in that area kind of come.
(15:42):
And so that's fun, free snow cones, gatorade, candy, hang
out with officers, We have like a big Connect four
in Jega and all that. And then next Sunday, July nineteenth,
the mayor has a lead forty three Community Impact Foundation.
It's kind of a new pilot program to try to
engage with the youth. Were a part of that. In fact,
on the thirteenth, we'll have the big group of these
(16:05):
youth that they've selected to go through this program. They'll
be at the police station. They're going to get tour
the Real Time Crime Center, which.
Speaker 5 (16:10):
We're going to talk talk about it.
Speaker 4 (16:11):
Love that.
Speaker 2 (16:12):
But that event on Sunday, July nineteenth is out at
the Sheila Umphrey Rec Center out of Lamar and that's
going to be from two to five. So as far
as I know, there's going to be a bunch of
vendors set up. We'll have a booth out there Thursday
July twenty third. This is one of my favorite things
is we partner with Special Olympics and so we will
be at Texas Roadhouse starting at five pm on Thursday,
(16:34):
July twenty third. It's called tip acop and what we
do is we partner up with Typically some of the
Special Olympics athletes will come out and we go around
to tables and talk about special Olympics and the athletes
will talk about all the events they do like bowling
and swimming, and we just help them get donations for
their program so they can keep having these kids engaged
(16:56):
in different Olympic events.
Speaker 1 (16:59):
That let's go have a fine, good meal and then.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
Yeah, go out to Texas Roadhouse and then we'll be there.
And then on Friday, July twenty third, So the City
of Beaumont does Movie Nights in the Park and that's
through the Parks and Recreations Department with the City of Beaumont,
and they go to different parks throughout the city on
certain Friday nights and they do the big screen and
show a movie at dusk, and so BPD we just
kind of hitch our wagon to that and we go
(17:22):
out before the movie starts and we give out candy
and gatorade and just hang out with the kids, give stickers,
and then the movie starts and we kind of fade
out in the background while they watch the movie. So
that'll be at Sprott Park Friday, July twenty fourth. The
movie starts at dusk, which is typically around like eight
eight fifteen.
Speaker 5 (17:38):
We usually get out there.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
About seven thirty seven forty five and give out candy
and gatorade. So, yeah, those are some of our events
that are coming up. Really encourage you to follow the
Beaumont Police Facebook page. I have a Facebook page at
Officer Hayley Morrow, and then all of my officers have
line Officer Diana Wilt's, Officer Caesar Biatti, Officer Chancellor Van Holton,
and Officer Roderick Williams. So we all have Facebook pages.
(18:00):
We're constantly sharing all the things that we're doing in
the community.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
So all of those things that you just talked about
will be listed on the Facebook pages.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
Yeah, we share all the events on our Facebook pages.
And we also do like coffee with the Chief. We
had one yesterday. We'll go to different coffee shops. Ours
was that Come Alive? Which is a cute new little
spot downtown on two fifteen Orleans, So those would pop up.
We'll have one once a month and the Chief is there.
We just make ourselves available to the community to come
out and chat.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
Love that love that you're interacting with the people, which
is what we need so that we can grow our community.
So talk a little bit about how things are changing
at the at Beaumont, pe D. I hear that you
are hiring.
Speaker 5 (18:46):
We are.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
We currently have a hiring process going. So you know,
that is no secret that law enforcement is struggling to retain.
And also just there are not people knocking down the
door to become police officers these days, and so we've
had to kind of get creative. The city just approved
a new hiring incentive, which is fantastic.
Speaker 5 (19:04):
I said, well, can I quit and then come back?
Speaker 2 (19:07):
So we have if you you know, and if somebody
is a police officer, then they're gonna know what this means.
But basically, when you go to the police academy, you
get certified and you get your license, just like y'all
have license.
Speaker 5 (19:17):
Or certificates to be realators.
Speaker 2 (19:19):
And it's called a t cold peace Officer's license, right,
So any any police officer that has a license in
the state of Texas already and it is a ten
thousand dollars signing bonus. If you already have experience with
another agency, we will pay four thousand dollars a year
per year of experience up to five years, so that's
twenty thousand. So if you have experience, that means you
(19:41):
have the license. So you're looking at an up to
thirty thousand dollars signing bonus.
Speaker 3 (19:45):
That's great.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
That's a fantastic incentive for someone who maybe isn't living
in the area. Maybe you are living in the area
and you're at another agency. BOMATPDI really is one of
the best agencies in Southeast Texas. We have a great
contract that's starting October the first. For anyone who's interested,
they can always reach out to me on Facebook and
we also have a recruiting supervisor that can talk to
(20:07):
them and answer any questions they have. But we have
a new contract coming up that's going to be a
great pay increase for our officers. And it's a lateral transfer,
So if you have five years of experience at another agency,
you're going to come in at the five year pay scale.
You go to the bottom of seniority, but you're still
going in at that pay scale. So at thirty thousand
dollars signing bonus can help with you know, moving.
Speaker 5 (20:27):
You here or whatever you may need to get started.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
So that is that process is open right now at
Cityoboumont jobs dot com if you just go Cityboumont jobs
dot com and in the search field you type police officer.
Speaker 5 (20:39):
You'll see the two postings.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
The one is for a certified officer that already has experience,
and then you'll see police cadet. Now that's for anybody
who doesn't have the license who needs to go through
the police Academy. We're in the hiring process for that
right now to send them through the January Academy that's
out at lit near Lamar and that's basically where you're
not a police officer yet you need to be, and
we pay you. We hire you at Baumont pe D.
(21:02):
We pay you to go through the academy, and then
once you complete the academy, you have a job with
us and you start.
Speaker 1 (21:07):
That's amazing for anyone who doesn't know what they want
to do in life, or maybe they do know they
want to be in law enforcement. You guys are paying
for that if you just signed that.
Speaker 2 (21:16):
And it makes a big difference because when I went
to the police Academy at that time, I wasn't eligible
to be hired by Beaumont. We've changed some of the
eligibility requirements, so that's great. It makes it easier because
a lot of people who maybe want a career in
law enforcement but they're already an adult and they are
maybe the breadwinner or they can't go to a single
income to put themselves through the academy and not make money.
(21:38):
We're going to hire you and put you through the academy,
and you're going to get a paycheck from us while
you're going to the police academy. So that's great, and
you know, it's a great job. You make a difference
in your community. It's an exciting job. It's a little dangerous, yea.
And we stay busy here, but you'll never go to
work and have a boring day or the same day.
Speaker 5 (21:58):
You could write a book.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
I wish I would have wish I could go back
and keep track of all of the just the crazy things.
Yeah see in this profession. But it's a super rewarding profession,
and we're looking for people who are willing to, you know,
put their lives on the line and service to the community.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
So what what kind of time frame does the academy take?
I mean, how long are you in the academy.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
Yeah, so if you're already a certified officer, that's an
expedited process because you've already been through the academy. We
have a training program that they'll have to go through,
and that doesn't take as long if you're starting from scratch,
you know, buckle up. It is a long process, but
it's important that we go through the extreme background investigations
and all that. So this hiring process closes online August
(22:43):
the fourteenth, okay, and then we start that process of
going through the thousands of applications. And you know, obviously
there are things that disqualify you from being a police officer,
if you have a criminal record or other things, and
so we'll start that process. Like I said, this is
to put people through the January academy, So you're looking
at August four teenth is the closure. There's some training
and testing that you have to go through. It's called
(23:04):
a Jobs Related Abilities Test, and there's a written and
then the physical and then go through the whole process
starting the academy in January. The police Academy is six
months January to May or August to December twice a year.
And then after that you're hired with us and then
we have about you know, several weeks of orientation and
then six months of training and so but it's typically
(23:25):
about a year year and a half before those officers
are through the academy on their own and then they're
on probation for a year. So it's a long process,
which is why that new hiring incentive is. You know,
we sat down and did the math. It's like, Okay,
how much money are we spending to put people through
the academy and then all that training. Okay, well we
can abcentivize people who are already trained, give them more
(23:46):
money and get get officers on the street quicker, and
so that's our goal. But at this point we'll take
either one. So yeah, if anyone has questions, they can
reach out to me on Facebook and I'll get them
pointed in the right direction.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
Is there a number of officers that you're trying to hire.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
And don't know what the number is of the vacancy
right now, but essentially it's a revolving door always because
we're allotted two hundred and sixty sworn police officers, and
while we have this hiring process open, because there may
be and this is not the current number.
Speaker 5 (24:14):
This is just an example.
Speaker 2 (24:15):
If there's ten vacancies right now, takes that year and
a half before those people are really filling that number.
So we may hire ten, maybe some are certified, maybe
some are going through the academy. By the time that
comes to fruition, we've had retirements, We've had people leave,
and now we have vacancies again. And so it's just
a constant revolving door. And unless we ever go to
(24:36):
the point where we go, Okay, we're gonna the city's
going to increase that number to two eighty, then we
might get to two sixty. But we hardly ever get
to that two sixty number and hold because there's just
constantly movement.
Speaker 5 (24:47):
Yeah, people are retiring.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Makes sense.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
I know one of the police officers that was in
our small group, Rick Boaz, has recently retired. One of
the great greatest men. He was an amazing seeing police officer.
A bit more importantly, an amazing man.
Speaker 2 (25:04):
A couple of days ago at the sushi restaurant.
Speaker 5 (25:07):
Oh yeah, there, and he came in. So they come
back to town every now and then.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
Yeah, they're back and forth. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
So he and Angie are precious and we love them
to death. Well, Haley, thank you so much for sharing
that information. When we come back, we're going to talk
a little bit about the Real Time Crime Center. I've
had the opportunity to tour it. It is the coolest thing.
It is so amazing, So don't go away. This is
the Dandas Simmons show, We'll be right back.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
Welcome back.
Speaker 1 (25:34):
This is Dana Simmons and we have been visiting with
Hailey Morrow talking about all kinds of things that Beaumont
p D are involved in. If you missed it, go
to their Facebook page. They have lots of activities, free
activities coming up, so check that out.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
Also hiring.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
Wow, that is some incredible incentives you guys are giving
to become a Bomont police officer. So if you have
questions about that, you can reach out to them on
their social media sites as well. One of the things
that I love is I was able to tour that
Real Time Crime Center. Now we were talking during the break.
I love those kind of police shows. So I'm watching
(26:14):
op Nation and Opie Live and all of those.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
I just love that.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
I know that's crazy at night after my brain's gone
too hard, that's how I relax. Most people go, that's insane,
but I love watching that. And so one of the
things that when I got to tour that Real Time
Crime Center, it was the coolest thing.
Speaker 3 (26:36):
So talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Yeah, it really is fascinating. I used to tell people
all the time when they would bring up like, oh, well,
can't y'all just pull up the cameras, I'm like, it's
not like CSI where you see a bunch of screens
and they're looking at Well, it is now. It is now,
and it is a complete game changer for law enforcement.
You know, technology has come a long way and it's
just making it so much more efficient and easier for
(26:58):
us to investigate cases. And at the end of the day,
don't we all want the people who are committing the
crimes to be put in jail and stop terrorizing our community.
So we are absolutely leveraging technology, and the technology continues
to advance. I mean, we could spend the entire show
talking about all the different new tools that we're using
through technology. But the Real Time Crime Center is a
(27:20):
partnership and we can't do it without the community. And
so right now, so we started the Real Time Crime
Center about two years ago and we have there's a
little difference between integrated and registered cameras. So integrated cameras
are what we want for all businesses where the public
frequents and the integrated camera is it's through FUSUS and
(27:41):
it's basically just a little core that you plug into
your already existing camera system and you're giving VPD access
so that if a call happens at your location, we
can pull those cameras up in the real time crime
center and give officers information as they're arriving. And so
you know a lot of times when there's a priority
call a robbery and progress it's a homicide, something major,
(28:01):
that police response time can be five to seven minutes.
That's a long time and usually people aren't sticking around
to be great witnesses. They're getting the heck out of
there because they're concerned for their safety. And so when
we have a camera, our analysts in the real time
crime center can pull that up and they can have
eyes on the situation within minutes in getting suspect information,
vehicle information, and so integrated cameras that's what those are.
(28:24):
And then registered cameras are what we want for like
residential areas, we don't have access to registered cameras, we
just want to know that you have them. So if
you have a ring, doorbell camera or vivit security system,
you just go on to connect setx dot org and
it takes less than a minute to register your cameras.
And all you're doing is saying, hey, my name's Haley Moro,
and I leave it two fifty five College, this is
(28:44):
my phone number, this is my email address. I have
four interior cameras and ten out exterior cameras. Then it
puts a dot on a map for us, so that
if next week there's a rash of auto burglaries in
your neighborhood and the detective pulls the registry map, they
can go, oh, Hailey Moro has cameras. Let me send
her an email and see if she can check her cameras.
(29:05):
And then you get to be the detective. You get
to look at your ring doorbell camera and go, oh,
my gosh, that suspect walked into my driveway and pulled
on my door handle. But I was a good listener
and I had my doors locked and they didn't break
into my car, right, And so but you can say, hey,
I've got footage, and then you send it to the detective,
and essentially you're a detective.
Speaker 5 (29:22):
You helped us out. So that's the.
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Registered camera, and then you know we have so many.
You know, on the break we were talking about flock
license plate readers, another fantastic tool.
Speaker 5 (29:32):
We have caught.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
Homicide suspect, suspects, kidnapping suspects just through being able to
use the license plate license plate reader technology. And you know,
there's a lot of misinformation out there, there's a lot
of you know, the big brother the the government's watching,
and you know, at the end of the day, for us,
it's about safety. It's about keeping our community safe, catching
(29:56):
bad guys faster, and having the evidence, you know, because
in a lot of cases, we know somebody is a suspect,
and without some cold hard evidence like video surveillance or
a heat map that shows that that's where that vehicle
was and that's the person that was driving it, it
makes it more difficult to prosecute. And we want to.
You know, it really is a small percentage of people
(30:16):
that are committing the crimes here in our area and
just making it seem so much worse than it is.
And so when we're able to put them away for
a long time, then you know, we're making the community safer.
So it's a fantastic tool that we use. And then
of course you've got like in car cameras, the body cams.
Now we're able to translate using the bodycam. So before
(30:36):
we would have to wait for an officer that speaks
Spanish to drive across the city to help translate. And
now our officers push a button on their body cam
and they're able to translate back and forth with someone who.
Speaker 1 (30:45):
Is so coool yeah on you know the Live PD show.
Speaker 3 (30:50):
Yeah, I watch.
Speaker 1 (30:51):
They would always use their phone to translate and then.
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Do it Google Translate.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
So I love that you guys now have that technology.
And let me just the people that I know and
that I run around with, they're all like, what can
we do to be a proactive help.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
In our community?
Speaker 1 (31:09):
And so I think this is great information for them
to know these are the things that you can do
to help. You were talking about that can register their cameras.
But there's also you know, we were talking about crime
stoppers and that say what you see, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (31:26):
See something, Say something as our big campaign. It's been
around forever and it really does go back to and
you know now with the new movement of AI and
everyone's like, oh a, it's taking over and it's replacing jobs.
Nothing will ever replace the true people who have firsthand
information and know somebody committed to crime and they do
the right thing. And we know that people are concerned
(31:48):
about retaliation or being labeled a snitch, and that's why
the Crime Stoppers program is so phenomenal because you remain
anonymous and you can be eligible for a cash reward
if your tip leads to the arrest of somebody that
you know we're looking for or a case that we're investigating.
So it's a fantastic tool to do the right thing.
And you know, it's unfortunate that sometimes we have to centivize,
incentivize people with money to.
Speaker 5 (32:10):
Do the right thing.
Speaker 2 (32:11):
But at the end of the day, we'll do whatever
we need to do to make sure that you know,
we're able to solve these cases. So, yes, the registering
your cameras with the Real Time Crime Center, talking about it,
if you have businesses, if you know business owners, if
you go in somewhere and you're like, hey, are y'all
registered with the Real Time Crime Center, anything that you
can do to help spread awareness and spread the word
(32:32):
for that so that we can grow that fantastic But
at the end of the day, being a great citizen
and a great witness and when you see something, reporting
it is so important and a lot of times, you know,
with social media, and especially with this younger generation of
unfortunately young people who are committing big crimes, they can't help.
Speaker 5 (32:52):
The social media. They post it on social media.
Speaker 2 (32:54):
And so it just takes one person going, you know what,
this is wrong, and I'm gonna report it. And you again,
you can remain anonymous, you know, take that screenshot, send
it to crime stoppers, because at the end of the day,
law enforcement we're going to do our job right and
we're going to follow every lead, and sometimes we just
need that one little crack, that one little thread that says, hey,
(33:16):
this is the direction y'all need to go. And we
got it after that, but we just sometimes need people
to make that first push that points us in the
right direction and then we'll take the rest from there.
And again, at the end of the day, it's all about.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
Safety, yeah, and it's for the good of our entire community. Yeah,
I mean, that's what we all want, right. We want
a safe community for our children and grandchildren to grow
up in and for us to feel secure when we're
just going to the grocery store wherever it is for.
Speaker 5 (33:43):
Your kids are at the park.
Speaker 2 (33:44):
I mean, you should not be concerned about somebody coming
to the park to fight and then shots being fired. Right,
So the more evidence we can get on people who
are committing these crimes and get them off the streets.
And then also you know that partnership with the District
Attorney's office and judges, hoping that they'll you know, put
people away for a substantial amount of time so that
they know, hey, this is serious and there's going to
be consequences. Because when there's no consequences for your actions,
(34:06):
then why follow the role the roles.
Speaker 1 (34:09):
Well, and I know they're trying to add additional courts
to be able to process all of that as well.
So anything that we can do, I think we we should.
And so this is a small part that we can
play to be a part of the solution and not
just be a complainer about the problem. So complaining gets
you nowhere, and figuring out what we can do to
(34:32):
be a part of the solution is what each of
us should be doing.
Speaker 5 (34:34):
Yeah, come join the team or register your cameras.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
That's exactly right there, Bomont jobs dot com, connect set
x dot org, or you know, message us on Facebook
and we'll get your point in the right.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
Groar sounds good.
Speaker 1 (34:45):
Well, Haley, thank you so much for sharing all of
that information with us. And when we come back, we're
going to wrap up. This is the Dana Simons Show.
Welcome back. This is Dana Simmons and we have been
visiting with Hailey Morrow. And if you you have not
caught this show, you are going to have to go
back and listen. You can go to the iHeart app
(35:06):
or check us out on Spotify. So this will be
posted on our Spotify account in the next week or so,
So check us out on Spotify. Just go to Dana
Simmons on Spotify and you can find all of our
shows and soon to be coming to Apple. So hey,
we're moving on up. That's exactly right, We're getting there. So, Haley,
(35:27):
in the break you were talking a little bit about
the fact that about the connect set X where residential
homeowners can register their home and in my mind I
was thinking just Beaumont, but you gave us a little
more clarification.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
Yeah, we talked about that during the break. So last
year we regionalized the Real Time Crime Center, so of
course we know criminals don't follow jurisdictional boundaries. We have
criminals who are committing crimes in Port Author also Beaumont, Houston,
so we've kind of expanded the Real Time Crime Center,
and so we just want to make sure everyone knows
that you don't have to live in Beaumont to register
your can't You can live in Lumberton, Groves, Bridge City, Orange,
(36:03):
any of those Southeast Texas areas. So connect setx dot
org and then you can register your cameras there and
if you have more questions, absolutely, there's a contact us
on that page. We'll get you set up with the
lieutenant or the sergeant over that Real Time Crime Center
and they can answer any questions you have.
Speaker 3 (36:21):
Yeah, that is amazing. I didn't know that.
Speaker 1 (36:23):
So I'm glad that we had that conversation to be
able to say, listen, you don't have to just be
in Beaumont, you can be in the outlying areas as
well and get that registered.
Speaker 3 (36:31):
So thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
Now, Kimberly, we're going to have you wrap up. I
know there's one of the programs I really wanted you
to talk about, and that's that first time home buyer program.
So define a first time home buyer.
Speaker 4 (36:42):
Yes, ma'am, so you don't. It does not have to
be your first home that you've bought. If you haven't
owned a home in three years, you would qualify for
the first time home buyer programs. There's grants that are available,
there's down payment assistance that's available, and then there's also
a lot of education and counseling that we can provide
(37:03):
you to get you ready, because I don't believe that
everybody is necessarily ready to jump out and buy a home.
We want to make sure that you're financially stable, that
you know exactly what you're getting into, so that it
does become a good investment for you. So we can
provide that counseling. I do those through live in person
through Zoom, so you know, if you have questions about
(37:26):
buying a home and getting qualified, just give me a call.
Speaker 3 (37:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (37:31):
And so even just this morning, I was communicating with
one of our clients and had reached out to him
because he had mentioned that he may be wanting to
buy soon, and so I had given him first financials
information and so I said, hey, just checking to see
if you've reached out to them, and he said, no, ma'am,
(37:52):
I haven't I have a couple of discrepancies on my credit.
I need to work on that. And I said, but
you know what, you have to work on that.
Speaker 3 (38:00):
Alone, No, we can help you.
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Still want to reach out to First Financial if you
have any issues on your credit. Let them guide you
through what you need to do, how you need to
do it, and how you can overcome those discrepancies. You
guys have done it for far longer than one person
has done it.
Speaker 4 (38:19):
And sometimes it's very easy fixes. A lot of times people,
you know, it's a real credit is a personal thing.
So a lot of times people will come see me
and say, oh, well, I have terrible credit, And a
lot of times it's not even as bad as they think.
There just may be a little blip or something that
we can help them clean up and get them qualified.
And the sooner the better if you are interested at
(38:40):
all in owning a home, the sooner you get started
with that prequalification process, the smoother the transaction is going
to be. Because you never want, you know, you don't
want to be in a position where you say your
lease is up and you just have to get out
or you have to make a move for some reason,
and then you come in to see us, and it's like, oh,
we have all the hurdles that we have to get
(39:02):
through before we can actually get to the home buying process.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Yeah, that's that's the first when someone calls us. The
very first thing, I say, let's prepare you. Let's get
you preapproved only because for some people they're not aware
that there is something on their credit right that is
not even there. Somehow, something from someone else, maybe even
fraud has happened, and so getting that ahead of time
(39:29):
is so important. People think, oh, you're just interested in
making sure we have our money. No, that's not the
case at all. I'm interested in you're not getting disappointed
when you find the perfect home and you can't buy
it because you didn't get pre approved ahead because there's.
Speaker 3 (39:42):
Something on the credit. And then nothing after.
Speaker 1 (39:44):
That comes close to the one that you lost. Right,
So my whole reasoning is, let's get you in a
position to buy when you're ready. Yes, maybe it's the
first house, but maybe it's not, maybe it's the fiftieth house,
but we want to make sure that you're ready. Tell
everyone again how to get a hold of you if
they are interested in getting information about credit repair, or
(40:09):
I want to qualify for a first time home that
you have that maybe offers a grant or some closing assistance.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
Let's talk through that.
Speaker 4 (40:15):
Yes, ma'am, you can reach me on my cell phone
at four nine two zero one five one eight seven
or stop by the Lumberton First Financial Bank.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
Well, it's been a pleasure. Thank you so much, Kimberly
for joining us today, and Hayley so much good information too.
We love hearing all that Beaumont.
Speaker 3 (40:33):
Pete is doing.
Speaker 1 (40:34):
You know, sometimes all you hear is the negative and
there is so much more positive, and so I love
you sharing all the wonderful things that are coming up
and then all the wonderful technology that you guys have
going on.
Speaker 3 (40:47):
Now.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
You know, guys, I just do this once a week.
Every other day, you're going to find me in the
office with buyers and sellers selling real estate. So if
you are thinking about it, there's no pressure. We love
to educate and just give your information. So give us
a call at our office four of nine eight six
six eight three two six or Danasimmons real estate dot
(41:08):
com and we'd love to help you. I hope you
make this a great Saturday and we'll see you right
back here next Saturday at noon on KLVI. This is
the Dana Simmons Show.
Well, hello Southeast Texas. Thank you for joining us today.
We have an incredible show where we are going to
talk all things Beaumont and mortgages. Doesn't that sound fun.
We have Hayley Morrow who is with the Bump Police Department.
She's going to be talking about things that are coming
up in the department as well as some things that
(00:21):
you may need to know with us as well is
Kimberly Piper and she is with First Financial Bank and
she is one of our mortgage brokers there. She's going
to be giving you tips, tools and information if you
are looking to buy a house. What are some of
the new programs coming up that may fit you just perfectly,
so you don't want to miss that. But before we
(00:41):
do that, I'd love to give you a little update
on what is the market doing.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Well.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
We have seen the market begin to pick up, although
in the last month we did see a little bit
of a drop in our number of closings. We went
from three hundred and seventy one the year before to
three hundred and twenty six the same time this year,
so we're at a little bit of reduction. But I
can guarantee you what we are seeing an increase. In
(01:09):
the next two months, you are going to be seeing
those numbers go up. The market has moved and has
shifted to where buyers are now out there, and we
are super excited about that. That's great for our sellers
and great for our buyers too. We're still in a
decent months of inventory, Like right now we're at five
months of inventory, and that is a really even market.
Speaker 3 (01:31):
When we get.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Under five months of inventory, we're more in a seller's market.
When we get over that, when we're over the six
month mark, we're more into a buyer's market. But an
even market really is the best market. I was talking
to a friend yesterday who is an Abilene and Abiline's
market is not fun right now. Do you know that
they have, Like, for instance, we have total number of
(01:54):
houses on the market for US right now fifteen hundred
and seventy seven's that's a good number. That's a good
even number. In Abilene, they have less than one hundred
houses on the market. Houses are selling in less than
ten days for over asking price. Listen sellers may say, oh,
that's great, But if you're a seller and you're not
(02:15):
moving out of the area, you have to buy and
that's not great. So that's a hard market to be in. So, guys,
we are in a wonderful situation here in Southeast Texas.
Our values are at a good place, are months of
inventory or at a good place. So if you're thinking
about buying or selling, I say, give us a call.
Let us see if now it's the right time for you.
(02:35):
Four o nine eight six six eight three two six.
We can visit with you about that. Or we have
a tool on our website that's really cool. You can
go on there and get an estimate. Now, of course
it's an AI generated estimate. It's not as good as me.
I'm just gonna tell you it's really not, but it
gives you an idea. So you can go on there
Dana Simmons real estate dot com and use that tool.
(02:58):
But if you want a really good, good market analysis,
call our office and let me come out and see
what is the market value of your house. I've been
doing it thirty years. I can promise you I might
be able to give you a better number than that AI.
So give us a call four nine eight six six
eight three two six. So we're going to visit a
little bit with Kimberly Piper. Now, Kimberly, you've been in
(03:20):
Beaumont not that long, but you've been in mortgages a
really long time so and you have some connections here
with KLBI, so talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 4 (03:30):
Yes, Dana, thanks for having me on the show today.
My name is Kimberly Piper. I'm a certified mortgage advisor
for First Financial Mortgage. It is a division of First
Financial Bank. And how I got to Southeast Texas is
my husband's family is here. Jack Piper is my father
in law. So he's been in radio for a long
(03:51):
long time. And I met my husband about four years ago.
He was semi retired, so he moved to pen where
I was at and was there with me for about
a year and a half and then we moved here
to be closer to his family. So it's and we
have grandkids here and so it's been a lot of fun.
Speaker 3 (04:10):
Well, so the.
Speaker 1 (04:11):
Greatest thing about that is you've recently been a buyer. Yes,
you know, so you know what that whole experience is like.
You know some of us, you know when you've not
purchased a house in a while. You and I sat
into closing just the other day and we were talking
to a gentleman who was saying, uh, you know, I
(04:33):
remember when I could walk in the bank and just
shake someone's hand and get alone. And we all went, yeah, yeah,
that used to be the case thirty years ago, but
it's not the case anymore. So you know what is required,
especially when you're self employed or you know, you you
work on commission, and so that brings a whole different aspect.
(04:55):
It's understanding, Yes, it really does.
Speaker 4 (04:58):
And then here, you know, we have a a lot
of gig workers, people that work variable income because they're
on at the refineries. Maybe they work five days or
eight days on and then they have two weeks off,
so the income becomes variable and can be a little
bit tricky. But we do have a whole new product
suite of programs. It's called our eighteen ninety series. All
(05:21):
of our loans are underwritten in house, so you don't
have to worry that we're having to go outside of
the bank. Outside of our four walls. We can we
have a fit for a barrow, or whether they're self employed,
a first time home buyer, they need a bank statement
loan or a ten ninety nine loan. DSCR loans which
are good for investors looking to just purchase a rental
(05:44):
property where we use the rental income to qualify versus
having to rely on those tax returns or pay stubs.
So we just have a really wide range of products
to suit just about anyone.
Speaker 1 (05:56):
Yeah, and I love that you're here locally. So what
someone can do is connect with you. You can meet
them in any one of your seven almost eight branches,
since there's a new branch that's going to be opening
up over there on College, not too far from all
the hospitals and HGB and so that to me is priceless. Yes,
(06:19):
being able to sit in front of someone, not just
that being able to sit in front of someone who
I'm going to see at the grocery store. I'm going
to see at the Lamar football games or baseball games.
I'm going to see them out in our community. And
you want your reputation to hold on because you're a
member of this community. When people use those companies that
(06:41):
are national companies that the people don't live here, they
don't work here, there's really not a big care about
what you think. The other side of that is you
give where you live exactly. There's a big difference in
being able to make sure you're involved in the community,
which I know all of you at first Financial do.
Speaker 4 (07:02):
Yes, Yeah, it's really important to you know, as the
market starts to pick up, you start to see a
lot of new online mortgage companies. And you know, I'm
old school because, like you, I've been doing this thirty years.
You know, I'm used to the customer coming in in
person taking the application. Now because of life and how
things just aren't done in person anymore. But I'm always happy,
(07:25):
you know, if your schedule doesn't allow that to do
a phone application, it's just so much more. It's so
important to get the client's story because if they just
fill out an online application and you're looking at it,
there's so much that gets left out, absolutely, so knowing
those details is very very important. And then too just
having good communication, like you said, being the local person,
(07:47):
having those relationships with the local agents and knowing you
can call me on the evening or a weekend and
that I'm going to reply back.
Speaker 5 (07:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:57):
Yeah, the closing we just had this week. That was
one of the things that over the holiday weekend that
we had several weeks ago, they said, you know, we
were bugging her on the holiday weekend and she still answered,
And so.
Speaker 4 (08:10):
Yeah, it's just part of the job, and I really
enjoy it. I enjoy helping people. And you know, it's
not just about getting another deal. It's personal and I
try to treat every transaction like as if it were
my own.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Yeah, it's what we all do.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
You know, what we do in our careers is build relationships.
You know, like the people that we just were talking
about that we just closed, I mean, I feel like
they're family now, you know, we have built a They've
been clients almost since the beginning, so almost thirty years.
I've helped them buy and sell over that time period.
(08:46):
I mean, I feel like their family. They're a part
of my family. And I make that connection with our
clients too. And I agree with you. Having someone sit
in front of me so much easier for me to
go through the contract, to explain the listing, to be
able to do all of that in person. I understand
technology makes life easy, but it makes it fast, right,
(09:07):
and there are oftentimes people don't read all of it,
so they don't understand all the nuances of it. So
exactly for me, I love that face to face interaction
and it helps to ask questions.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
I just I agree, so much better to do it
that way.
Speaker 4 (09:20):
Definitely, So I'll always ask them would you like to
come in person? Or can I come to you? Or
you know how, what's the best way to get this done?
Speaker 3 (09:29):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (09:29):
Great point is that you can come to them, yes,
I mean, if you need to, you can meet them
where they are, Yes, ma'am, So kimberly talk a little
bit about if someone had questions, how would they reach
out to you.
Speaker 4 (09:42):
You can call me. I am normally at the Lumberton office,
but I kind of work at all the different offices
as I can. I try to travel around a little bit.
But you can reach me on my cell phone at
four oh nine to zero one five one eight seven.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
You can also call my office because we have your
number two and we can connect you. But one of
the great things is that there are seven location First
Financial locations And while First Financial is a Texas based bank,
it's just in Texas. The local offices are run locally.
(10:18):
Every decision that is made is made locally here with
a board of directors that is here locally. It's the
people in the community who are making those decisions. So
what are the locations of the First Financial branches. I
know there's Romberton where you.
Speaker 4 (10:37):
Are, Lumberton where I live there, so I chose to
house myself out of that main office. We have Orange,
which is the original one that was in this area.
We have the one on Dallen. Uh. We have one
in Port Arthur Vier Vider Yeah.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Yeah, Mauriceville, Mauriceville, and then there's one more than trying
to we'll.
Speaker 3 (11:01):
Have to go google it.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
There are locations wherever you are, you can find a
First Financial bank there. So appreciate you sharing that, and
we'll talk more later in the show. But when we
come back, Hailey Morrow, Now you are either brand new
to Southeast Texas or you live under a rock if
you do not.
Speaker 3 (11:22):
Know who Haley is.
Speaker 1 (11:23):
But we're going to introduce her anyway, because maybe you
are brand new to Southeast Texas. So when we come back,
you'll get to know Haley.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
Don't go away. This is the Dana Simmons Show. Welcome back.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
This is Dana Simmons, and we have been visiting with
Kimberly Piper about some of the exciting new loans that
they have. We may we have time later in the
show get back to that and let her explain it
a little deeper. But right now, I'm going to introduce
you to Hailey Morrow. And like I said, you probably
already all know her because we see her on TV,
we hear on the radio. She's everywhere.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
But if you don't, Haley, tell everyone a little bit
about you.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
Thank you for having me back, Dana. Yeah, my name
is Haley Morrow. I am the sergeant of the police
Community Relations Unit at the Beaumont Police Department. I've been
with the agency for twelve and.
Speaker 5 (12:07):
A half years.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
Did two years as a patrol officer and then moved
into community relations, which is my passions where my heart is.
Last July promoted to sergeant, went back to patrol for
a little while, and now I'm back in community relations.
Speaker 1 (12:20):
Congratulations and we're so happy to.
Speaker 5 (12:22):
Have you back. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Yes, a lot of people didn't even know that I
ever left, because you know, I was still out there.
But now I have an amazing team of five people
underneath me, So there definitely is something to be said
for moving from that grade one officer position into supervision
because I have to continuously remind myself, like you have
to delegate, you're doing everything now and so, but it's
(12:45):
fantastic and so love what I do. I work in
an office mostly Monday through Friday, but you know, go
out to scenes and you know, community relations is exactly
what y'all were talking about, relationships with lending and being
a relator here in the community, and it's what we
do at bonwont Pede.
Speaker 5 (13:02):
So well in your blood, Oh it's in my blood. Yeah,
it started.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
Media is a fantastic you know helper as well. So
all of my guys have their own Facebook pages and
so we kind of you know, make it personal and
approachable more than just that robotic like we are police
officers or the people we arrest, you know, and so
we're constantly putting out, you know, all the fun events
that we do. We really have the best job in
the police department. We get to do all of the
(13:29):
rainbows and butterflies things. And then of course we're public
information officers also, so we go to you know, the
bad things and talk to the media about you know,
crime and the horrible things that unfortunately happen in our community,
but do our best to spread the positive.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
Yes, I just have a quick question, how in the
world do you say stay is so tiny with all
of those things that you eat, because I do see
those food posts and they look amazing.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Yeah so, and yet you don't gain a pound.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
People follow me for the police content, but I fear
that a lot of the followers have now turned into
the food content, because you know, I was talking about
it this morning a couple of years ago at the fair.
I'm working it for ten days straight. I'm like, hey,
I'm out here eating every day. I might as well
share it what I'm eating. And then it became a thing. Yes,
and I am a foodie, like I love food, So
now I every now and then I'll just be like,
(14:17):
oh what am I gonn eat for lunch? And I'll
post on Facebook. I'm currently hyper fixated on Hole in
the Wall, which is on Colder at seventh and it's
like a Chinese Asian fusion. Oh my gosh, I saw
I'm eating.
Speaker 5 (14:28):
It again today. I'm going to tell you I'm eating
it again today. And they've told me.
Speaker 2 (14:32):
Apparently it's working because they're like everyone who's calling, they say,
I want what Hailey moro?
Speaker 4 (14:36):
You know.
Speaker 5 (14:37):
So it's fun.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
But again, I'm just trying to be personable to create
that relationship with the community. So yes, I stay tiny
just because I don't know, I don't I'll and make it,
you know, last for three days. But yeah, I should
say I work out, but I don't have time for that,
so I'm not currently working out anyways. But I would
(14:58):
love to talk about some of the exciting events that
we have coming up. You know, Beaumont Pede were really
big about community relations and engagement, and we have our
own programs that we've designed and we put on, but
then we also just hitch our wagon to a lot
of other events that are going on. And so Sunday,
July twelfth, just tomorrow, we are having our Funday in
(15:19):
the Park at Rogers Park. That's from two to five pm.
We bring ConA ice, we bring yard games, and we
don't really advertise our fun days in the park super
far in advance because our goal is to really connect
with that community. So the Friday before the event, signs
go up at the park and then we'll post on
social media, trying to do like a last minute pop
up so that people in that area kind of come.
(15:42):
And so that's fun, free snow cones, gatorade, candy, hang
out with officers, We have like a big Connect four
in Jega and all that. And then next Sunday, July nineteenth,
the mayor has a lead forty three Community Impact Foundation.
It's kind of a new pilot program to try to
engage with the youth. Were a part of that. In fact,
on the thirteenth, we'll have the big group of these
(16:05):
youth that they've selected to go through this program. They'll
be at the police station. They're going to get tour
the Real Time Crime Center, which.
Speaker 5 (16:10):
We're going to talk talk about it.
Speaker 4 (16:11):
Love that.
Speaker 2 (16:12):
But that event on Sunday, July nineteenth is out at
the Sheila Umphrey Rec Center out of Lamar and that's
going to be from two to five. So as far
as I know, there's going to be a bunch of
vendors set up. We'll have a booth out there Thursday
July twenty third. This is one of my favorite things
is we partner with Special Olympics and so we will
be at Texas Roadhouse starting at five pm on Thursday,
(16:34):
July twenty third. It's called tip acop and what we
do is we partner up with Typically some of the
Special Olympics athletes will come out and we go around
to tables and talk about special Olympics and the athletes
will talk about all the events they do like bowling
and swimming, and we just help them get donations for
their program so they can keep having these kids engaged
(16:56):
in different Olympic events.
Speaker 1 (16:59):
That let's go have a fine, good meal and then.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
Yeah, go out to Texas Roadhouse and then we'll be there.
And then on Friday, July twenty third, So the City
of Beaumont does Movie Nights in the Park and that's
through the Parks and Recreations Department with the City of Beaumont,
and they go to different parks throughout the city on
certain Friday nights and they do the big screen and
show a movie at dusk, and so BPD we just
kind of hitch our wagon to that and we go
(17:22):
out before the movie starts and we give out candy
and gatorade and just hang out with the kids, give stickers,
and then the movie starts and we kind of fade
out in the background while they watch the movie. So
that'll be at Sprott Park Friday, July twenty fourth. The
movie starts at dusk, which is typically around like eight
eight fifteen.
Speaker 5 (17:38):
We usually get out there.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
About seven thirty seven forty five and give out candy
and gatorade. So, yeah, those are some of our events
that are coming up. Really encourage you to follow the
Beaumont Police Facebook page. I have a Facebook page at
Officer Hayley Morrow, and then all of my officers have
line Officer Diana Wilt's, Officer Caesar Biatti, Officer Chancellor Van Holton,
and Officer Roderick Williams. So we all have Facebook pages.
(18:00):
We're constantly sharing all the things that we're doing in
the community.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
So all of those things that you just talked about
will be listed on the Facebook pages.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
Yeah, we share all the events on our Facebook pages.
And we also do like coffee with the Chief. We
had one yesterday. We'll go to different coffee shops. Ours
was that Come Alive? Which is a cute new little
spot downtown on two fifteen Orleans, So those would pop up.
We'll have one once a month and the Chief is there.
We just make ourselves available to the community to come
out and chat.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
Love that love that you're interacting with the people, which
is what we need so that we can grow our community.
So talk a little bit about how things are changing
at the at Beaumont, pe D. I hear that you
are hiring.
Speaker 5 (18:46):
We are.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
We currently have a hiring process going. So you know,
that is no secret that law enforcement is struggling to retain.
And also just there are not people knocking down the
door to become police officers these days, and so we've
had to kind of get creative. The city just approved
a new hiring incentive, which is fantastic.
Speaker 5 (19:04):
I said, well, can I quit and then come back?
Speaker 2 (19:07):
So we have if you you know, and if somebody
is a police officer, then they're gonna know what this means.
But basically, when you go to the police academy, you
get certified and you get your license, just like y'all
have license.
Speaker 5 (19:17):
Or certificates to be realators.
Speaker 2 (19:19):
And it's called a t cold peace Officer's license, right,
So any any police officer that has a license in
the state of Texas already and it is a ten
thousand dollars signing bonus. If you already have experience with
another agency, we will pay four thousand dollars a year
per year of experience up to five years, so that's
twenty thousand. So if you have experience, that means you
(19:41):
have the license. So you're looking at an up to
thirty thousand dollars signing bonus.
Speaker 3 (19:45):
That's great.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
That's a fantastic incentive for someone who maybe isn't living
in the area. Maybe you are living in the area
and you're at another agency. BOMATPDI really is one of
the best agencies in Southeast Texas. We have a great
contract that's starting October the first. For anyone who's interested,
they can always reach out to me on Facebook and
we also have a recruiting supervisor that can talk to
(20:07):
them and answer any questions they have. But we have
a new contract coming up that's going to be a
great pay increase for our officers. And it's a lateral transfer,
So if you have five years of experience at another agency,
you're going to come in at the five year pay scale.
You go to the bottom of seniority, but you're still
going in at that pay scale. So at thirty thousand
dollars signing bonus can help with you know, moving.
Speaker 5 (20:27):
You here or whatever you may need to get started.
Speaker 2 (20:29):
So that is that process is open right now at
Cityoboumont jobs dot com if you just go Cityboumont jobs
dot com and in the search field you type police officer.
Speaker 5 (20:39):
You'll see the two postings.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
The one is for a certified officer that already has experience,
and then you'll see police cadet. Now that's for anybody
who doesn't have the license who needs to go through
the police Academy. We're in the hiring process for that
right now to send them through the January Academy that's
out at lit near Lamar and that's basically where you're
not a police officer yet you need to be, and
we pay you. We hire you at Baumont pe D.
(21:02):
We pay you to go through the academy, and then
once you complete the academy, you have a job with
us and you start.
Speaker 1 (21:07):
That's amazing for anyone who doesn't know what they want
to do in life, or maybe they do know they
want to be in law enforcement. You guys are paying
for that if you just signed that.
Speaker 2 (21:16):
And it makes a big difference because when I went
to the police Academy at that time, I wasn't eligible
to be hired by Beaumont. We've changed some of the
eligibility requirements, so that's great. It makes it easier because
a lot of people who maybe want a career in
law enforcement but they're already an adult and they are
maybe the breadwinner or they can't go to a single
income to put themselves through the academy and not make money.
(21:38):
We're going to hire you and put you through the academy,
and you're going to get a paycheck from us while
you're going to the police academy. So that's great, and
you know, it's a great job. You make a difference
in your community. It's an exciting job. It's a little dangerous, yea.
And we stay busy here, but you'll never go to
work and have a boring day or the same day.
Speaker 5 (21:58):
You could write a book.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
I wish I would have wish I could go back
and keep track of all of the just the crazy things.
Yeah see in this profession. But it's a super rewarding profession,
and we're looking for people who are willing to, you know,
put their lives on the line and service to the community.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
So what what kind of time frame does the academy take?
I mean, how long are you in the academy.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
Yeah, so if you're already a certified officer, that's an
expedited process because you've already been through the academy. We
have a training program that they'll have to go through,
and that doesn't take as long if you're starting from scratch,
you know, buckle up. It is a long process, but
it's important that we go through the extreme background investigations
and all that. So this hiring process closes online August
(22:43):
the fourteenth, okay, and then we start that process of
going through the thousands of applications. And you know, obviously
there are things that disqualify you from being a police officer,
if you have a criminal record or other things, and
so we'll start that process. Like I said, this is
to put people through the January academy, So you're looking
at August four teenth is the closure. There's some training
and testing that you have to go through. It's called
(23:04):
a Jobs Related Abilities Test, and there's a written and
then the physical and then go through the whole process
starting the academy in January. The police Academy is six
months January to May or August to December twice a year.
And then after that you're hired with us and then
we have about you know, several weeks of orientation and
then six months of training and so but it's typically
(23:25):
about a year year and a half before those officers
are through the academy on their own and then they're
on probation for a year. So it's a long process,
which is why that new hiring incentive is. You know,
we sat down and did the math. It's like, Okay,
how much money are we spending to put people through
the academy and then all that training. Okay, well we
can abcentivize people who are already trained, give them more
(23:46):
money and get get officers on the street quicker, and
so that's our goal. But at this point we'll take
either one. So yeah, if anyone has questions, they can
reach out to me on Facebook and I'll get them
pointed in the right direction.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
Is there a number of officers that you're trying to hire.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
And don't know what the number is of the vacancy
right now, but essentially it's a revolving door always because
we're allotted two hundred and sixty sworn police officers, and
while we have this hiring process open, because there may
be and this is not the current number.
Speaker 5 (24:14):
This is just an example.
Speaker 2 (24:15):
If there's ten vacancies right now, takes that year and
a half before those people are really filling that number.
So we may hire ten, maybe some are certified, maybe
some are going through the academy. By the time that
comes to fruition, we've had retirements, We've had people leave,
and now we have vacancies again. And so it's just
a constant revolving door. And unless we ever go to
(24:36):
the point where we go, Okay, we're gonna the city's
going to increase that number to two eighty, then we
might get to two sixty. But we hardly ever get
to that two sixty number and hold because there's just
constantly movement.
Speaker 5 (24:47):
Yeah, people are retiring.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Makes sense.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
I know one of the police officers that was in
our small group, Rick Boaz, has recently retired. One of
the great greatest men. He was an amazing seeing police officer.
A bit more importantly, an amazing man.
Speaker 2 (25:04):
A couple of days ago at the sushi restaurant.
Speaker 5 (25:07):
Oh yeah, there, and he came in. So they come
back to town every now and then.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
Yeah, they're back and forth. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
So he and Angie are precious and we love them
to death. Well, Haley, thank you so much for sharing
that information. When we come back, we're going to talk
a little bit about the Real Time Crime Center. I've
had the opportunity to tour it. It is the coolest thing.
It is so amazing, So don't go away. This is
the Dandas Simmons show, We'll be right back.
Speaker 3 (25:33):
Welcome back.
Speaker 1 (25:34):
This is Dana Simmons and we have been visiting with
Hailey Morrow talking about all kinds of things that Beaumont
p D are involved in. If you missed it, go
to their Facebook page. They have lots of activities, free
activities coming up, so check that out.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
Also hiring.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
Wow, that is some incredible incentives you guys are giving
to become a Bomont police officer. So if you have
questions about that, you can reach out to them on
their social media sites as well. One of the things
that I love is I was able to tour that
Real Time Crime Center. Now we were talking during the break.
I love those kind of police shows. So I'm watching
(26:14):
op Nation and Opie Live and all of those.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
I just love that.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
I know that's crazy at night after my brain's gone
too hard, that's how I relax. Most people go, that's insane,
but I love watching that. And so one of the
things that when I got to tour that Real Time
Crime Center, it was the coolest thing.
Speaker 3 (26:36):
So talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Yeah, it really is fascinating. I used to tell people
all the time when they would bring up like, oh, well,
can't y'all just pull up the cameras, I'm like, it's
not like CSI where you see a bunch of screens
and they're looking at Well, it is now. It is now,
and it is a complete game changer for law enforcement.
You know, technology has come a long way and it's
just making it so much more efficient and easier for
(26:58):
us to investigate cases. And at the end of the day,
don't we all want the people who are committing the
crimes to be put in jail and stop terrorizing our community.
So we are absolutely leveraging technology, and the technology continues
to advance. I mean, we could spend the entire show
talking about all the different new tools that we're using
through technology. But the Real Time Crime Center is a
(27:20):
partnership and we can't do it without the community. And
so right now, so we started the Real Time Crime
Center about two years ago and we have there's a
little difference between integrated and registered cameras. So integrated cameras
are what we want for all businesses where the public
frequents and the integrated camera is it's through FUSUS and
(27:41):
it's basically just a little core that you plug into
your already existing camera system and you're giving VPD access
so that if a call happens at your location, we
can pull those cameras up in the real time crime
center and give officers information as they're arriving. And so
you know a lot of times when there's a priority
call a robbery and progress it's a homicide, something major,
(28:01):
that police response time can be five to seven minutes.
That's a long time and usually people aren't sticking around
to be great witnesses. They're getting the heck out of
there because they're concerned for their safety. And so when
we have a camera, our analysts in the real time
crime center can pull that up and they can have
eyes on the situation within minutes in getting suspect information,
vehicle information, and so integrated cameras that's what those are.
(28:24):
And then registered cameras are what we want for like
residential areas, we don't have access to registered cameras, we
just want to know that you have them. So if
you have a ring, doorbell camera or vivit security system,
you just go on to connect setx dot org and
it takes less than a minute to register your cameras.
And all you're doing is saying, hey, my name's Haley Moro,
and I leave it two fifty five College, this is
(28:44):
my phone number, this is my email address. I have
four interior cameras and ten out exterior cameras. Then it
puts a dot on a map for us, so that
if next week there's a rash of auto burglaries in
your neighborhood and the detective pulls the registry map, they
can go, oh, Hailey Moro has cameras. Let me send
her an email and see if she can check her cameras.
(29:05):
And then you get to be the detective. You get
to look at your ring doorbell camera and go, oh,
my gosh, that suspect walked into my driveway and pulled
on my door handle. But I was a good listener
and I had my doors locked and they didn't break
into my car, right, And so but you can say, hey,
I've got footage, and then you send it to the detective,
and essentially you're a detective.
Speaker 5 (29:22):
You helped us out. So that's the.
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Registered camera, and then you know we have so many.
You know, on the break we were talking about flock
license plate readers, another fantastic tool.
Speaker 5 (29:32):
We have caught.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
Homicide suspect, suspects, kidnapping suspects just through being able to
use the license plate license plate reader technology. And you know,
there's a lot of misinformation out there, there's a lot
of you know, the big brother the the government's watching,
and you know, at the end of the day, for us,
it's about safety. It's about keeping our community safe, catching
(29:56):
bad guys faster, and having the evidence, you know, because
in a lot of cases, we know somebody is a suspect,
and without some cold hard evidence like video surveillance or
a heat map that shows that that's where that vehicle
was and that's the person that was driving it, it
makes it more difficult to prosecute. And we want to.
You know, it really is a small percentage of people
(30:16):
that are committing the crimes here in our area and
just making it seem so much worse than it is.
And so when we're able to put them away for
a long time, then you know, we're making the community safer.
So it's a fantastic tool that we use. And then
of course you've got like in car cameras, the body cams.
Now we're able to translate using the bodycam. So before
(30:36):
we would have to wait for an officer that speaks
Spanish to drive across the city to help translate. And
now our officers push a button on their body cam
and they're able to translate back and forth with someone who.
Speaker 1 (30:45):
Is so coool yeah on you know the Live PD show.
Speaker 3 (30:50):
Yeah, I watch.
Speaker 1 (30:51):
They would always use their phone to translate and then.
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Do it Google Translate.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
So I love that you guys now have that technology.
And let me just the people that I know and
that I run around with, they're all like, what can
we do to be a proactive help.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
In our community?
Speaker 1 (31:09):
And so I think this is great information for them
to know these are the things that you can do
to help. You were talking about that can register their cameras.
But there's also you know, we were talking about crime
stoppers and that say what you see, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (31:26):
See something, Say something as our big campaign. It's been
around forever and it really does go back to and
you know now with the new movement of AI and
everyone's like, oh a, it's taking over and it's replacing jobs.
Nothing will ever replace the true people who have firsthand
information and know somebody committed to crime and they do
the right thing. And we know that people are concerned
(31:48):
about retaliation or being labeled a snitch, and that's why
the Crime Stoppers program is so phenomenal because you remain
anonymous and you can be eligible for a cash reward
if your tip leads to the arrest of somebody that
you know we're looking for or a case that we're investigating.
So it's a fantastic tool to do the right thing.
And you know, it's unfortunate that sometimes we have to centivize,
incentivize people with money to.
Speaker 5 (32:10):
Do the right thing.
Speaker 2 (32:11):
But at the end of the day, we'll do whatever
we need to do to make sure that you know,
we're able to solve these cases. So, yes, the registering
your cameras with the Real Time Crime Center, talking about it,
if you have businesses, if you know business owners, if
you go in somewhere and you're like, hey, are y'all
registered with the Real Time Crime Center, anything that you
can do to help spread awareness and spread the word
(32:32):
for that so that we can grow that fantastic But
at the end of the day, being a great citizen
and a great witness and when you see something, reporting
it is so important and a lot of times, you know,
with social media, and especially with this younger generation of
unfortunately young people who are committing big crimes, they can't help.
Speaker 5 (32:52):
The social media. They post it on social media.
Speaker 2 (32:54):
And so it just takes one person going, you know what,
this is wrong, and I'm gonna report it. And you again,
you can remain anonymous, you know, take that screenshot, send
it to crime stoppers, because at the end of the day,
law enforcement we're going to do our job right and
we're going to follow every lead, and sometimes we just
need that one little crack, that one little thread that says, hey,
(33:16):
this is the direction y'all need to go. And we
got it after that, but we just sometimes need people
to make that first push that points us in the
right direction and then we'll take the rest from there.
And again, at the end of the day, it's all about.
Speaker 1 (33:28):
Safety, yeah, and it's for the good of our entire community. Yeah,
I mean, that's what we all want, right. We want
a safe community for our children and grandchildren to grow
up in and for us to feel secure when we're
just going to the grocery store wherever it is for.
Speaker 5 (33:43):
Your kids are at the park.
Speaker 2 (33:44):
I mean, you should not be concerned about somebody coming
to the park to fight and then shots being fired. Right,
So the more evidence we can get on people who
are committing these crimes and get them off the streets.
And then also you know that partnership with the District
Attorney's office and judges, hoping that they'll you know, put
people away for a substantial amount of time so that
they know, hey, this is serious and there's going to
be consequences. Because when there's no consequences for your actions,
(34:06):
then why follow the role the roles.
Speaker 1 (34:09):
Well, and I know they're trying to add additional courts
to be able to process all of that as well.
So anything that we can do, I think we we should.
And so this is a small part that we can
play to be a part of the solution and not
just be a complainer about the problem. So complaining gets
you nowhere, and figuring out what we can do to
(34:32):
be a part of the solution is what each of
us should be doing.
Speaker 5 (34:34):
Yeah, come join the team or register your cameras.
Speaker 2 (34:36):
That's exactly right there, Bomont jobs dot com, connect set
x dot org, or you know, message us on Facebook
and we'll get your point in the right.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
Groar sounds good.
Speaker 1 (34:45):
Well, Haley, thank you so much for sharing all of
that information with us. And when we come back, we're
going to wrap up. This is the Dana Simons Show.
Welcome back. This is Dana Simmons and we have been
visiting with Hailey Morrow. And if you you have not
caught this show, you are going to have to go
back and listen. You can go to the iHeart app
(35:06):
or check us out on Spotify. So this will be
posted on our Spotify account in the next week or so,
So check us out on Spotify. Just go to Dana
Simmons on Spotify and you can find all of our
shows and soon to be coming to Apple. So hey,
we're moving on up. That's exactly right, We're getting there. So, Haley,
(35:27):
in the break you were talking a little bit about
the fact that about the connect set X where residential
homeowners can register their home and in my mind I
was thinking just Beaumont, but you gave us a little
more clarification.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
Yeah, we talked about that during the break. So last
year we regionalized the Real Time Crime Center, so of
course we know criminals don't follow jurisdictional boundaries. We have
criminals who are committing crimes in Port Author also Beaumont, Houston,
so we've kind of expanded the Real Time Crime Center,
and so we just want to make sure everyone knows
that you don't have to live in Beaumont to register
your can't You can live in Lumberton, Groves, Bridge City, Orange,
(36:03):
any of those Southeast Texas areas. So connect setx dot
org and then you can register your cameras there and
if you have more questions, absolutely, there's a contact us
on that page. We'll get you set up with the
lieutenant or the sergeant over that Real Time Crime Center
and they can answer any questions you have.
Speaker 3 (36:21):
Yeah, that is amazing. I didn't know that.
Speaker 1 (36:23):
So I'm glad that we had that conversation to be
able to say, listen, you don't have to just be
in Beaumont, you can be in the outlying areas as
well and get that registered.
Speaker 3 (36:31):
So thank you for that.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
Now, Kimberly, we're going to have you wrap up. I
know there's one of the programs I really wanted you
to talk about, and that's that first time home buyer program.
So define a first time home buyer.
Speaker 4 (36:42):
Yes, ma'am, so you don't. It does not have to
be your first home that you've bought. If you haven't
owned a home in three years, you would qualify for
the first time home buyer programs. There's grants that are available,
there's down payment assistance that's available, and then there's also
a lot of education and counseling that we can provide
(37:03):
you to get you ready, because I don't believe that
everybody is necessarily ready to jump out and buy a home.
We want to make sure that you're financially stable, that
you know exactly what you're getting into, so that it
does become a good investment for you. So we can
provide that counseling. I do those through live in person
through Zoom, so you know, if you have questions about
(37:26):
buying a home and getting qualified, just give me a call.
Speaker 3 (37:31):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (37:31):
And so even just this morning, I was communicating with
one of our clients and had reached out to him
because he had mentioned that he may be wanting to
buy soon, and so I had given him first financials
information and so I said, hey, just checking to see
if you've reached out to them, and he said, no, ma'am,
(37:52):
I haven't I have a couple of discrepancies on my credit.
I need to work on that. And I said, but
you know what, you have to work on that.
Speaker 3 (38:00):
Alone, No, we can help you.
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Still want to reach out to First Financial if you
have any issues on your credit. Let them guide you
through what you need to do, how you need to
do it, and how you can overcome those discrepancies. You
guys have done it for far longer than one person
has done it.
Speaker 4 (38:19):
And sometimes it's very easy fixes. A lot of times people,
you know, it's a real credit is a personal thing.
So a lot of times people will come see me
and say, oh, well, I have terrible credit, And a
lot of times it's not even as bad as they think.
There just may be a little blip or something that
we can help them clean up and get them qualified.
And the sooner the better if you are interested at
(38:40):
all in owning a home, the sooner you get started
with that prequalification process, the smoother the transaction is going
to be. Because you never want, you know, you don't
want to be in a position where you say your
lease is up and you just have to get out
or you have to make a move for some reason,
and then you come in to see us, and it's like, oh,
we have all the hurdles that we have to get
(39:02):
through before we can actually get to the home buying process.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Yeah, that's that's the first when someone calls us. The
very first thing, I say, let's prepare you. Let's get
you preapproved only because for some people they're not aware
that there is something on their credit right that is
not even there. Somehow, something from someone else, maybe even
fraud has happened, and so getting that ahead of time
(39:29):
is so important. People think, oh, you're just interested in
making sure we have our money. No, that's not the
case at all. I'm interested in you're not getting disappointed
when you find the perfect home and you can't buy
it because you didn't get pre approved ahead because there's.
Speaker 3 (39:42):
Something on the credit. And then nothing after.
Speaker 1 (39:44):
That comes close to the one that you lost. Right,
So my whole reasoning is, let's get you in a
position to buy when you're ready. Yes, maybe it's the
first house, but maybe it's not, maybe it's the fiftieth house,
but we want to make sure that you're ready. Tell
everyone again how to get a hold of you if
they are interested in getting information about credit repair, or
(40:09):
I want to qualify for a first time home that
you have that maybe offers a grant or some closing assistance.
Speaker 3 (40:14):
Let's talk through that.
Speaker 4 (40:15):
Yes, ma'am, you can reach me on my cell phone
at four nine two zero one five one eight seven
or stop by the Lumberton First Financial Bank.
Speaker 1 (40:24):
Well, it's been a pleasure. Thank you so much, Kimberly
for joining us today, and Hayley so much good information too.
We love hearing all that Beaumont.
Speaker 3 (40:33):
Pete is doing.
Speaker 1 (40:34):
You know, sometimes all you hear is the negative and
there is so much more positive, and so I love
you sharing all the wonderful things that are coming up
and then all the wonderful technology that you guys have
going on.
Speaker 3 (40:47):
Now.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
You know, guys, I just do this once a week.
Every other day, you're going to find me in the
office with buyers and sellers selling real estate. So if
you are thinking about it, there's no pressure. We love
to educate and just give your information. So give us
a call at our office four of nine eight six
six eight three two six or Danasimmons real estate dot
(41:08):
com and we'd love to help you. I hope you
make this a great Saturday and we'll see you right
back here next Saturday at noon on KLVI. This is
the Dana Simmons Show.
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