CMP 12.06

MORTGAGEBROKERNEWS.CA ISSUE 12.06 | $12.95

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE 50 women who have shattered the Canadian mortgage industry’s glass ceiling

EVOLVING YOUR BUSINESS The one thing all brokers should do to stay relevant in today’s industry

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TIPS FROM CANADA’S #1 BROKER Jim Tourloukis shares how he achieved multimillion-dollar volume

ONTARIO’S FAIR HOUSING PLAN Did the government’s measures go too far – or not far enough?

15/06/2017 9:22:48 AM

DOMINION LENDING CENTRES’ BROKERS/AGENTS ARE ON TOP ONCE AGAIN

— With 43 spots on the CMP Top 75 Brokers list and 5 in the top 10, DLC made history as the first single network to occupy more than 50% of the list! Thank you to all of our OUTSTANDING brokers and agents for representing Team Blue!

The Top 75 List #2 Collin Bruce #5 Scott Travelbea #7 Win Lui #8 Shabbir Patel #9 Elvis Hui #11 Susie Inglis #15 Dustan Woodhouse #16 Angela Calla #19 Serguei Totrov #20 Barry Baboolal #21 David Griffin #22 Vu Le #23 Mark Goode #26 Harman Arora #27 Paula Roberts #30 Dara Fahy #31 James Harrison #32 Bill Macklem #33 Tracy Valko #35 Jeffrey Ho #36 Lisa Manwaring #38 Lori Watson #39 Ty Naemsch #40 Todd Payzant #46 Pearl Kwan #47 Dilmohan Singh Aneja #48 Narish Maharaj #49 Stephen D’souza #50 Geoff Lee #52 Nick Kaaki #53 Denny Segal #55 Tracy Luciani Price #56 Jason Georgopoulos #58 Chad Oyhenart #59 Michael James #61 Gert Martens #62 Wyatt Tunnicliffe #64 Susan Woolsey #65 Eitan Pinsky #67 Gayle Focken #68 Karen Garrett #70 Andre L’ecuyer #73 Denise Devente The Small Market Top 20 List #2 David Griffin #3 Mark Goode #4 Todd Payzant #6 Gert Martens #7 Andre L’Ecuyer #9 Dustin James #11 Yvette Helwig #13 Eileen Crosbie

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ISSUE 12.06

CONTENTS

22

COVER STORY

More and more women are ascending to the highest levels of Canada’s mortgage industry – and these 50 trailblazers are leading the way

YOU ENVISION. WE ENABLE. Romspen Investment Corporation is a non-bank mortgage lender specializing in commercial real estate across Canada and the United States. With over $2 billion under administration, we offer customized mortgage solutions for term, bridge and construction financing from $4M to $100M.

Blake Cassidy or Pierre Leonard | 800 494 0389 | www.romspen.com

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ISSUE 12.06

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CONTENTS

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UPFRONT 04 Editorial

Celebrating the industry’s own Wonder Women

06 Statistics

12

How deep in debt is the average mortgage holder?

08 Head to head

UPFRONT

44 10

TECHNOLOGY UPDATE

A look at some of the latest brokerfocused apps on the market

The Toronto market is cooling down – but are the provincial government’s measures truly working as expected?

PEOPLE

INDUSTRY ICON Part of Centum from day one, Caroline Rapson talks about what the future holds for the network

Why brokers need to help their clients combat information overload

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CM

From investor to restaurateur to mortgage broker, Paul Bojakli has made a career out of seizing opportunities

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47 Career path

48 Other life

MY

CY

CMY

Hitting the slopes with broker and ski instructor Tamara Crispin

K

UPFRONT

BROKER NETWORK UPDATE In the midst of the Home Capital Group saga, one network steps up with a show of support

PEOPLE

44

BROKER INSIGHT

Jim Tourloukis, CMP’s number-one broker for 2017, reveals how he ascended to his enviable position in the industry

2

19 Opinion

PEOPLE

UPFRONT

NEWS ANALYSIS

Brokers have their say on Ontario’s Fair Housing Plan

MORTGAGEBROKERNEWS.CA CHECK IT OUT ONLINE

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UPFRONT

EDITORIAL

The future is female

I

t’s become a positive refrain since Hillary Clinton made her first official appearance following last November’s surprise loss in the US presidential election. “Despite all the challenges we face,” Clinton said at a conference this past February, “I remain convinced that yes, the future is female.”

The saying has, of course, been around for much longer, but having such an influential ambassador for the slogan has helped launch it into the public’s consciousness – there are currently more than 200,000 #thefutureisfemale posts on Instagram, and the hashtag had 2,196,316 impressions on Twitter

Women still face a number of challenges today, especially in maledominant industries such as financial services. The mortgage industry, however, is making some headway

www.mortgagebrokernews.ca ISSUE 12.06 EDITORIAL Editor Justin da Rosa Writers Joe Rosengarten Libby Macdonald Ephraim Vecina Kimberly Banks Heather Turner Copy Editor Clare Alexander

CONTRIBUTORS Don Campbell

ART & PRODUCTION Design Manager Daniel Williams Designers Loiza Caguiat Production Manager Alicia Chin Advertising Coordinator Kay Valdez

SALES & MARKETING Associate Publisher Trevor Biggs General Manager, Sales John Mackenzie National Account Manager Trevor Lambert Marketing and Communications Melissa Christopoulos Project Coordinator Jessica Duce

CORPORATE President & CEO Tim Duce Office/Traffic Manager Marni Parker Events and Conference Manager Chris Davis Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil Global CEO Mike Shipley Global COO George Walmsley

EDITORIAL INQUIRIES

in the first eight days of June alone. It’s recently experienced a resurgence following the release of Wonder Woman – the first major blockbuster comic book movie to exclusively feature a strong female lead.

Women are at the forefront of this issue of CMP. The magazine’s annual Women of Influence feature pays homage to the female leaders who are shaping the future of Canada’s mortgage industry. As Clinton said, women still face a number of challenges today, especially in male-dominant industries such as financial services. The mortgage industry, however, is making some headway.

This year, CMP’s annual Top 75 Brokers list featured 29 high-funding women, who made up nearly 40% of the list. Combined, they accounted for $2.22 billion in funded volume. A month after that issue was published, CMP hosted its 11th annual Canadian Mortgage Awards, during which seven of a possible 21 CMAs went to a woman or a female-run company.

Not too shabby.

But there is still work to be done when it comes to equality in the industry.

There will come a time when half (or more) of the Top 75 Brokers will be female and half (or more) of the Canadian Mortgage Awards will go to women. That time may be coming sooner rather than later, and the women featured in this year’s Women of Influence feature will surely play no small part in bringing about that equalization.

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Copyright is reserved throughout. No part of this publication can be reproduced in whole or part without the express permission of the editor. Contributions are invited, but copies of work should be kept, as the magazine can accept no responsibility for loss

15/06/2017 7:19:28 AM

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@centumcanada 1.888.928.1338 ®/™ Trademarks owned by Centum Financial Group Inc. © 2017 Centum Financial Group Inc. The intent of this communication is for informational purposes only, and is not intended to be a solicitation to anyone under contract with another mortgage brokerage operation.

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15/06/2017 7:19:35 AM

UPFRONT

STATISTICS

Head over heels in debt

IF INTEREST RATES RISE …

Across the board, more than one out of every 10 mortgage holders said they would be seriously worried by an increase of any kind to their mortgage payments. Quebec mortgage holders had the lowest comfort with the likeliest possibility – a small increase of between 1% and 5%.

What happens to your clients if interest rates rise?

For many, there’s not much wiggle room HISTORICALLY LOW interest rates have been hailed as one of the key drivers of rising real estate prices in the face of stagnating income growth. According to a new study from Manulife Bank, even relatively minor increases in those rates could have a devastating effect on the finances of the average Canadian mortgage holder. Close to threequarters of borrowers report that they could not withstand a 10% increase in their monthly

mortgage payments; almost one in six said they couldn’t withstand any rise at all.

Those findings square with those of an Ipsos poll conducted in March on behalf of personal insolvency practice MNP Debt, in which a third of Canadians said that a jump in interest rates could move them toward bankruptcy. According to that study, almost half of all Canadians are less than $200 a month away from insolvency.

KEY HOW LARGE OF AN INCREASE TO YOUR MORTGAGE PAYMENT COULD YOU HANDLE? Zero 1–5% 6–10% 11–20% 21–30%

$201,000

5%

Average amount of debt held by Canadian homeowners

Proportion of Vancouver homeowners with mortgage debt of $500,000 or more

72%

10%

Mortgage holders who could not manage a 10% increase in payments

30%+ Don’t know/unsure

Mortgage holders who could handle a payment increase of 20% or more Source: Homeowner Debt Survey, Manulife Bank, Spring 2017

2%

THE URBAN PERSPECTIVE

14%

38%

Despite the recent fervour around the Vancouver and Toronto markets, mortgage holders in Montreal are the ones who would be hardest hit by an increase in mortgage payments. More than half of the residents in Quebec’s largest city said that even an increase of 5% or less would be too much.

TYPICAL DEBT LOAD Most Canadians’ mortgage debt is in the range of $100,000 to $250,000; the proportion of homeowners with debt in excess of $500,000 is low.

HOW LARGE OF AN INCREASE TO YOUR MORTGAGE PAYMENT COULD YOU HANDLE? 28%

33%

Calgary/Edmonton 11% 34%

18% $0

$250,001 to $500,000

$1 to $100,000

$500,001 or more

$100,001 to $250,000 Source: Homeowner Debt Survey, Manulife Bank, Spring 2017

6

Vancouver 11%

Toronto 8%

42%

Montreal 9%

48%

23%

23% 3% 7% 8%

Zero 1–5% 6–10%

18%

5% 6% 8%

11–20%

1%

21–30%

18%

16%

16% 20%

11% 5%

6%

3% 6% 9%

30%+ Don’t know/ unsure

Source: Homeowner Debt Survey, Manulife Bank, Spring 2017

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10% 6%

34%

7% 3%

British Columbia

15% 18% 15%

6% 7%

22% Ontario

8%

15%

36%

5% 5% Alberta

8%

Atlantic Canada

4% 37%

11%

8% 1% 11% 21%

21%

14%

34% 19%

15%

32%

4% 11%

Manitoba/ Saskatchewan

13%

8% 5% 2% 8%

5% Quebec

10% 48%

16%

23%

Source: Homeowner Debt Survey, Manulife Bank, Spring 2017

WHAT ABOUT FIRST-TIME BUYERS?

THE GENERATIONAL DIVIDE

First-time buyers are about as prepared for an interest-rate increase as those who have been in the game for a while. Compared to those looking at renewal, only a small proportion of first-timers said they would find it more difficult to navigate an increase in their monthly mortgage payments.

Across all generations, nearly a third of Canadians would struggle with mortgage payments as a result of job loss, but millennials were most likely to stumble.

HOW LARGE OF AN INCREASE TO YOUR MORTGAGE PAYMENT COULD YOU HANDLE?

WOULD STRUGGLE TO MAKE A MORTGAGE PAYMENT WITHIN THREE MONTHS IF A PRIMARY WAGE-EARNER LOST THEIR JOB:

Zero 1–5%

2%

First mortgage

6–10% 15%

40%

21%

12%

5% 6%

45%

40%

11–20%

32%

21–30% 30%+

Renewal 13%

38%

19%

12% 4% 8% 6%

Don’t know/ unsure

Source: Homeowner Debt Survey, Manulife Bank, Spring 2017

Millennials

Generation X

Boomers

Source: Homeowner Debt Survey, Manulife Bank, Spring 2017

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UPFRONT

HEAD TO HEAD

Did Ontario’s Fair Housing Plan miss the mark?

What areas did the provincial government’s recently released plan fail to address – and what should have been left out?

Christine Xu

Carla Gervais

Dalia Barsoum

Branch manager Mortgage Architects

Director of sales and operations The Mortgage Advisors

Mortgage broker Centum Streetwise Mortgages

“The 15% foreign buyer tax affects a very small group of people. Rebates will be given to those who later become permanent residents, international students and those working in Canada with a work permit, or even refugees. It’s hard to imagine many foreigners without a connection to Canada investing here.

My prediction: This program will cost taxpayers more to administer than it collects. It fails to address new construction property flippers – preconstruction buyers who sell before closing for a profit. It should allow people to rent out their basements and have rental units in the house to drive rental supply.”

“The Ontario Fair Housing Plan seems to be for the most part targeted at fixing the GTA; I don’t see it as a solution and believe it misses the point. Affordable housing is a concern; however, it is not going to be created through policy and tax grabs, and certainly not without the correct data to support it.

The plan should support the construction of more public and co-op housing – this is a need that is simply not provided by private construction companies. Housing supply and land availability are not things that can simply be produced overnight to meet the demand.”

“The Ontario Fair Housing Plan looks to be changing the landscape of the Canadian real estate market. Ontario citizens are concerned about the changes Kathleen Wynne has implemented, which has increased the amount of listings that are currently on the market – listings have increased by over 300% since February.

This increase in inventory is what is changing the landscape of the market.

The new rules and regulations around rent controls are also impacting the market and have led to a flood of investors trying to cash out of their investment properties.

Due to the increase in inventory, it is a better time than ever to purchase.”

INDUSTRY PUSHBACK Ontario Liberals unveiled their 16-point plan on April 20 with the stated goal of ensuring greater access to affordable housing. Among the measures that grabbed headlines were a 15% ‘non-resident speculation tax’ on properties in the Greater Golden Horseshoe and restrictions on raising rents above 2.5% per year on newly built properties.

Industry observers spoke darkly of the likely effect this will have on rental inventory; according to Jim Murphy, the president of the Federation of Rental Housing Providers of Ontario, the measures would “have a devastating effect on purpose-built rental supply.” Subdued sales in April suggest the plan might already be having an impact.

8 www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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UPFRONT

NEWS ANALYSIS

A muchneeded dip The long-sweltering Toronto market has finally showed signs of cooling, and brokers and other industry players are sighing with relief. But how long is the sanity expected to remain?

THE COMBINATION of last year’s mortgage rule changes and Ontario’s recently announced Fair Housing Plan have brought about a sudden cooling of the country’s hottest market. According to the Toronto Real Estate Board, home sales in the city fell 20.3% in May, the average sales price dropped from $920,791 in April to $863,910 in May, and listings were up 42.9% yearover-year.

“Homebuyers definitely benefited from a better-supplied market in May, both in comparison to the same time last year and to the first four months of 2017,” TREB president Larry Cerqua said. “However, even with the robust increase in active listings, inventory levels remain low. At the end of May, we had less than two months of inventory. This is

signs of rebounding.

“This [month’s] Toronto Real Estate Board data makes official what we expected: The GTA market is following in Vancouver’s footsteps,” TD economists Michael Dolega and Diana Petramala wrote in a recent research note. “Tighter housing policies have helped to kickstart a soft landing in the GTA housing market, while gradually rising interest rates later this year are likely to help solidify it. The spike in listings in Toronto will put more downward pressure on prices through our forecast horizon than we have seen in Vancouver.”

However, the pair pointed out that there are some key differences between what happened in Vancouver and what’s currently going on in the GTA.

“Inventory levels remain low. This is why we continued to see very strong annual rates of price growth” Larry Cerqua, Toronto Real Estate Board why we continued to see very strong annual rates of price growth, albeit lower than the peak growth rates earlier this year.”

The trend has drawn comparisons to Vancouver’s market, which saw its own softening following the announcement of a 15% foreign buyer tax last year but has since seen

10

“[Vancouver’s] recovery in sales was helped along by a reduction in mortgage rates,” Dolega and Petramala wrote. “After jumping 50 basis points between November 2016 and March of this year, mortgage rates fell right back to historical lows in April, helping to cushion the impact from rules

changes. It doesn’t look like Toronto is going to have a similar cushion. The Canadian economy was on its best three-quarter growth streak since 2010, sparking speculation that the Bank of Canada will start raising rates by early next year.”

The economists added that the significant price drop witnessed in the GTA between April and May is likely to moderate in the coming months.

“The average home price is now on track for a 12% gain this year, or somewhat lower than the 15% we were anticipating in April,” they wrote. “Average prices in the GTA are also on track for a 4% decline next year, largely in line with the 3% decline expected in the Greater Vancouver Area this year.”

Meanwhile, other industry players remain skeptical that the recent changes in the market are a direct result of the provincial government’s measures.

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TORONTO’S LISTINGS BOOM Dwindling inventory has been a key component of overheating in the GTA market, but after a record low last May, listings returned to more normal levels last month.

21,747

May 2003

22,484

May 2004

24,875

May 2005

26,220

May 2006

23,739

May 2007

27,267

May 2008

21,524

May 2009

25,414

May 2010

18,481

May 2011

20,462

May 2102

22,677

May 2013

20,679

May 2014

18,585

May 2015

12,931

May 2016

18,477

May 2017 0

5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000 Source: Toronto Real Estate Board

“When we look at the housing plan, the only thing the plan did to cool the demand was the introduction of the non-resident speculation tax, which really only applies to a very small segment of the market,” says John Pasilis, president and broker of record

March, I think a lot of buyers hit pause.

However, Pasilis adds, “those buyers hitting pause aren’t doing it because they’re non-residents and they’re going to get taxed – they’re hitting pause because they don’t think the prices are staying, and they may

“Buyers are hitting pause because they don’t think the prices are staying, and they may not be able to afford to buy” John Pasilis, Realosophy of Realosophy. “I think that partly triggered the acceleration of new listings in March because people wanted to get in on the market before these new rules were announced. But I think it’s a combination of factors; I think it’s even the fact that … when prices hit 33% year-over-year growth in

not be able to afford to buy right now.”

For now, it appears brokers will have to adjust to a new reality in Toronto – and so will potential buyers.

“I got back an appraisal … for a house that was bought [in Burlington] on February 28,” says Toronto-based broker Shawn Stillman.

“The person paid $1,065,000, and the appraisal came back $190,000 below what they paid for it. The appraiser made a lot of notes saying that the house was the top of the market [at the time], but since then, there have been five sales, all paying less than what my clients paid. I’m seeing that up in Richmond Hill as well – [a client] wanted to walk away from a $2 million purchase because he feels it’s fallen in value by $300,000.”

While Toronto has long been a seller’s market, the recent stats point to a sea change.

“I absolutely think it’s a buyer’s market right now,” says James Harrison, a broker with Dominion Lending Centres.

TD Economics confirmed this sentiment in its report, saying that “overall, the adjustment in the GTA reflects lessened investor activity and should offer a better opportunity for first-time homebuyers, who now face more choice and fewer bidding wars.”

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UPFRONT

TECHNOLOGY UPDATE NEWS BRIEFS MPC launches consumer advocacy online portal

In response to widespread frustration surrounding recent changes to mortgage insurance and eligibility rules, Mortgage Professionals Canada has announced the launch of a new consumer advocacy portal, which will allow the public to send their thoughts to members of Parliament.

“The association has been very active in lobbying the federal government to make reasonable, common-sense changes to the new rules, and is now seeking assistance from middle-class Canadians to have their say by letting the government know how they have been affected by the changes,” MPC said.

Toronto real estate tech firm expands US presence

Toronto-based software and tech corporation Lone Wolf Real Estate Technologies has announced the relocation of its US headquarters to a 25,000-square-foot space in Dallas to ensure a wider reach. Its former headquarters in Las Vegas will remain open as a satellite office. The firm plans to add 150 new jobs as part of the move.

“We are recruiting pretty heavily down in Dallas,” said Lone Wolf marketing VP Kate Annis. “Expansion in the US is our focus over the next few years.”

Mogo announces results from “pivotal” first quarter

In revealing its Q1 2017 results, Mogo Finance Technology said the quarter was “a pivotal period for the company, as we launched two new fee-based products – our MogoMortgage and Mogo Spending Account. The initial response to our mortgage product launch has been very encouraging.”

In the first quarter, Mogo’s member base expanded by 94% year-over-year.

And while revenue declined by 11% in the same period (down to $11.3 million) due to a deliberate movement away from short-term loans, Mogo saw its loan interest and other revenue rise 19% (up to $6.5 million).

Cloud-based real estate tech platform closes IPO

Toronto-based cloud real estate technology platform Real Matters has announced the closing of its initial public offering. The IPO raised approximately $156.7 million for the company. “The offering’s greenshoe option may generate an additional $23.5 million,” the company added.

Real Matters, which began trading in mid-May on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol REAL, achieved a valuation in excess of $1 billion, according to venture capital firm Whitecap Venture Partners, which added that the figure represents a two-year high point for Canadian technology IPOs.

Are brokers likely to be replaced by robots?

A new website is predicting how susceptible a job is to automation – and according to its algorithm, mortgage brokers are doomed. A quick search for mortgage-related jobs on WillRobotsTakeMyJob.com reveals there is a 98% chance that loan officers (a synonym for mortgage broker, a title that fell out of vogue in the US following the 2008 recession) will be replaced by robots in the near future. Of course, the assessment is simplistic; industry players often point to the advent of ATMs – and the subsequent fears that they would eradicate human tellers – as a similar doomsday proclamation that never came to fruition.

New tech tools for brokers Broker-focused technology has seen increased popularity amid fast-paced change in the industry

In the wake of sweeping changes to federal mortgage regulations, broker Jason Henneberry devised an online tool to help fellow mortgage professionals search for the best lending options. The online platform, LenderSpotlight. ca, allows brokers to plug in different variables – including whether it’s a refinance or purchase, or for an owner-occupied property or a rental – and receive a list of the most appropriate lenders, products and rates.

The platform was created in response to last year’s mortgage rule changes, which Henneberry, a broker with Verico Mortgage Pal, says have brought about a regulatory regime that makes it difficult for lenders to present mortgage products and has decreased efficiency among brokers, who have since had to contend with a glut of rate options and policy updates.

“We saw an opportunity earlier this year with the mortgage rule changes to help the industry out,” Henneberry said. “It’s is a huge pain point right now … one of the biggest issues that mortgage brokers are facing right now is the insane level of complexity of the rate sheets.”

LenderSpotlight.ca’s searchable database of mortgage options includes 16 Canadian lenders and 800 different rates.

“That gives you an idea about the complexity,” Henneberry said. “Basically, what a broker does is they go onto the system and plug in the variables for the deal ... and the system will filter against underwriting and product criteria and give the most suitable

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option across a number of lenders.”

LenderSpotlight.ca is merely the latest in a nascent market of broker-focused tools, which have seen increased popularity amid a rapidly evolving mortgage sector.

Take the Canadian Mortgage App, which is designed to be compatible with iOS, Android and BlackBerry devices. The platform, which has been praised by Toronto-based markets observer Josh McConnell, has quickly entrenched itself as a favourite among

“We saw an opportunity with the mortgage rule changes to help the industry out” industry professionals and buyers alike. The app offers a wealth of pertinent data such as updated rates, allowing users to get accurate figures for most purposes.

“It is loaded with information and rates to help you calculate exactly what you need, whether that’s a variable rate, fixed rate, weekly versus biweekly payments, factoring in income from a tenant or numerous other variables,” McConnell said. “Additionally, based on location, it can also calculate first-time homebuyer rebates and land-transfer taxes.”

Q&A

Ben Salami Founder and CEO CANADIAN MORTGAGE APP

Years in the industry 4 Fast fact Before launching the Canadian Mortgage App, Salami served as an enterprise technology consultant for IBM Canada

Tech’s newly central role What brought about the idea of the Canadian Mortgage App? The idea of a mortgage app is nothing new. There are literally thousands of them, but I needed something different. As a homebuyer, I was frustrated having to jump from one app to another to figure out bits and pieces of the puzzle. Nothing out there gave me the level of flexibility, accuracy and speed I needed to make an educated decision with the flick of a thumb.

I guess when you are frustrated and determined to do something about it, you ignite the key ingredient: passion. I learned iOS and user interface design from scratch and spent countless hours of research to code the algorithms needed to build the highly optimized computational engine of the Canadian Mortgage App.

Did you have any doubts about the impact your platform would have?

I launched the app for free and put my heart and soul in it with absolutely no expectations of an ROI. What really gave me the energy to keep building was user feedback like, “Thank you for helping my wife and I buy our first home.” The reward for helping people was so powerful that I did not care about anything else. I quit my paycheck, quit my social life and figured that as long as I have the minimum I need, I will keep building and improving [the app].

What role is technology playing in today’s mortgage industry?

I can only speak about mobile apps, [but] I know that it is an essential tool in the way we live and do business. We are now maintaining about 80 custom apps on the store for some of the top brokers in Canada. Working with Apple and Google requires utmost attention to their guidelines and the numerous platform updates.

It’s not scalable, but that’s when the Canadian Mortgage App PRO dominates: an instantly personalized mortgage app for each agent and their partners.

How do you think technology’s role in the industry will evolve in the coming year?

Obviously, apps are game-changers for the industry, and I’m not the only one watching the shift. You also see successful mobilefirst companies growing tremendously fast. I believe the Canadian Mortgage App PRO is a good opportunity to raise the shares for the entire industry, at least from the mobile traffic perspective.

What part will mortgage professionals play in this development?

I think I speak for all technology providers here, especially the ones that haven’t already turned into brokerages themselves: Unless the mortgage industry stands together and collectively embraces technology, we’ll continue to see fragmentation and slow progress.

There is only so much one company can do for the broker channel.

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UPFRONT

BROKER NETWORK UPDATE

Network stands up for embattled lender DLC says Home Capital’s leadership change bodes well for the lender’s prospects of recovery

prices and a substantial flight of capital.

“We are particularly pleased to see recent changes to the board of directors of Home Capital Group,” Mauris said. “Dominion Lending Centres has full confidence that under new leadership, Home Capital Group will develop additional sources of funding and will continue serving Canadians with unique mortgage solutions.”

Prior to the leadership shake-up, DLC had expressed trepidation about the lender.

“We will resume recommending their mortgage solutions to our clients”

One of the industry’s most influential networks has indicated its continued support for Home Capital Group, which is currently mired in controversy stemming from accusations filed by the Ontario Securities Commission in April. Dominion Lending Centres president Gary Mauris expressed confidence that the lender will continue to provide competitive mortgage products to Canadians.

“Given the recent news that Home Capital Group will be implementing significant policy changes around their lending criteria,

NEWS BRIEFS

Dominion Lending Centres is proud to stand

by Home Capital and will resume recommending their mortgage solutions to our clients,” Mauris said.

In early May, Home Capital appointed three veteran business executives – Canadian Coalition for Good Governance founder Claude Lamoureux, former Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System CEO Paul Haggis and former Bank of Montreal SVP Sharon Sallows – to its board of directors in the wake of dramatic plunges in share

Mortgage Alliance customer wins $100,000

In early April, Mortgage Alliance CEO Michael Beckette presented a $100,000 cheque to Mohammad Alam and Mahabuba Sultana of Toronto, the grand prize winners of the 2016 Minimize Your Mortgage Sweepstakes, in the presence of their family and the broker who helped arrange their mortgage. The event marked the company’s 10th giveaway and $1 million in prizes awarded since the inception of the promotion. Customers who arrange mortgages with Mortgage Alliance in 2017 are automatically entered into the contest.

“The developments of the past month around Home Capital Group have been concerning, and as result, we had paused the recommendation of their mortgage solutions to our clients in order to best protect our customers and their investments,” Mauris said previously.

Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz assured the industry that for the moment, no signs of a “fiscal contagion” are spreading from the troubled lender.

“The question would be: What caused this? Is it something unique to the institution itself, or is it something in the system?” Poloz told Reuters in mid-May. “I think [the Home Capital] situation is pretty clear on that; it’s idiosyncratic.”

DLC addresses reverse mortgage misunderstanding

Writing for Dominion Lending Centres, HomEquity Bank’s Yvonne Ziomecki has set out to clarify some common misconceptions about reverse mortgages in Canada, including the idea that sellers will lose their homes to institutions.“Just like with any other mortgage, your home is used to secure the loan,” Ziomecki wrote on DLC’s blog. “You as a customer do not transfer ownership of your home to us. In fact, once it’s time to pay back the mortgage, you or your heirs have the choice to settle the loan however you or they want.”

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Q&A

Mark Herman

Calgary residential market on the rebound

Accredited Mortgage Professional MORTGAGE ALLIANCE MORTGAGES ARE MARVELLOUS

Years in the industry 14 Fast Fact Mortgages are Marvellous has been named Mortgage Alliance’s number-one franchise for all of Canada every year since 2013

What kinds of consumers usually require your assistance?

We are 95% Realtor-based, so our customers usually range from ‘thinking about buying’ right up to the ‘we have already bought and need a mortgage in three days’ type of buyer. Their Realtors send them to us directly, and many are told by their Realtors to use us, so there is less ‘here is why you should use me’ and few rate shoppers.

We also do lots of B deals, equity gifts, acreages, refis and move-ups. Move-ups are very interesting, as Calgary is in a unique situation with the price range over $450,000 not moving that quickly and everything below moving in a few days. That means you can sell your existing home for what you paid for it and get a better class of home that is deeply discounted for not much more of a monthly payment.

What are the factors that make Calgary attractive to homebuyers?

For the lower price ranges, rent payments are similar to mortgage payments, and many are sick of having the home they are renting sold, causing them to move repeatedly. Many new landlords can’t take the lower rents and are cash-flow negative. Now that homes are moving again, they are using this as a time to get out of the landlord market.

For the higher ranges, the higher the price, the greater the price reductions. Homes that were at $3 million are now at $2 million; $1.5 million is now $1.15 million, so

Centum broker warns of unintended consequences

Prior to the implementation of a foreign buyer tax in Toronto, Centum broker Omer Quenneville offered a grim warning. “The problem with a new tax [is that] once it is in place, it has no place to go but up,” Quenneville told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “What started this problem was the double land-transfer tax making it too expensive for the trade-up market to move, causing a shortage of listings. And so what are they going to do?

Raise it. Homeownership is the only thing that people have left for a secure retirement.”

there are lots of buyers with cash waiting for the perfect home to come on the market and snap up the savings.

What are the financing challenges your clients typically face?

The new mortgage rules reduced the average qualification by 20%, so the move-ups were stalled out for a while, but they are coming back now. They had to save more and wait for pay increases, which is happening or has happened for many of our move-uppers.

Also, first-time buyers are qualifying for way less than they wanted, which has fuelled that competition in the price range below $450,000.

Are foreclosures and arrears truly on the rise in Alberta?

We don’t see this at all. Yes, there are lots of people out of work, and EI is expiring and some can’t make payments, but the worst seems to be past. In actual numbers, it went from two homes in 1,000 to four in 1,000. It seems like if you have a job, you are going to keep it. Things are looking up now.

What advice are you giving your clients in the current environment?

Pay your bills on time, save for your down payment, and buy if you plan on being here a while, as prices and rates are trending up and things are improving.

Brokers’ renewal market share is growing

Mortgage brokers are earning a larger piece of the renewal mortgage pie, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s 2017 Mortgage Consumer Survey. Industry market share is growing in that important segment, jumping from 26% in 2016 to 35% in 2017. Broker share of refinances (40%) and recent buyers (44%) remained stable, according to CMHC. Notably, first-time buyers continue to prefer the services of their local mortgage broker to their own bank – brokers currently account for 55% of that market.

Kares.ca launches new initiatives for June

Brokers and industry professionals who donate a minimum one-year donation of $25 per month to Kares.ca in June will have their donation matched up to a maximum of $10,000.

Kares.ca, which focuses on helping disadvantaged youth, was launched late last year and has since partnered with various charities. “This is really focusing on youth-specific programs primarily for kids that have been marginalized, whether it’s financially, domestically or mentally,” said Kares.ca co-founder Meryll Dreyer.

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PEOPLE

INDUSTRY ICON

RIGHT FROM THE BEGINNING From the ground floor to today, Caroline Rapson shares her experience of helping establish Centum as one of the leading network players in the industry

THERE AREN’T many people in the mortgage industry who can say they’ve been with a network since its first day – but Caroline Rapson is one of those people. “I started with Century 21,” she says. “Back in 2002, the company decided to start a mortgage company called Centum. When Centum started, I got involved on day one.”

Rapson began in the accounting department, leveraging experience she had gained outside the real estate industry. But as the company grew, Rapson took on a different role. She’s now Centum’s director of franchise services, working with franchise owners and their teams, as well as all of the network’s lenders and partners.

“My job varies every day,” she says. “It really depends – if we’re prepping for an event, that’s one of my big focuses. Any new products and programs we bring on in our network, I work on those as well. Anything for our franchise owners and their teams, whether it’s connecting to a lender, arranging some training or anything we’re working on [at head office].

“My favourite part of role is the people,” she adds, “whether it’s people in our network or people in our industry as a whole. We have some amazing people.”

Brokers in the digital age No industry exists in a vacuum – and just like other financial services channels, the future

16

of the mortgage industry will be defined in large part by technology.

“Technology is incredibly important to our industry, and it’s constantly changing,” Rapson says. “As a brand, I think it’s important that we listen to our network – we analyze the feedback we’re getting so we can determine what will help drive their businesses and help them provide a better client experience.

“For Centum,” she continues, “we’ve been having these conversations with our network,

similar – moving toward things like the 15 Minute Mortgage where the customer can go in, do some work and get a response right away. If someone isn’t getting a response right away, they’re already moving on to the next thing.”

But even as technology is streamlining certain parts of the industry, Rapson believes the broker’s role is more important than ever.

She says a broker’s value lies in his or her ability to explain sophisticated mortgage

“We have a big technology launch scheduled for Q4. We’ve been having very successful years, and 2017 is proving to be a fantastic year for us as well. Centum’s going to be a very different company next year” and we’ve been working very hard on this.

With technology today, consumers are way more sophisticated with the information that they have access to.”

Technology has been a defining factor for Centum over the past few years – and likely will continue to be in the years ahead.

“We came up with the 15 Minute Mortgage in 2014,” Rapson says. “Since then, we’ve seen other companies come out with something

information and ensure clients are getting the best product for their needs. And, she adds, savvy brokers are the ones who know that when the deal funds, it’s just the beginning of the relationship.

“More and more, just the regular contact is an important aspect of business – making sure that a customer knows that broker’s name, that they have it on the tip of their tongue if they have any opportunity,” she says. “[That

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15/06/2017 7:39:43 AM

PROFILE Name: Caroline Rapson Title: Director of franchise services Company: Centum Financial Group Based in: Vancouver Years in the industry: 15 Career highlight: “I’ve been with the company since the beginning, so I have some strong relationships with our franchisees. Any time I do anything I can to help them with their business, [I’m rewarded by] the appreciation they have.”

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PEOPLE

INDUSTRY ICON

might mean] sending them reminders about the anniversary of their mortgage, or if they have a variable-rate mortgage, letting them know what’s happening with rates.”

Rapson urges brokers not to neglect old-fashioned methods of reaching out to clients, either.

“It’s still important to pick up the phone every now and then,” she says. “Today, everyone is so accustomed to email, and now there’s almost a wow factor if you pick up the phone or send something in the mail.”

Adapt and flourish It’s a familiar refrain, but brokers will appreciate that networks – even at the corporate

proactive,” Rapson says. “They have to reeducate themselves and work very closely with BDMs so they can understand the changes and how they’re going to impact the customers.”

In terms of getting the word out to both regulators and consumers, Rapson believes the industry’s associations are doing a great job.

“With organizations like CMBA and MPC, that’s where you see the brands come together, she says. “When you look at the work they’re doing both in going to the government and ensuring consumer and industry voices are heard, I do think it’s happening. It’s definitely happening at a high level.”

However, she says that it’s not just up to the associations and networks to grow the

CAROLINE RAPSON’S CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 1990

1992 Held first job in accounting while juggling school

“This is a time when everyone has to be proactive. They have to re-educate themselves and work very closely with BDMs so they can understand the changes and how they’re going to impact the customers” level – recognize how challenging mortgage regulations can be for brokers on the ground.

“With the changes that we’ve had recently with mortgage regulations, it is getting harder to qualify clients, and conventional refinances have been more difficult as well,” Rapson says.

“As an industry, we have to be able to adapt, and we have to be able to flourish. So part of my responsibility is leveraging our relationship with lenders to ensure our members have the education and support they need.”

Focusing on educating current and past clients, as well as referral partners such as Realtors, will help brokers leverage the increasingly difficult lending environment to continue to build business.

“This is a time when everyone has to be

18

industry – brokers have a role to play, too.

“I think it depends on education – educating consumers, always showing the value of a mortgage broker,” she says. “If you make a customer feel like they have choice and that they’re educated, it goes a long way. For us, we have a strong focus on teaching our brokers how to grow their business and market themselves, particularly in the social media world, to make them even more successful.”

As for what’s in the pipeline at Centum, Rapson says: “We’ve got a lot of things we’re working on; we have a big technology launch scheduled for Q4. We’ve been having very successful years, and 2017 is proving to be a fantastic year for us as well. Centum’s going to be a very different company next year.”

1993 Moved over to the insurance industry

1996 Joined Century 21

2000

2002 Joined Centum when it launched into the broker channel

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UPFRONT

OPINION

GOT AN OPINION THAT COUNTS? Email mortgagebrokernews@kmimedia.ca

Be Netflix, not Blockbuster To survive in today’s rapidly changing mortgage industry, writes Don Campbell, brokers must be the antidote to their clients’ information overload IT IS TRULY mind-numbing the amount of information we have at our fingertips. Just watch people at transit stops, in lines at the mall, in waiting rooms – even at your dinner table. It’s a constant scroll, scroll, scroll. We are obviously living in an epidemic of input, which, ironically, is hindering our ability to create good output.

More info makes for better decisions in the end, right? Well, not exactly. Depth is much more important than volume. It is in depth where good strategic decisions are made. Hanging out in the shallows of knowledge just sparks emotions, opinions and very poor decisions.

Multiple studies are now raising red flags about this constant barrage of information, showing that professionals and their clients are making increasingly less strategic decisions in their lives, investments and businesses. Fake news and clickbait wouldn’t exist as a growing part of our society if they weren’t effective in manipulating the populous.

Twelve years ago, access to this ocean of information wasn’t available to most people, and at that time, investors and homebuyers made more logical and strategic decisions.

Instant news and opinions weren’t as ubiquitous, yet still we made great long-term-based decisions. Ah yes, the paradox of choice: The more choices we have, the unhappier we are.

Today it is less of a paradox of choice and more a case of information overload.

Because research from the Real Estate Investment Network has been supporting investors and homebuyers for more than 25

years, I can say that today there are more people confused, or making poor decisions based on bad information, than I have ever witnessed before. And that is where opportunity arises for professionals like you.

I’m sure you’ve noticed that your clients, your friends, your cab drivers all have an opinion on the real estate market: It’s a bubble; it’s different this time; there are too many condos; there are not enough condos; it’s going

tion; therefore, when walking through a forest, you are more likely to think a rock is a bear (danger) than a bear is a rock (safety).

That is why we are drawn to clickbait and fear-based headlines. We skip over the important information to get to the perceived danger signs. It works, it manipulates, and it is starting to affect your business.

Fortunately, this worrying trend also brings an opportunity for those who adapt and prefer to thrive by looking at their industry a little differently. Your job is to build trust and to provide a calm, fact-based reality that will allow your clients to breathe, act strategically and want to refer people your way. You can become that sought-after port in the storm.

Remember, Blockbuster blindly continued to open video stores, even while streaming services were growing at an exponential rate.

They didn’t believe they could ever become irrelevant. In fact, in 2005, less than a decade before Blockbuster shuttered for good, the company’s president at the time stated: “We believe we are well positioned for the future of digital and VOD demand.”

“Your job is to build trust and to provide a calm, fact-based reality that will allow your clients to breathe, act strategically and want to refer people your way” to collapse; it’s a great opportunity; it’s better to rent than buy – and on and on.

The internet, parties, the media airwaves – they’re all filled with impending doom or unheralded confidence in the housing market. People are afraid and confused, and they will hide that behind bravado and strong opinions.

This is where you step in. People are looking for strategic and clear thought leadership.

Right now – and I do mean right now – is the moment when professionals must decide what their strategic advantage is going to be and what added value they are going to provide.

And frankly, that decision will determine whether your business is either frustrating or successful five years from now.

Human beings are hardwired for protec-

I’m now seeing this blind mindset in real estate professional circles. Those who see the future are adapting their business models and the value-adds they bring to the market, while others sit on the sidelines tut-tutting.

Look behind you – those are your customers in information overload. Look ahead of you, and you see a much different industry reality ahead. If you bridge these two by thinking less like a consumer and more like a strategic thought leader, your business will become what clients are looking for.

Don Campbell has been analyzing market and industry trends as the senior economic analyst of the Real Estate Investment Network [REIN] for 25 years. He has also authored seven best-selling books on real estate markets.

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We Stand for All Canadians Together we’ve made a major impact helping thousands of Canadians feel the pride of owning their own home, even when they thought it wasn’t possible.

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15/06/2017 7:42:53 AM

The determination of small business owners, the courage of new immigrants and the hope of people that have faced personal and financial hardship are some of the finest examples of our collective Canadian spirit.

These clients are vital to Canada’s housing and mortgage industry and to our future.

We take the time to listen to everyone’s story, look at all the facts and offer prudent solutions that make sense. We stand for acceptance, equality and respect.

Thank you for choosing to stand with us.

To stay informed visit hometrust.ca/we-stand

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15/06/2017 7:42:57 AM 2017-06-13 3:51 PM

FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

The glass ceiling is no longer holding these 50 women back – they are the leaders and innovators who are changing the face of the Canadian mortgage industry

FOR DECADES, the mortgage industry, like many other business sectors, has long been dominated by men. In 2017, that’s no longer the case. The 50 women on this list prove that mortgage brokering is no longer just a man’s game.

Following an overwhelming response from lenders and brokers across all provinces, CMP culled this year’s Women of Influence list to the professionals you will meet on the following pages.

From industry trailblazers who started their own businesses from scratch to innovators who are creating new products and processes to better serve homebuyers, this year’s Women of Influence list highlights the female leaders who have overcome hardships and struggles to succeed in even the most uncertain markets. Their astounding personal and professional accomplishments have earned them a place among the industry’s best.

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STACEY MASS Mortgage associate/owner DLC Canadian Mortgage Experts – Canada First

In just the past two years, Stacey Mass has increased her repeat clients and client referrals by more than 50%, despite her location in a turbulent Calgary market. Mass began her mortgage career in 1999 and has been a brokerage owner and associate since 2005. The philosophy to her business has been simple: offer education and assistance so other families may succeed. By pursuing opportunities for personal and professional growth, Mass has been able to continually succeed in the industry.

In 2015, Mass and her entire Canada First team joined DLC Canadian Mortgage Experts, and she now leads the group within the brokerage, conducting weekly meetings, fostering lender liaisons and strengthening morale through effective leadership. She also managed to exceed the gold-level recognition for producers in her first year there.

In addition to her work in mortgages, Mass has been a loyal contributor to charities for the past two decades. Apart from arranging a monthly donation from her brokerage to a local society for homeless families, she is also involved in giving to World Vision, Calgary Children’s Hospital and a government organization that caters to the special needs community.

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WOMEN OF INFLUENCE INDEX

MEGAN MCDONALD Vice-president, sales MCAP

Megan McDonald has been rocketing up the corporate ladder in the 11 years that she’s been with MCAP. Starting as a business development manager at MCAP’s Vancouver office, McDonald now serves as vice president of sales, responsible for driving and optimizing sales for the MCAP brand. McDonald also facilitated a national coaching program for MCAP called Coaching with Integrity, which has coached more than 30 lenders nationwide.

Additionally, within the last three years, she has been instrumental in the launch of three innovative new products – MCAP Value-Flex, Fusion and MCAP79. Beyond her day job, McDonald regularly presents at provincial and national industry events regarding sales and growth, and volunteers as a mentor to young women through the Women in Leadership Foundation.

COMPANY

NAME

Amina's Mortgage Services Blue Pearl Mortgage Group Blue Pearl Mortgage Group BlueShore Pacifica Alternative Mortgage Centre Centum Financial Group Inc. Centum InTouch Mortgage Solutions Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions Inc. Centum Streetwise Mortgages City Wide Mortgage Services DLC Canadian Mortgage Experts – Canada First DLC Denova Group DLC Forest City Funding DLC Forest City Funding DLC Home Capital Solutions DLC Homeline Mortgages DLC Premier Mortgages DLC Regional Mortgage Group DLC The Mortgage Source DocAssist Dominion Lending Centres Equitable Bank Equity Financial Trust FCT Fisgard Asset Management Corporation Home Trust Company JCMortgages Key Mortgage Partners – Dominion Lending Centres Magenta Mortgage Martel Mortgages Matrix Mortgage Global MCAP MCAP MCAP Mortgage Alliance Mortgage Alliance The Lion's Share Group Mortgage District Inc. Mortgage Intelligence Mortgages of Canada New Haven Mortgage Corporation Sherwood Mortgage Group The Mortgage Associates The Mortgage Centre Tribe Financial Group Verico Dreyer Group Mortgages Verico East Coast Mortgage Brokers Verico East Coast Mortgage Brokers Verico Gibbard Group Financial Verico Xeva Mortgage Verico Xeva Mortgage Verico Xeva Mortgage

Amina Mohamed Jennifer Souvanvong Shaneen Mohammed Shannon Hillman Caroline Rapson Enza Venuto Anne Brill Dalia Barsoum April Lee Stacey Mass Ashley Langford Billie Burke Tracy Valko Sarah Makhomet Susan Cowling Alison Lopes Mel Lewis Kim McKenney Kerry Butler Sherry Cooper Suzanne Fleur de Lys Aujla Katte Cai Daniela DeTommaso Hali Noble Laurie Chalabardo Janna Dawdy Rakhi Madan Denise Buckley Jessica Rickerby Carla Wright Nicole Cabral Megan McDonald Elaine Taylor Elizabeth Kelly Claire Drage Michelle Campbell Kim Gibbons Samantha Brookes Kimberlee Freeman Sydney Joy Dookwah Shawna MacDonald Sandra Lastovic Frances Hinojosa Meryll Dreyer Deanne Whelan Nikki Carew Karen Gibbard Luisa Hough Sabeena Bubber Bernadette Laxamana

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE HALI NOBLE

MERYLL DREYER

SVP, residential mortgage investments and broker relations

Chief operating officer

Fisgard Asset Management Corporation

Verico Dreyer Group Mortgages

Hali Noble is approaching the 25-year mark at Fisgard, and throughout the years, she has led many brokers to become successful in the industry by encouraging them to continuously educate themselves and maintain close working relationships with underwriters. Noble has helped grow a culture of transparency and communication at Fisgard and has been instrumental in the company’s expansion to the Prairie provinces and Ontario. Her efforts have led to the growth of the company’s portfolio, which recently achieved the best volume in its history.

Noble is a co-founder of Kares.ca and Women in the Mortgage Industry, past president of the MBABC and past chair of MPC. During her career, Noble has received several industry awards, most notably induction into the Canadian Mortgage Hall of Fame, the MBABC Pioneer Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Mortgage Industry and being named one of WXN Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women.

KATTE CAI Underwriter Equity Financial Trust

In just a year’s time, Katte Cai has grown her business by more than 200% ¬– an incredible feat in this highly competitive industry. At Equity Financial Trust, Cai holds the record for the highest funded volume and new business generated by an underwriter.

LAURIE CHALABARDO Senior director, mortgage lending Home Trust Company

With more than three decades of experience in the financing field, Laurie Chalabardo has built relationships with brokers that have truly stood the test of time. She has created one of the strongest teams within Home Trust, and she still carries the highest volume in the company to this day, having exceeded her targets year-over-year and funded more than $1 billion over the past five years.

Chalabardo demonstrates how to lead by service. “She is a strong woman who believes in her employees and takes great pride in mentoring, teaching and celebrating her entire team,” says a peer. “It’s not very often you have a leader who will, even after 30 years, no matter what [the situation], put her title aside and do whatever it takes to support the company and her team.”

Outside the industry, Chalabardo dedicates her time to volunteering with charitable organizations, including serving as a member of a Home Trust committee that puts on the Tom Trenouth Charity Golf Tournament every September, raising funds for mental health awareness.

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Last November, Meryll Dreyer co-founded a new mortgage industry national giving program, Kares.ca [Kids at Risk Embracing Success], which supports programs and services for at-risk youth across Canada. More than $60,000 has been raised to date, and the Kares.ca committee, made up of more than 20 industry volunteers, looks forward to achieving even greater results in the years to come.

In addition to bringing together leading industry professionals to launch a national charity, Dreyer and her team have built a successful and thriving brokerage in British Columbia. As the chief operating officer of Verico Dreyer Group Mortgages, Dreyer ensures the company is consistently delivering quality service on all levels while managing progressive new programs and initiatives that better serve and support clients and business partners.

With an extensive background in financial services and marketing, Dreyer is a strategic driving force within the Dreyer Group. The winner of numerous awards, including the 2017 Consumers Choice Award for Best Mortgages, a Canadian Mortgage Award for Best Customer Service, the 2016 Excellence in Residential Financing Award and landing a spot on CMP’s 2017 Hot List, Dreyer Group is constantly setting standards for leadership and professionalism within the industry.

TRACY VALKO Broker Dominion Lending Centres Forest City Funding

In the last five years, Tracy Valko has grown her business tremendously and has been recognized industry-wide for her various achievements. With more than 20 years of experience in the mortgage industry, Valko has owned her own DLC brokerage in Kitchener, Ontario, for the past seven years. Her team consistently ranks among the top 10 national performers within the DLC network in terms of number and volume of deals.

In 2017, Valko became a member of Mortgage Professionals Canada and has been striving for positive change throughout the industry. She prides herself on her ability to work as an advocate for her clients and deliver the best service possible. “Service is at the top of our priorities,” she says. “It’s what truly sets my team apart.”

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE MICHELLE CAMPBELL

DEANNE WHELAN

Principal mortgage broker

Verico East Coast Mortgage Brokers

Mortgage District

In four years’ time, Michelle Campbell has managed to open her own brokerage, Mortgage District, which is an impressive feat when considering other duties. “In the beginning, the most challenging was allocating time to start my own brokerage and mentor my team, while at the same time keeping up with my own clients,” she says. “There aren’t enough hours in the day, but through discipline and focus, I’ve been able to manage my time better.”

Ultimately, getting to help others reach their goals is a reward in itself for Campbell. She credits her success to “studying, educating myself and attending leadership conferences so I can continuously progress and stay current. Just as important is aligning myself with like-minded people, which allowed me to ignore negativity and naysayers.”

When asked about the value of recognizing women’s achievements in the industry, Campbell replied emphatically: “Women have to work twice as hard in this male-dominated industry, only to receive half the recognition. Women need to truly understand how important it is to stand together collectively and support, lift and empower one another.”

Outside of Mortgage District, Campbell sits on the MPC Events Committee and spearheaded the MPC Educational Event for GTA West. She is also part of Kares.ca as a volunteer mentor for youth, teaching on various topics such as financial literacy.

In addition, Campbell has raised funds for and participated in charities such as Defeat Depression, the Breast Cancer Foundation and Habitat for Humanity.

Mortgage broker

In addition to being one of this year’s Women of Influence, Deanne Whelan also secured a spot on CMP’s 2017 list of Top 20 Small Market Brokers. Within Verico, Whelan attained a spot as one of the top three Atlantic brokers by units and/or volume, which propelled her to Chairman’s Club status. She also achieved the highest units and volume for a non-owner broker in 2015 and 2016.

Her recent success isn’t a surprise – for more than two decades, Whelan has managed to gain top status at every company she’s worked for. “It is honestly about relationships and gathering information,” she says. “I attribute my success then and now to effective time management, being honest with my advice and making people feel safe by knowing as much as possible about the industry and related products, and by applying my knowledge in a helpful, meaningful way.”

Given the struggles in the Newfoundland market, Whelan has pushed herself to diversify by doing equal amounts of refinancing and purchases, and by delving more into B lending. Along with longer processing times and fewer options in today’s mortgage industry, Whelan acknowledges that female brokers face the additional challenge of juggling an overwhelming number of roles.

“I encourage women helping women in my everyday business through mentorship and my referral program,” she says. “We can understand the unique challenges that many women face daily when trying to raise a family, be the greatest wife/mother/ daughter you can be, while still making a great presence in the business world. Women just entering into this field need to know that having a great presence is possible.”

SHERRY COOPER Chief economist Dominion Lending Centres

Renowned for her ability to simplify and demystify the complex subjects of economics and finance, Dr. Sherry Cooper has helped countless Canadians understand the issues surrounding their most important purchase – their home. Currently chief economist at Dominion Lending Centres, Cooper previously served as chief economist and executive vice-president of BMO Financial Group, where she was responsible for global economic and financial forecasting, as well as country and industry risk analysis.

A well-known speaker, writer and advisor, Cooper’s third book, The New Retirement: How It Will Change Our Future, was a best-seller. In addition to her duties at DLC, Cooper is also a professor at McMaster University’s DeGroote School of Business.

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ENZA VENUTO Principal mortgage broker Centum InTouch Mortgage Solutions

With more than 45 years of experience in the financial industry, Enza Venuto began her career in banking and took the leap to become a business owner and mortgage broker in 2009. Over the past eight years, Venuto has proven herself as a leader in the field, having brokered more than $2.1 billion in funded mortgages to date. She is also the co-author of one of Canada’s and Amazon’s best-selling books, Canadian Real Estate Investor Financing: 7 Secrets to Getting All the Money You Want.

Venuto’s passion for finance and commitment to service

excellence have been instrumental in her success. In her view, “it’s all about the clients and how we can help them achieve their goals.” This drive and focus on her clients’ needs have earned her many accolades, including being named to CMP’s Top 75 Brokers list and winning Centum Group’s Top Producer Award for brokers across Canada, ranking third in 2016 and fifth in 2015.

Venuto recently launched InTouch Mortgage Solutions, a boutique family-run firm, and plans to continue building the next chapter of her mortgage business with her two sons. She was previously the principal broker at Centum Streetwise Mortgages, where she mentored a strong team and developed a very successful business.

Having survived the challenges of running her own business, Venuto believes in supporting other businesswomen, especially local entrepreneurs. She readily shares her expertise whenever the opportunity arises and provides her clients and agents with essential coaching and planning strategies.

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

Founder and CEO

BERNADETTE LAXAMANA

Mortgages of Canada

Partner and mortgage broker

SAMANTHA BROOKES

The founder and CEO of Mortgages of Canada, one of the fastest-growing brokerages in the nation, Samantha Brookes has more than 15 years of experience refinancing mortgages, consolidating homeowner debt and providing private home equity loans. Her persistent work ethic has helped her to build solid relationships with lending associates and banks to ensure she gets the best-priced individually structured mortgages for her clients.

Apart from her success in the mortgage industry, Brookes is also a motivational speaker, a columnist for the Huffington Post, and creator and host of her own YouTube channel, as well as a mentor to individuals looking to fulfil their passions. Brookes can also be found sharing her knowledge on mortgages and offering Canadians strategies to help achieve their financial goals during her guest appearances on Bell Media’s Business News Network and CTV’s Your Morning.

KIM GIBBONS Broker Mortgage Intelligence

While going through the worst of times, Kim Gibbons demonstrated an ability to achieve despite major setbacks. After being diagnosed with breast cancer, Gibbons faced the uncertainty of being able to keep working, but she persevered and found a way to carry on in between hospital visits, treatments and surgeries. Even during the worst years of her treatment, Gibbons managed to increase her personal business by 30% year-over-year. She credits her success to the people with whom she has developed strong and lasting relationships – from existing clients, who make up a significant portion of her book of business, to the inspiring and supportive team of brokers she works with, as well as a great co-leader and partner, family, and friends.

With more than a decade of industry experience, Gibbons co-leads a team of brokers; in three years’ time, the team managed to increase its volume by 400% – part of which occurred during Gibbons’ recovery period. Her team has been consistently recognized as one of the top teams in Canada, and Gibbons herself has been a finalist at the Canadian Mortgage Awards for two years, including being the only individual broker nominated in the Best Internet Presence category.

As a cancer survivor, Gibbons has dedicated herself to related causes, in addition to her involvement in several industry organizations. She actively raises funds for the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre through various events. At one event, her team managed to raise nearly $18,000 with a 60-km walk; on another occasion, Gibbons was involved in raising funds for a surgical microscope for the hospital to perform restorative surgery effectively.

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Verico Xeva Mortgage

Bernadette Laxamana is certainly on a winning streak this year: She was named Mortgage Broker of the Year at the 2017 Canadian Mortgage Awards and also won the Veris Award for being Verico’s top broker in British Columbia and seventh in all of Canada.

For Laxamana, the key to success lies in her ability to evolve and keep up with the times. “I challenge myself to innovate my business and my life on a constant basis,” she says. “I tweak all areas of my life … this is my way of ensuring that I am constantly improving, growing and becoming better.

My purpose has evolved significantly, and my business and relationships have transformed along with it.”

Laxamana is one of the founding partners at Xeva, one of the top brokerages in Canada. With more than 15 years of experience, she educates her clients about mortgage options and helps them find long-term solutions. As part of her efforts in promoting mortgage education, she conducts homebuyer seminars and serves as a host of Xeva TV, “a weekly webinar where I host a lender, a supplier or a marketing guru,” and Xeva Mastermind, “a monthly seminar/meeting that I co-facilitate where we share our best practices.” Laxamana received an award for mentorship in 2016 and was accorded the Highest Achievement Award at the Dale Carnegie Institute for her dedication to lifelong learning.

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DALIA BARSOUM Mortgage broker Streetwise Mortgages

After 20 years in finance and banking, Dalia Barsoum brought her considerable expertise to the mortgage industry, where she has helped build Streetwise Mortgages into one of the country’s top-performing brokerages. Barsoum joined the industry in 2011, tasked with juggling a growing business and raising a young family.

“I had to work very hard to earn the trust of clients, lenders and peers in the industry,” she says. Providing unbiased advice, always doing what is right for her clients, creating long-term and lasting relationships, and always looking to learn and evolve are a few of the key principles behind Barsoum’s great success.

Recently, she was named Centum’s numberone mortgage broker by units in 2016 after advising on and closing 200 investment property transactions, totalling $68 million in mortgage volume. In addition, she is the co-author of the best-selling real estate investment financing book Canadian Real Estate Investor Financing: 7 Secrets to Getting All the Money You Want.

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE SYDNEY JOY DOOKWAH Vice-president, operations Sherwood Mortgage Group

With nearly a decade of experience in the mortgage industry, Sydney Joy Dookwah plays a key role in Sherwood Mortgage Group’s leadership team as the VP of operations, responsible for overseeing the head office staff while providing underwriting support and handling escalation issues for more than 30 agents across Canada.

Dookwah is passionate about the customer experience and is a firm believer in cultivating effective internal processes to adapt to the changing financial landscape while improving performance. In recognition of her achievements, Dookwah was the recipient of a Distinguished Award in 2014 and an Award of Excellence in Mortgage Underwriting in 2015. She attributes her success to being surrounded by positive influences at her firm and throughout the industry.

AMINA MOHAMED Broker Amina’s Mortgage Services

After having worked in film and television as a producer and production manager, Amina Mohamed entered the mortgage industry three and a half years ago with a passion to help people attain homeownership. Now a professional mortgage broker based in Newmarket, Ontario, she assists clients who are eyeing properties across the Greater Toronto Area and York Region.

Mohamed works primarily with real estate investors in Canada and in the US, as well as non-resident investors – Canadian citizens living and working in other major cities such as Singapore and Dubai and hoping to invest in their home country, which they still consider to be the safest place for their savings.

MEL LEWIS Mortgage broker and partner DLC Regional Mortgage Group

Mel Lewis continues to break records as partner and broker at DLC Regional Mortgage Group, while also ranking among the top 5% of DLC brokers across the nation.

Lewis started her career in the human services field and attributes her years of experience there to helping propel her success as a mortgage broker. Since becoming licensed in 2007, Lewis has been with DLC Regional Mortgage Group, which is composed of more than 40 agents throughout Alberta.

In addition to her day-to-day duties, Lewis sits on the board for the RECA Mortgage 2020 Forum; is involved with Regional Mortgage’s charitable foundation and event, Golf/ Build a Kid to Cure; and is a very active member in her local BNI group.

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SUSAN COWLING Owner DLC Homeline Mortgages

Since 2001, Susan Cowling has been instrumental in helping to grow one of Canada’s first franchise organizations for mortgage brokers, which she managed to expand to 23 franchises while achieving annual sales volume of $1 billion. Cowling also developed the majority of the training programs for the network. After it was sold in 2008, she went back to focus on building her personal mortgage business, which she managed to grow to more than $80 million while working with a staff of four through the purchase of an existing brokerage.

Today as the owner of DLC Homeline Mortgages, Cowling’s key to success lies in her ability to find balance. “Maintaining and growing a successful business should not be at the expense of the things that are important in life,” she says. “With extremely exceptional circumstances on the family side in 2016, I credit my staff and especially Michelle, who is my partner in the personal mortgage brokerage side of my business, for helping to keep the business on track and growing throughout the year.”

Prior to entering the mortgage industry in 1998, Cowling was the marketing director for Western Canada for Royal LePage Real Estate Services and was recognized as a Medallion Level Realtor by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver in the early ’90s.

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DANIELA DETOMMASO Vice-president, residential lending solutions FCT

As the leader of FCT’s residential lending solutions group, Daniela DeTommaso has been at the forefront of the company’s push to move beyond its title insurance roots. Under DeTommaso’s leadership, the group has expanded to provide an ecosystem of technology, insurance and BPO products across the real estate life cycle. Foundational to DeTommaso’s leadership is a philosophy that over time, technology can always be replicated, but the way you make your customers feel cannot. She ensures this philosophy is embedded in every process; in doing so, she continues to build exemplary partnerships with lenders as they reinvent the way financial services are delivered.

“My perspective on managing my career while raising three daughters totally changed when I read a quote from a friend who is a very successful entrepreneur and mom of three – she noted that she was ‘juggling her blessings,’” DeTommaso says. “The moment I recognized that my life was ‘great busy’ – managing a rewarding career, an amazing family, friends and personal activities – I shifted my attitude to one of gratitude for all the blessings I was fortunate enough to be juggling.”

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE JESSICA RICKERBY

NICOLE CABRAL

Agent/owner

Broker relationship manager

Martel Mortgages

MCAP

After paying her dues as an employee, Jessica Rickerby teamed up with a partner to purchase Martel Mortgages in 2013. Last year, Rickerby surpassed her previous five years of funded volume – a huge milestone in her career.

She credits that achievement to her support system, which has encouraged her to keep pushing toward success, despite recent challenges.

“In light of all of the changes that have gone on in our industry this past year, it’s more important now than ever to embrace the change, learn and move forward,” Rickerby says. “There are so many people in this industry who focus so much on the negative of change … once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.”

A true leader, Rickerby works closely with each member of her staff on developing marketing strategies and growing their individual volumes. “As a sounding board for our entire team, she is consistent in her problem-solving [methods] and [in] educating agents on the guidelines of the lenders,” a team member says. “She is incredibly patient and understanding of the agents’ different needs and expectations.”

ELIZABETH KELLY Mortgage agent Mortgage Alliance

An experienced real estate investor for more than 12 years, Elizabeth Kelly has a passion for helping people achieve their financial dreams by purchasing investment properties.

As a coach and trainer, Kelly recognized the challenges currently facing both new and experienced investors, which motivated her to become a mortgage agent. Her expertise lies in helping investors plan, structure and creatively finance their real estate portfolios so they can enjoy their retirement and leave a legacy for their families.

Within the past two years, Nicole Cabral has taken on a new role at MCAP and piloted it into a successful launch, resulting in increased volumes year-over-year and the national expansion of her role. In the same period, she worked simultaneously on various projects involving training, development and support.

Cabral recognizes that on top of hard work, dedication and focus, the support of MCAP management and brokers was a major factor in her successes as well, especially when dealing with the challenge of being taken seriously in an industry dominated by veterans. She finds the day-to-day communication with brokers to be the most rewarding part of her job, knowing that by helping them and their clients, she can create more opportunities for people to find the home they’ve always dreamed of having.

JENNIFER SOUVANVONG Mortgage broker Blue Pearl Mortgage Group

More than halfway through 2016, Jennifer Souvanvong came up with a list of professional goals, all of which she managed to accomplish within the year – including a 60% increase in loans closed and 80% growth in total income. Souvanvong credits these successes to “consistent personal development and a shift in mindset,” on top of being in “an ever-changing industry that allows exponential growth based on your own personal and financial goals.” Working in this constantly evolving industry has pushed Souvanvong to be always on her toes, ready to adapt and change in order to hurdle through the challenges. She says the most rewarding part of her work is getting to train and mentor others to do the same.

Outside of the office, Souvanvong is part of an intermural program for an inner-city school in her community and also regularly gives to her local homeless shelter and Salvation Army.

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SARAH MAKHOMET Founder Dominion Lending Centres Home Capital Solutions

A perennial presence on CMP’s Women of Influence list, Sarah Makhomet has been in financial services since 2008, making her mark first on Bay Street and then in the world of mortgages. Starting out in an industry dominated by men, Makhomet quickly let everyone know she could hold her own as a top producer and one of Dominion Lending Centres’ shining stars, and she continues to learn and grow in the business. Makhomet’s clients are loyal to her, and she has earned their trust; the lenders know her knowledge of the industry is sound; and she has been increasing her presence in the marketplace from day one.

The core visions and values of Dominion Lending Centres Home Capital Solutions have been updated and expanded upon to bring a fresh new approach to the growth of the company. With close to 100 agents and expanded offerings, the brokerage enjoys its place among the top in the country. As a top producer herself and one of the guiding partners in the brokerage, Makhomet rounds out her accomplishments by travelling the world with her husband and son.

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE ELAINE TAYLOR

RAKHI MADAN

Vice president, sales

Mortgage broker

MCAP

Key Mortgage Partners – Dominion Lending Centres

In 2015 and 2016, Elaine Taylor led her team at MCAP to record volumes. She was also highly instrumental in the launch of three new products – Value Flex, Fusion and MCAP79 – the first two of which won best product awards.

A respected strategic leader, Taylor’s experience spans a multitude of areas, including sales, marketing, client relations, customer service, operations and product development. A strong proponent of education, she has been a member of Mortgage Professionals Canada since 2006, with an AMP designation since 2007, as well as a member of the Ontario chapter of CMBA. Taylor was also one of the original members of WIMI and was elected to MPC’s board of directors in 2016.

“Elaine is tirelessly involved with the management of our broker partners and is a staple at every function,” says a colleague. “She responds to emails all day and into the wee hours of the morning ... she’s just an absolutely incredibly motivated woman!”

KIM MCKENNEY President and broker Dominion Lending Centres The Mortgage Source

Nine years ago, Kim McKenney returned to the mortgage industry as the successor to her business partner. Since that time, she has grown The Mortgage Source from 25 agents to 57, and last year, the brokerage placed fifth among all DLC franchises for number of mortgages closed. McKenney believes her previous experience working in construction has helped her navigate a male-dominated mortgage industry. “Being a woman in a very male-dominated industry taught me how to speak to strong personalities while managing relationships,” she says. “This is a skill that helped me immensely.”

Recently, McKenney was elected president of the CMBA Ontario board of directors.

She also has represented CMBA as a witness for the Parliamentary Standing Committee hearings on mortgage changes. Additionally, she is co-chair on the board of directors for the Better Business Bureau of Eastern and Northern Ontario and the Outaouais, as well as serving as the Ottawa area ambassador for DLC’s Bikes for Kids charitable initiative.

Rakhi Madan likes to follow a certain poet’s advice when it comes to her career. “As Maya Angelou once said, ‘Success is liking yourself, liking what you do and liking how you do it,’” Madan says. “I truly believe that I am in a place where I love what I do, and I do it right by providing exceptional customer service and customer experience.”

After completing a master’s degree in computer science, Madan worked as a professional service and sales manager for an international organization, where she led, motivated and trained employees.

That experience helped her make the leap into mortgage brokering. Within her first year with Dominion Lending Centres, Madan was selected as a Rookie of the Year finalist. In just four years, she has funded more than $35 million in loans. “This has only been possible by associating and building strong relationships with lenders and insurers that consider me their partner,” she says.

ANNE BRILL Principal broker and owner Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions

With more than two and a half decades of experience in the financial services industry, Anne Brill offers her clients the highest level of service and knowledge. As the principal broker and owner of Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions, Brill has been acknowledged numerous times for her contributions to Centum Financial Group. Most recently, Brill and her team were recognized for increasing business by 206% over the previous year.

Outside of her business, Brill is a member of the International Women’s Leadership Association, the Greek Association and many other organizations. In addition, her brokerage supports various sporting teams and charities, such as the Sick Kids Foundation and the Ernestine Women’s Shelter.

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CLAIRE DRAGE

ASHLEY LANGFORD

Broker, team leader and trainer Mortgage Alliance The Lion’s Share Group

Founding partner, mortgage agent DLC Denova Group

Claire Drage remembers the ‘advice’ she got when she took her first job as a mortgage broker’s assistant: “I asked what it would take to become a top-producing broker [and was told] to not concern myself with that, because finance is a man’s world,” she says. “Well, look at me now!” Drage credits her success largely to her solid support team. “I couldn’t do what I do without my amazing staff, team leaders and agents,” she says. “I provide them with all the tools, systems, processes and authority they need to work effectively and make decisions without me micromanaging them … which gives me the time to make sure we continue to adapt, focus and then do it all over again.”

For Drage, the most triumphant moments are when her team is able to come through for one another and their clients – such as witnessing a team member going from zero to $30 million in volume as a result of training, or seeing a client get to retire earlier than expected thanks to a passive income portfolio they arranged.

Drage has been receiving recognition as a leading broker since 2014, and this is her third appearance on the Women of Influence list. She affirms the importance of these recognitions not just for herself, but for all the female professionals and leaders who are working diligently behind the scenes. “Women in general don’t pound their own chests or shout from the rooftops how much volume they are doing,” she says. “We can sometimes be the silent success stories that no one will hear about.”

After spending 12 years at a large Canadian banking institution, Ashley Langford branched out to launch Denova Group. As a founding partner of the brokerage, Langford manages the client relationship side of the business while successfully training new agents and growing her own volume. “Helping my team grow is [number one] for me,” she says. “Their success is one of the reasons we started this company.”

“Ashley is the type of person who leads by example,” a colleague says. “Her can-do attitude and contagious joy make her a wonderful person to be around and learn from. She is a dynamic worker and leader who will go the extra mile on all projects …

Ashley always puts everyone ahead of herself and is a role model for many – including myself.”

Outside the industry, Langford continues to work on empowering those around her as a volunteer with the Junior Achievement Program, helping youth prepare for their futures.

Another colleague explains why Langford is truly an influential leader: “She takes the time to recognize performance and those on the team who might need a supportive person to talk to. Ashley’s drive, focus and motivation to ensure that every deal is done right the first time are infectious. She makes everyone better around her. I’m proud to have her as a leader in our office.”

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE SHANEEN MOHAMMED Senior mortgage broker Blue Pearl Mortgage Group

Crediting her success in 2016 to a commitment to focus on her own personal growth, Shaneen Mohammed continues to build upon her already impressive track record. Before working as an independent mortgage broker, Mohammed was a bank branch manager, receiving many awards for her performance and leading her branch to recognition as one of the top branches in the nation. Today, as a senior mortgage broker with more than 11 years of experience in British Columbia’s mortgage industry, Mohammed understands all the ins and outs of purchasing a home, from the initial preapproval to the home search, the purchase offer, the financing and finally the move – knowledge she enjoys passing on to the next generation of mortgage professionals.

“The most rewarding aspect of our business is knowing that I was able to help a family get into their dream home or take their dream vacation,” she says. “I also love the fact that our company [has] senior brokers take junior mortgage brokers and train them to be successful in the industry. It’s extremely tough walking in, being new and not knowing exactly what to do. Providing them with tools and knowledge and seeing them succeed is such a gratifying feeling.”

SABEENA BUBBER Mortgage consultant Verico Xeva Mortgage

An award-winning mortgage consultant, Sabeena Bubber was the top-producing broker at Xeva Mortgage in 2016, despite missing three months of work while recuperating from two major surgeries. For Bubber, her work not only enables her to help clients achieve their financial goals, but also pushes her to make a positive difference in the lives of the people around her – her family, friends, peers in the industry and the members of 100 Brokers Who Care, an organization she co-founded.

A few years ago, after witnessing a single self-employed mother desperately in need of financial support, Bubber started a GoFundMe page, which eventually became 100 Brokers Who Care. Through the cause, Bubber was able to witness the Canadian mortgage broker community rallying together to provide support.

Although there are now more women succeeding in the mortgage industry, Bubber believes there’s still plenty of room for improvement. “If you look at the statistics of women in the workplace, women in Canada are only representing 25% of senior management roles, which means that high-income-earning and successful women in senior management roles are still grossly underrepresented in Canada,” she says. “This recognition is something for young women inside and outside this industry to aspire to.”

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ALISON LOPES Mortgage broker and owner Dominion Lending Centres Premier Mortgages

Alison Lopes is passionate about mortgage brokering because it empowers her to turn people’s dreams of homeownership into reality. Since the moment she purchased her first home at the age of 20, Lopes quickly learned the value of homeownership. Arriving to Canada as an immigrant, Lopes vividly recalls the challenges of learning the language and adapting to a new culture and way of life. Despite her humble beginning, Lopes has worked to become one of the top brokers within Dominion Lending Centres.

Lopes began her mortgage career at a major bank, where she quickly learned the ropes as a mortgage specialist. Now with 28 years of experience under her belt, Lopes has been running her own brokerage for the past eight years. She is a recent recipient of DLC’s Elite Hall of Fame Award, and she continually places among the top 50 brokers nationally in the network.

Outside the mortgage industry, Lopes is very active in her local Waterloo, Ontario, community, where she regularly gives to various charities to help make a positive impact.

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KERRY BUTLER Director of operations DocAssist

More than a decade ago, Kerry Butler began her mortgage career as a licensed sub-broker.

After taking time off to start a family, Butler returned to mortgages in 2012, at a time when regulation and technology were starting to impact the way brokers managed their businesses. Riding the tech wave, Butler joined MortgagePal as the company’s first employee and underwriter, tasked with providing file support for MortgagePal’s two co-founders. Her skills in developing systems and processes became clear when she built a proprietary file management system on the company’s Salesforce infrastructure.

Her organizational prowess allowed the small team of three to scale to more than 50 mortgage applications per month within a very short period of time.

In late 2015, Butler repurposed the administration team under a new brand called DocAssist, with the purpose of providing third-party on-demand administration support to the entire industry. Within six months of opening its doors, DocAssist had already served more than 500 mortgage professionals nationwide. To manage the growth, Butler searched for top talent and rapidly grew her team. The file management system she built allowed underwriters to work from home, which kept overhead costs down and facilitated the hiring of staff from anywhere in the country. Butler ran a new-hire marketing initiative to find skilled underwriters, created a remote-based training program and grew her team from five to 20 administrators in less than 12 months.

Butler’s efforts have been instrumental in making DocAssist what it is today – the 2017 CMA winner for Best Industry Service Provider – and supporting the company’s vision of making mortgages easier for brokers and their clients.

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE NIKKI CAREW Mortgage broker Verico East Coast Mortgage Brokers

Despite joining the brokering side of the mortgage business just four years ago, Nikki Carew has successfully grown her book of business year-overyear – even landing on CMP’s Top 20 Small Market Brokers list earlier this year. A member of Verico Atlantic Canada’s President’s Club, Carew leads one of Verico’s largest teams in the Atlantic Canada region.

In addition to her day job, Carew is the director of Newfoundland and Labrador for the Mortgage Broker Association of Atlantic Canada and was the chair of the Brokering Wishes event in Newfoundland and Labrador in June. Carew is also actively involved in the Royal St. John’s Regatta, North America’s oldest annual sporting event.

DENISE BUCKLEY

JANNA DAWDY

Vice-president, mortgage operations

Mortgage agent

Magenta Mortgage

JCMortgages

Denise Buckley joined Magenta Mortgage in late 2011 and currently serves as a member of the senior management team. Previously, she was manager of Wells Fargo’s Ottawa branch and also served as sales manager for a mortgage brokerage in Ottawa. At Magenta, Buckley started out as an underwriter, then became an underwriting manager and director of mortgage operations before assuming her current role. Throughout her career, Buckley has gained a thorough knowledge of the industry, Alt A and B mortgage underwriting, and the primary lending market in Ottawa.

CAROLINE RAPSON Director, franchise services Centum Financial Group

As director of franchise services for Centum Financial Group nationally, Caroline Rapson specializes in the coordination, communication and management of the franchise services team, and is responsible for the development of strategic partnerships with lenders, partners and suppliers. Using her wealth of experience in administration, accounting, finance, marketing and operations, Rapson focuses on the expansion and overall growth of the Centum network.

With more than 21 years of combined real estate and mortgage industry experience, Rapson is passionate about working in an everchanging industry to raise consumer awareness about the important role mortgage brokers play in real estate transactions. Over the last several years, Rapson has been active in supporting MPC and CMBA-BC; in 2016, she became a member of the CMBA-BC board of directors.

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Since joining the financial industry at the age of 17, Janna Dawdy has not stopped reaching for the top. She first worked with various banks and firms, and finally decided to become a mortgage broker 13 years ago after realizing this was the path for her. She set up her own office six years ago and has since been recognized repeatedly for her achievements in the industry, such as being named RMA’s number-one broker in Canada in terms of number of transactions and volume.

Dawdy puts a considerable amount of effort into coming up with creative and engaging client retention strategies, including presenting gifts to clients and business partners at least six times a year and arranging an annual seminar to give a comprehensive update on changes in the industry and emerging ideas and trends.

Outside of her brokerage, Dawdy volunteers her time at the Innisfree House Hospice, where she and her team host movie nights twice a year. Dawdy’s team also works to raise money and provide non-perishable items to Family & Children Services.

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SHAWNA MACDONALD Principal broker The Mortgage Associates

A Saskatoon-based mortgage broker, Shawna MacDonald has more than 15 years of experience in the industry and has been named Canada’s top mortgage broker

by Mortgage Professionals Canada. She adheres to the industry’s highest standard of professional conduct while ensuring her clients’ needs are met, thus serving as an unbiased one-stop shop for clients to access hundreds of lenders. “Achieving success in today’s marketplace [relies on] being clientfocused and really understanding the client’s needs,” MacDonald says.

MacDonald started The Mortgage Associates in 2012 and has maintained her position as one of the top brokers in the country, having received TMG’s Broker of the Year Award six times.

“Shawna accredits her success to the opportunity to follow her passion of helping people,” says a peer. “Whether it is taking a call from another broker, working with a client, volunteering in her local community or spending time with her children, she prides herself on being involved.”

www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE APRIL LEE

KIMBERLEE FREEMAN

Mortgage professional

Director of new business development and planning

City Wide Mortgage Services

New Haven Mortgage Corporation

From 2005 to 2008, April Lee had the privilege of working alongside a female principal and manager, where she observed firsthand her tenacity, integrity, leadership, ingenuity and business savvy while working through the most challenging circumstances with poise and grace. That experience greatly influenced the way Lee approaches each customer, ultimately leading to her success today.

Lee believes that the key for women to remain competitive in the mortgage industry is to connect with, support and encourage one another. “There is no one better to understand the challenges of the work/family/life balance that we experience than other women,” Lee says. “We are CEOs, entrepreneurs, mothers and mentors.

For these reasons, we need to continue to recognize and support women for their hard work, determination, perseverance and achievements.”

When it comes to her day-to-day business, Lee enjoys being a part of her clients’ home-buying experience. “I believe there is an emotional component to every client’s purpose for obtaining a mortgage,” she says. “Being able to tap into that and being a part of that milestone is a rewarding aspect.”

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Born in Seoul, South Korea, Kimberlee Freeman was adopted by a Canadian family when she was an infant, and she spent much of her youth growing up in various parts of the world.

After spending the first years of her career with various mortgage companies, Freeman joined New Haven Mortgage Corporation in 2008. Freeman attributes her success in her role as New Haven’s director of new business development and planning to her disciplined work ethic. “I’m available 24/7 to my broker partners and enjoy sharing the knowledge that I’ve accumulated over the past 19 years,” she says. “I will never delay work that needs to be completed today. I am very organized and pay strict attention to detail at all times.”

At New Haven, Freeman created a lead-generation seminar to teach brokers how to approach and script different referral sources. “These seminars are conducted frequently, and I have even accompanied agents to meet with their potential referral sources,” she says. “There is nothing more rewarding than watching the success of people you have personally assisted.”

In recognition of her successful career, Freeman was asked to be a guest speaker at Niagara College for the Professional Selling II class, addressing the topics of success and leadership. “I spoke to the class about the ‘real world of business’ and shared my personal life story with them,” she says. “I was later very gratified to learn that the class had voted me their favourite speaker in the series.”

www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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KAREN GIBBARD Senior mortgage broker Verico Gibbard Group Financial

For Karen Gibbard, the last few years have been all about personal achievements – while continuing to run her successful mortgage brokerage. “I believe that when you make your personal achievements a priority, naturally the business will follow suit – our business is thriving because I am,” she says. With almost 30 years of financial industry experience under her belt, Gibbard started her sales career at the age of 26, working as a mobile mortgage specialist until she became an independent mortgage broker in 2000. During that time, Gibbard was consistently ranked as one of the top salespeople in her group, and she continues to excel today as a top mortgage professional.

“What really gets me excited is simply getting a client a mortgage to buy their dream home or to reorganize a client’s finances to relieve them of extreme financial stress,” she says. “The excitement – or relief – that these clients show me still fills my bucket after all these years and makes me realize that this is how I can do my small bit to help people.”

FRANCES HINOJOSA Broker and managing partner Tribe Financial Group

Frances Hinojosa is a founder of Tribe Financial Group, which managed to grow in less than three years into a firm of 20 agents with five office locations across the Greater Toronto Area. Hinojosa’s passion for the industry can be seen not only in her impressive business numbers, but also in her efforts to mentor people in both business and life skills. Apart from continuously mentoring agents within the firm, she also arranges coaching sessions with professionals in the industry.

A dedicated member of Mortgage Professionals Canada, Hinojosa is a member of its Ontario Committee and Professional Standards Committee. She is also a partner with 100 Brokers Who Care and a founding committee member of Kares.ca, a program dedicated to the career and life development of at-risk youth.

SANDRA LASTOVIC Senior mortgage agent and principal The Mortgage Centre

As a brokerage owner, Sandra Lastovic enjoys seeing people reach their financial goals. “I get goose­bumps when we’re able to help people buy their first house, restructure their debt to help them through a tough financial time or buy another rental property,” she says.

A strong advocate for women in leadership, Lastovic has volunteered on many boards in her community, including the Guelph Community Health Centre and the Ontario Agricultural College Alumni Association. In addition, she has been a member of the Rotary Club of Guelph since 2003, where she has served on several committees over the years. She is also past president of the Mid-Day Momentum Chapter of the Guelph Chamber of Commerce, where she has been an active member for 10 years.

SHANNON HILLMAN President BlueShore Pacifica Alternative Mortgage Centre

Shannon Hillman was instrumental in the launch of BlueShore Pacifica Alternative Mortgage Centre [AMC], which caters to alternative lending needs and interests in BC’s Lower Mainland.

Hillman also serves as director for Pacifica Mortgage Investment and Capital West Mortgage; under her leadership, the three companies managed to exceed $300 million in combined mortgage sales for 2015. In 2016, AMC alone managed to secure more than 200 deals, amounting to $185 million.

Hillman is the VP and membership chair for the BC MIC Managers Association and a member of CMBA and MPC. Outside of the industry, she is part of the Spirit Foundation and supports various charities through her company, including the Ronald McDonald House, Delta Hospital Foundation and Vancouver Resource Society.

www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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FEATURES

COVER STORY: WOMEN OF INFLUENCE SUZANNE FLEUR DE LYS AUJLA Regional business manager, British Columbia Equitable Bank

As co-founder of Women in the Mortgage Industry/Femme Dans l’Industrie Hypothecaire, Suzanne Fleur de Lys Aujla has taken on a key role in bringing wimitalks.ca, WIMI View and other business value-adds to the almost 3,000 women in the group. In addition to serving as regional business manager for British Columbia at Equitable Bank, Aujla sits on the Mortgage Professionals Canada BC Chapter’s Conference Committee and is a co-founder of the BC Lender’s Group.

With a passion for supporting the Canadian mortgage industry and her local community, Aujla is a lifelong advocate and supporter of education, charities and safety.

Through the years, she has supported numerous organizations, including the Surrey Food Bank, School District 36, Newton Association and Kares.ca, an organization she helped found, which focuses on empowering youth through engaging programs and services that make a substantial impact.

LUISA HOUGH Mortgage broker Verico Xeva Mortgages

A founding partner of Verico Xeva Mortgage, Luisa Hough co-manages a team of 85 and oversees an underwriting centre of eight underwriters in addition to managing her own book of business. With 14 years of experience in the mortgage industry under her belt, Hough has built a reputation for excellence and won the Canadian Mortgage Award for Mortgage Broker of the Year in 2016 in acknowledgement of her commitment to clients.

When asked about the most rewarding parts of the business, Hough lists “helping my clients reach their financial and real estate goals,” along with “teaching, guiding and watching first-time homebuyers achieve their first home” and her strong relationships with clients, who have become “friends and family.”

In her spare time, Hough is involved with the British Columbia Children’s Hospital and 100 Brokers Who Care, helping families within her community.

CARLA WRIGHT Managing mortgage broker Matrix Mortgage Global

Carla Wright is the information hub at Matrix Mortgage Global [MMG], sharing her insights on a weekly basis by training more than 100 agents on the team. Wright started her career on the A side of the mortgage industry and was a favourite with underwriters for always being thorough and prepared with her deal submissions. During her career, Wright has built a respected reputation within the broker community for her solution-driven approach to B and private lending.

In the last three years, her focus has been on forming investor relations and connecting borrowers with private funds.

Wright’s commitment to the growth of product offerings is making an impact in the lives of borrowers sidelined by restrictive lending guidelines. As a result of her efforts, Matrix Mortgage Global has been ranked as one of the top private lending brokerages in Canada.

BILLIE BURKE Mortgage agent Dominion Lending Centres Forest City Funding

Billie Burke gets to spend every day working side-by-side with her daughter, Kendra, adding to the joy she has every morning when arriving at work. “We come to the office each morning feeling like we are living a dream,” Burke says. “We get to enjoy work that feels more like a hobby.”

Beginning her mortgage journey back in 2002, Burke started working as a personal banker for a local CIBC branch. “The teary-eyed smiles on people’s faces when I said, ‘You’re approved’ was my motivator to do this full-time,” she says. Now with DLC, Burke says she feels blessed to be part of a team that supports her dreams, as well as her clients, every day.

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THE CHOICE IS YOURS WITH

MAGAZINE-EMAG

WEBSITE-ENEWSLETTER-MULTIMEDIA

CMP magazine features a series of industry reports recognizing the achievements of key individuals and businesses as well as providing the latest in business best practice. Access every emag from our website or download on your iPad from the iTunes store for access anywhere, anytime.

Mortgage Broker News is an online industry hub committed to delivering the latest industry news, opinion and analysis for today’s sophisticated mortgage professional. Subscribe to the exclusive e-newsletter and get up-to-the-minute broker news delivered to your inbox daily.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT WWW.MORTGAGEBROKERNEWS.CA 22-43_Women of Influence2-SUBBED purple.indd 43

15/06/2017 8:36:58 AM

PEOPLE

BROKER INSIGHT

The view from the top Jim Tourloukis, Canada’s number-one broker by volume, tells CMP about his experiences in the industry and his thoughts on recent changes

CMP: What made you first get into the mortgage broker industry?

Jim Tourloukis: Prior to joining this industry, I was the CFO of the Canadian arm of the world’s largest mutual fund company servicing financial advisors. At that time, nobody was working with financial advisors to service their clients’ mortgage needs. I saw an opportunity and started my company to do just that. Doing so gave me access to over 30,000 clients, and my first year was about $100 million in mortgage production. Today, most financial advisors have this type of service directly or through firms like mine.

CMP: How would you describe your time in the industry?

JT: I have really enjoyed working in this industry, not only because I get to run my own firm and be in charge of my own destiny, but because we really make a positive impact on our customers’ bottom line.

We truly save our clients money and provide them with solutions that put them in a much better financial position.

From an industry perspective, it is one of the best industries. I have had the opportunity to work with some of the best and smartest people in the business and have had a fun time doing so. I look forward to the next 10 years.

the recent measures introduced by the Ontario government to cool the housing market?

JT: I think it is important that the government do something, as a 30%+ increase year-over-year is just not sustainable and would lead to a major correction down the road should this have continued.

Having said that, I’m not sure that these changes will lead to a long-term solution for the GTA. There is just too much demand and not enough supply, and economic forces will prevail, which might mean that the GTA will be out of the reach of the average Canadian. This is no different from what you see in Manhattan, where the average person cannot afford to live on the island and commutes to work from the outskirts.

I’m afraid this could be our new reality in the GTA.

CMP: How have the last few years been from your perspective?

JT: Business has been fantastic, and I

continue to see tremendous growth yearover-year. Has the business gotten tougher with more stringent rules? Of course it has.

However, I have been fortunate in that most of my business is AAA+ clients, where things continue to be business as usual.

CMP: What’s the secret behind your success in the industry?

JT: I think there are many factors that have led to my success, none more important than what I call value-added service to our clients. Not only do we save our clients time and money, but we also give them solutions they may not have implemented. This is evidenced by the fact that over 60% of our business is from past clients or referrals from past clients.

Of course, none of our clients would be happy without the perfect execution from my staff, John Papadopoulos and Jerry Danese. John and Jerry are the best in the industry and always put the client first.

There is no success without John and Jerry.

TIPS FROM CANADA’S NUMBER-ONE BROKER “The business has become a lot more difficult and competitive, and as such, business growth is tougher for those starting out. My advice to brokers is to try to provide value to your clients – whatever ‘value’ means to your clients – and to make it easy to deal with you. For those starting out, find yourself a mentor in the business and learn from their successes and failures. You will find that most successful people are thrilled to give back to those starting out.”

CMP: What are your thoughts on

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FAST FACTS: JIM TOURLOUKIS

Works at Verico Advent Mortgage Services, based in Unionville, Ontario

His total loan volume for 2016 was $363.5 million, across 764 loans

Ranked third on CMP ’s Top 75 Brokers list in 2012 and second in 2016 before being named number one in 2017

Earned an MBA from the Schulich School of Business at York University

“I’m not sure that these changes will lead to a long-term solution for the GTA. There is just too much demand and not enough supply, and economic forces will prevail” CMP: What do you get up to in your spare time?

JT: Oddly enough, I have set my business up so that I do have plenty of spare time to spend with friends and family. Most important to me is to spend time with my wife and children. I make it a habit to

drop off my kids to school every morning and pick them up in the afternoon. This is time that I cherish greatly. As a family, we do extensive travelling during the year, as we enjoy discovering different parts of the world. Dinners out with friends are also a favourite pastime.

Previously served as CFO of Fidelity Investments

Achieved $100 million in total volume in his first year as a broker

60% of his business is from past clients or referrals from past clients

www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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10 AM

PEOPLE

CAREER PATH

A PROACTIVE APPROACH Driven by an entrepreneurial spirit, Paul Bojakli has found that in every new challenge lies another chance to improve

A pivotal moment for Bojakli came when he had to give up a university football scholarship to go to work in order to save the family home after his father lost his job “My parents had major debt. They worked with the bank manager to pay off the loan, and then we were able to get back on track. I was put in a position where I had to step up, and my life changed”

1985 STEPS UP 1988

1990

GOES OUT ON HIS OWN Bojakli leapt at the opportunity to start his own business with the help of his uncle and a ‘brick’ mobile phone. The company – a detailing shop – quickly grew to 15 employees “I realized I needed to bang on doors and provide a value proposition – I was competing in an unfavourable market due to general downturn, and all you had was your word. That was the moment when I realized how important focus is – when you focus, there’s acceleration”

2000

BECOMES A RESTAURATEUR A contact from the Canadian Business Network approached Bojakli to start a restaurant franchise in a touristy area of downtown Calgary. The location – on the second story of the old Alberta Hotel – posed a particular challenge, thanks to crumbling walls, warped floors and an open atrium “with pigeon doo everywhere” “The majority of our investors thought we were crazy, but it met with tremendous success – we returned our investors’ money in 18 months on a five-year plan”

2009

FOUNDS HIS OWN BROKERAGE

Stymied at a brokerage that didn’t fit his priorities, Bojakli decided to go out on his own and co-founded Quantus Mortgage Solutions “They wouldn’t let us grow, there was no transparency, and you were only as good as your volume as opposed to the effort, your integrity or the relationships you had. Our brokerage is completely opposed to that. Most recently, we won the Canadian Mortgage Award for Brokerage of the Year in 2016 – that was special to us because we’re still young”

TURNS A NEGATIVE INTO A POSITIVE A job as manager of a restaurant and bar taught Bojakli the value of service, the importance of the customer experience, and how to take a negative experience and turn it into positive one

“I see the opportunity to make friends, to build relationships with clients, even off an awful experience if need be – it’s even more important to be proactive in those situations” 1995

TAKES UP INVESTING After selling his thriving business, Bojakli decided to start investing in real estate. With other investors, he joined the Canadian Business Network, a network of entrepreneurs that functions as a venture capital company, filtering opportunities in order to marry them to investors in the group. Around this time, he also got his real estate licence “It was mostly for me so I didn’t have a middleman”

2004

GETS MOTIVATED A chance conversation with his best friend set the stage for Bojakli to get his broker’s licence “He told me he hired staff as if he wanted them to be the general manager one day. I realized I was managing people who were not committed to their profession and had no pride in what they were doing. I was explaining this and saying, ‘I wish I could just rely on myself’ – it triggered something in me, and I haven’t looked back”

www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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PEOPLE

OTHER LIFE

TELL US ABOUT YOUR OTHER LIFE Email mortgagebrokernews@kmimedia.ca

10

Typical number of students in one of Crispin’s classes

11

Years Crispin has been a ski instructor

20,000

Number of members in the Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance

CONQUERING THE SLOPES When Tamara Crispin isn’t working in private lending, she’s out helping timid skiers find their footing ON SKIS since the age of four, Tamara Crispin seeks out fresh powder whenever she can. However, the Toronto-based mortgage administrator had never considered teaching others to ski until she signed up for a pivotal class with an instructor whom she describes as “a legend in the Canadian ski teaching world.” He mentored her and encouraged her to become a ski instructor herself. “He saw that I had technical ability,” Crispin says, “but most important was my passion for the sport.”

It’s this unbridled enthusiasm that led to Crispin’s favourite class to teach – one geared toward female skiers fearful of the slopes. “I saw the ladies sitting in the clubhouse while their husbands and kids were out having adventures – and now they can’t wait to get out and have fun too!”

For some, the fear stems from a previous serious injury, while others know they can’t afford to get injured. Crispin teaches them the skills they need to stay in control on skis while also taking on new

challenges. “We work seriously and laugh a lot,” she says. “At the end of the lesson, they go home and brag to their families about their achievements.”

The class is officially called Conquer Your Fear, but participants refer to themselves as ‘Las Conquistadoras,’ proudly wearing logo-ed buttons made by Crispin’s highly supportive boss. “I get such delight from helping them advance,” Crispin says, “and seeing their confidence blossom to the point they start signing up for races!”

48 www.mortgagebrokernews.ca

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