First Home News Archives

Scotsman Guide Names First Home Mortgage Top Mortgage Lender 2018

Posted on May 30, 2019April 28, 2021 by Emily Andrews

Bothell, Washington — Scotsman Guide congratulates First Home Mortgage for ranking on Scotsman Guide’s seventh annual Top Mortgage Lenders rankings. First Home was ranked #37 for Top Overall Volume.

This is the seventh year that Scotsman Guide has compiled rankings for Top Mortgage Lenders, and the seventh year First Home has made the Top Lenders list. These rankings complement Scotsman Guide’s 10th annual Top Originators rankings. The list will appear in print in June’s Residential Edition. All rankings are online at scotsmanguide.com/rankings and in Scotsman Guide’s digital edition at sg-resdigital.com.

This is the industry’s most comprehensive verified rankings of the nation’s top-producing mortgage companies. To ensure that we publish the most accurate data possible, all submitted data undergoes an extensive verification and auditing process prior to the publication of the rankings.

Scotsman Guide Top Originators of 2018

Posted on April 1, 2019May 25, 2022 by Emily Andrews

The Scotsman Guide has released its tenth annual Top Originator rankings for 2018. This guide provides the most comprehensive, intensely verified list of the top-producing mortgage professionals in the nation.

The rankings include not only the originators who are closing the most dollar volume and the most loans but also the leaders in niche areas, like the Federal Housing Administration, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and U.S. Department of Agriculture loans.

We are excited to announce that First Home Mortgage Corporation had a total of 7 Loan Officers represented in this year’s rankings! Check out the list below to see which categories were represented by our branches:

Top Dollar Volume (Crofton, Bethesda)
Most Loan Closed (Crofton)
Top FHA Volume (Annapolis)
Top USDA Volume (Hollywood, Dunkirk)
Top Women Originators (Annapolis, McLean)

For the entire list of the Scotsman Guide Top Originators of 2018, click here.

Congratulations to all our Loan Officers on this outstanding achievement!

Top Loan Originators in the Country 2018- Mortgage Executive Magazine

Posted on March 12, 2019May 25, 2022 by Emily Andrews

Once again, Mortgage Executive Magazine compiled a list of the nation’s Top 1% of Mortgage Originators. To be eligible for such an achievement, each Loan Originator was required to produce a minimum of $30 million in 2018. These leading mortgage professionals continually dedicated their time and energy and worked extremely hard to make sure their clients received the utmost service throughout the 2018 year.

For the 2018 year, 20 Loan Officers from First Home Mortgage were included in the list!

CONGRATULATIONS to:

Mike Archer, Anne Borghesani, Heather Devoto, Ann Flaherty, Alex Jaffe, Tammi Lewis, Rob Mercer, Jim Moran, Mike Nadeau, Jason Nader, Matt Nader, Ryan Paquin, Todd Pede, Ayaz Rahemanji, Jake Ryon, Kari Story, Scott Story, Mike Taylor, David Toaff and Gabe Tuvek

Mortgage Executive Magazine also recognized the Top 200 Originators In America 2018. These Loan Officers were ranked by their total yearly mortgage volume. Congratulations to Ryan Paquin and David Toaff on this fine achievement!

Wire Fraud on the Rise

Posted on September 6, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

E-mail hacking and wire fraud schemes are on the rise in the mortgage industry. In the past few years, homebuyers have been schemed into losing thousands of their hard-earned dollars, and unfortunately, a lot of that money has not been recovered.

So what exactly is wire fraud? It’s a crime in which a person (hacker) creates a scheme to defraud or steal money based on fabricated information. It is common for hackers to gain access to e-mail addresses, whether they are from a settlement agent, title company, realtor or mortgage lender, and impersonate them. The hacker will send an authentic looking e-mail to the borrower with a new set of wire instructions. These wire instructions route the money to a fraudulent bank account rather than the settlement agent’s account. Once the money is out of the borrower’s account, it is very difficult to trace where it was sent, making it tough to recover.

While this is a widespread problem, there are ways borrowers can prevent being schemed into wire fraud.

Carefully verify all e-mail addresses on every e-mail received and sent. Hackers will slightly adjust the appearance of an e-mail address to make it seem like an original copy. Even if the signature line and logos are exactly the same, pay attention to the actual e-mail address.
Always call the settlement agent to confirm the wire instructions before sending any money. Use a previously known or verified phone number.
Instead of wiring money, ask if a certified check or cashier’s check can be brought to closing.
If you receive an e-mail changing the wire instructions, call the settlement agent immediately! Wire instructions seldom change. Again, use a previously known or verified number. DO NOT use the phone number in the e-mail with the revised wire instructions, this could be a number directed to the hacker.
After wire instructions and have confirmed and money wired, call the settlement agent to confirm the money was received.
Instead of having wire instructions sent through e-mail, pick them up from the settlement agent’s office.

If you suspect you have been targeted for wire fraud or something seems out of the ordinary, don’t hesitate to reach out to your loan officer or settlement agent. Raising concern and asking a few extra questions is a lot better than losing thousands of dollars, and most likely losing the house you worked so hard to get.

Ocean City Has Been Awarded the “Best Of”

Posted on July 11, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

Coastal Style Magazine, a publication that celebrates the luxury lifestyle of the Mid-Atlantic region, just announced the winners of their annual “Best Of” Awards, and our Ocean City branch has taken top honors this year!

This was the 6th Annual “Best Of” Awards, and the winners were chosen exclusively by Coastal Style readers through an online ballot. Over 10 categories were created, such as Fitness and Recreation, Food and Beverage, and Entertainment, to showcase the best of the best in the mid-Atlantic region. From May 1-31, readers were able to vote on their top choice for each category.

Being contenders in the Professional category, First Home Mortgage has been awarded Best Mortgage Company in Worcester County. The entire Ocean City branch has been named Best Mortgage Team for 2018 and loan officer, Kari Story, has been crowned Best Mortgage Specialist for the 6th year running! Congratulations to Kari and the entire team for these outstanding achievements!

Be sure to pick up a copy of the September/October issue of Coastal Style Magazine or visit their website to check out the entire list of winners. Coastal Style Magazine is distributed to audiences along the beaches of Delaware, Ocean City and throughout Salisbury.

First Home Mortgage Recognized as the Best for 2018

Posted on May 30, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

The results are in! Ask a Lender recently released their most comprehensive rankings of the Best Mortgage Lenders in the nation in several categories, including Best Mortgage Lenders, Best First-Time Homebuyer Lenders, Best FHA Mortgage Lenders, among several other categories. Many of First Home Mortgage’s Loan Officers have been recognized as the best in each of these categories, per state. This incredible achievement reflects the dedication of our Loan Officers to their borrowers throughout the entire mortgage process and their continued support long after a loan has closed. Each member of the FHMC team is focused on delivering customer service that not only fulfills goals, but exceeds expectations.

Ask a Lender was created by Scotsman Guide Media Inc., a national business-to-business magazine that provides lender-search resources nationwide. As a client, Ask a Lender gives access to an online platform that will connect you with the top lenders in your area, giving you the opportunity to contact your matches and compare offers.

Ask a Lender’s Best of the Best lists for 2018:

BEST MORTGAGE LENDERS	BEST FHA MORTGAGE LENDERS
Neil Bourdelaise-Florida Ryan Paquin-Maryland Kari Story-Maryland David Toaff-Maryland Alex Jaffe-Maryland Michael Taylor-Maryland Tammi Lewis-Maryland Pete O’Donnell-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland Robert O’Connell-Maryland James Moran-Maryland Ayaz Rahemanji-Maryland David Strassner-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Samuel Kotzur-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Tom Cumpston-Maryland Jeffrey Halbert-Maryland Tony Olmert-Maryland Tim Reinhart-Maryland Derek Schwarz-Maryland Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts Michael Nadeau-Massachusetts David Licciardi-Massachusetts Karen Dulmage-North Carolina Sal Savastano-Rhode Island John Savastano-Rhode Island Gabe Tuvek-South Carolina Bill Payne-South Carolina Derek Evans-Virginia Carolyn Flitcroft-Virginia Marc Aymard-Virginia Heather Devoto-Virginia Jake Ryon-DC	Neil Bourdelaise-Florida Tammi Lewis-Maryland Ryan Paquin-Maryland Michael Taylor-Maryland Tom Cumpston-Maryland Pete O’Donnell-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland Robert O’Connell-Maryland Ayaz Rahemanji-Maryland Derek Schwarz-Maryland Olu Ajayi-Maryland Alex Jaffe-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland David Toaff-Maryland Tim Milauskas-Maryland David Strassner-Maryland Brian Foss-Maryland Brian McDermott-Maryland Jeffrey St. Clair-Maryland Cathy Ocharzak-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Marshall Feldman-Maryland Tim Reinhart-Maryland James Moran-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Ann Palrang-Maryland Chris Sittig-Maryland Annaliese Baamonde-Maryland Brian Coleman-Maryland Hillary Cochin-Maryland David Licciardi-Massachusetts Michael Nadeau-Massachusetts Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts John Dolbec-Massachusetts	Nathan Hartseil-Massachusetts Karen Dulmage-North Carolina Sal Savastano-Rhode Island Patricia Vargas-Rhode Island John Savastano-Rhode Island David Travers-Rhode Island Gabe Tuvek-South Carolina Derek Evans-Virginia Jeff Richards-Virginia David Black-Virginia Clay Carroll-Virginia Bruce Rosenberger-Virginia Marc Aymard-Virginia Heather Devoto-Virginia Licela Rojas de Barriga-Virginia Ingrid Rapavy-DC Jake Ryon-DC

BEST VA MORTGAGE LENDERS	BEST LOW-CREDIT MORTGAGE LENDERS
Neil Bourdelaise-Florida Pete O’Donnell-Maryland Marshall Feldman-Maryland James Moran-Maryland Ryan Paquin-Maryland Tim Milauskas-Maryland David Toaff-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Michael Taylor-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland Brian Foss-Maryland Tammi Lewis-Maryland Tony Olmert-Maryland Ayaz Rahemanji-Maryland Chris Sittig-Maryland Brian McDermott-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Jeff St. Clair-Maryland Alex Jaffe-Maryland Robert O’Connell-Maryland Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts Karen Dulmage-North Carolina John Savastano-Rhode Island Gabe Tuvek-South Carolina Bill Payne-South Carolina Heather Devoto-Virginia Marc Aymard-Virginia Carolyn Flitcroft-Virginia Derek Evans-Virginia Ann Flaherty-Virginia David Black-Virginia Bruce Rosenberger-Virginia Jeff Richards-Virginia Paul Nagel-Virginia Jake Ryon-DC	Neil Bourdelaise-Florida Ryan Paquin-Maryland Kari Story-Maryland David Toaff-Maryland Alex Jaffe-Maryland Michael Taylor-Maryland Tammi Lewis-Maryland Pete O’Donnell-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland Robert O’Connell-Maryland James Moran-Maryland Ayaz Rahemanji-Maryland David Strassner-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Samuel Kotzur-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Tom Cumpston-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland Tony Olmert-Maryland Tim Reinhart-Maryland Derek Schwarz-Maryland Todd Pede-Maryland Tim Milauskas-Maryland Brian Foss-Maryland Cathy Ocharzak-Maryland Rob Mercer-Maryland Marshall Feldman-Maryland Brian Coleman-Maryland Chris Sittig-Maryland Brian McDermott-Maryland Travis Vollmerhausen-Maryland Hillary Cochin-Maryland Jeff St. Clair-Maryland Olu Ajayi-Maryland	Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts Michael Nadeau-Massachusetts David Licciardi-Massachusetts John Dolbec-Massachusetts Nathan Hartseil-Massachusetts Karen Dulmage-North Carolina Sal Savastano-Rhode Island John Savastano-Rhode Island Patricia Vargas-Rhode Island David Travers-Rhode Island Gabe Tuvek-South Carolina Bill Payne-South Carolina Derek Evans-Virginia Carolyn Flitcroft-Virginia Marc Aymard-Virginia Heather Devoto-Virginia Bruce Rosenberger-Virginia Jeff Richards-Virginia Clay Carroll-Virginia David Black-Virginia Ann Flaherty-Virginia Paul Nagel-Virginia Jake Ryon-DC Ingrid Rapavy-DC

BEST USDA HOME LENDERS	BEST LOW DOWN PAYMENT LENDERS
James Moran-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Ryan Paquin-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland Brian Foss-Maryland Cathy Ocharzak-Maryland Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts	Neil Bourdelaise-Florida Ryan Paquin-Maryland Kari Story-Maryland David Toaff-Maryland Alex Jaffe-Maryland Michael Taylor-Maryland Tammi Lewis-Maryland Pete O’Donnell-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland Robert O’Connell-Maryland James Moran-Maryland Ayaz Rahemanji-Maryland David Strassner-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Samuel Kotzur-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Tom Cumpston-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland Tony Olmert-Maryland Tim Reinhart-Maryland Derek Schwarz-Maryland Todd Pede-Maryland Tim Milauskas-Maryland Brian Foss-Maryland Cathy Ocharzak-Maryland Rob Mercer-Maryland Marshall Feldman-Maryland Brian Coleman-Maryland Chris Sittig-Maryland	Brian McDermott-Maryland Travis Vollmerhausen-Maryland Hillary Cochin-Maryland Jeff St. Clair-Maryland Olu Ajayi-Maryland Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts Michael Nadeau-Massachusetts David Licciardi-Massachusetts John Dolbec-Massachusetts Nathan Hartseil-Massachusetts Karen Dulmage-North Carolina Sal Savastano-Rhode Island John Savastano-Rhode Island Patricia Vargas-Rhode Island David Travers-Rhode Island Gabe Tuvek-South Carolina Bill Payne-South Carolina Derek Evans-Virginia Carolyn Flitcroft-Virginia Marc Aymard-Virginia Heather Devoto-Virginia Bruce Rosenberger-Virginia Jeff Richards-Virginia Clay Carroll-Virginia David Black-Virginia Ann Flaherty-Virginia Paul Nagel-Virginia Jake Ryon-DC Ingrid Rapavy-DC

BEST MORTGAGE REFINANCE LENDERS	BEST FIRST-TIME HOMEBUYER LENDERS
Ryan Paquin-Maryland Pete O’Donnell-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland David Strassner-Maryland Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts David Licciardi-Massachusetts Michael Nadeau-Massachusetts Sal Savastano-Rhode Island John Savastano-Rhode Island	Neil Bourdelaise-Florida Ryan Paquin-Maryland Kari Story-Maryland David Toaff-Maryland Alex Jaffe-Maryland Tammi Lewis-Maryland Michael Taylor-Maryland Robert O’Connell-Maryland Ayaz Rahemanji-Maryland Pete O’Donnell-Maryland James Moran-Maryland Scott Story-Maryland Rob Mercer-Maryland Eric Short-Maryland Darren Rickwood-Maryland Samuel Kotzur-Maryland David Strassner-Maryland Tom Cumpston-Maryland Derek Schwarz-Maryland Tim Reinhart-Maryland Tony Olmert-Maryland Todd Pede-Maryland Brian Foss-Maryland Jeff Halbert-Maryland Cathy Ocharzak-Maryland Tim Milauskas-Maryland	Marshall Feldman-Maryland Brian Coleman-Maryland Hillary Cochin-Maryland Jeff St. Clair-Maryland Chris Sittig-Maryland Anne Borghesani-Massachusetts Michael Nadeau-Massachusetts David Licciardi-Massachusetts John Dolbec-Massachusetts Karen Dulmage-North Carolina Sal Savastano-Rhode Island John Savastano-Rhode Island Patricia Vargas-Rhode Island Gabe Tuvek-South Carolina Bill Payne-South Carolina Derek Evans-Virginia Carolyn Flitcroft-Virginia Heather Devoto-Virginia Marc Aymard-Virginia Clay Carroll-Virginia Bruce Rosenberger-Virginia David Black-Virginia Jeff Richards-Virginia Ann Flaherty-Virginia Jake Ryon-DC Ingrid Rapavy-DC

The loan officer’s in bold are ranked in the top ten of their state.

For more information on the rankings, visit Ask a Lender, or contact one of our Loan Officer’s, today.

National Mortgage News Top Producers of 2018

Posted on April 16, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

National Mortgage News is a digital information resource providing news analysis and perspective on regulation, compliance, technology and loss mitigation for the entire mortgage industry. Each year, this resource ranks the country’s top producing loan officers and mortgage brokers. 2018 marks the 20th anniversary of this Top Producers program which highlights those who pursued new market opportunities and progressed from industry challenges.

According to National Mortgage News, these Top Producers are “embracing the digital tools and marketing techniques in an effort to enhance referral relationships and increase their operating efficiency.” With the refinance market weakened, these loan officers and mortgage brokers were prepared for the change and continued to come out on top.

Among the list of these Top Producers are First Home’s very own. A BIG CONGRATULATIONS goes to:

David Toaff
Alex Jaffe
Scott Story
Neil Bourdelaise
Gabe Tuvek
Carolyn Flitcroft
James Moran
Anne Borghesani
Bob O’Connell
David Strassner
Karen Dulmage
Bill Payne

To read more about this amazing achievement and who made the list, click here.

Learn more about the home buying process from one of our award-winning loan officers, today!

The Scotsman Guide Top Originators of 2017

Posted on April 5, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

The Scotsman Guide has released their ninth annual Top Originator rankings for 2017. This Guide provides the most comprehensive, intensely verified list of the top-producing mortgage professionals of the nation. With more than 3,000 entrants, only 641 originators made it with 500 of them contributing to the total of 146,155 loans closed with a group volume of $50 billion. What an achievement!

With the inevitable rise of rates in 2017, these mortgage originators were able to “tweak their marketing strategies to target the thriving purchase market,” according to Rania Efthemes, director of content strategy for the Scotsman Guide Media. Despite this rise, these best performers were able to pull through showing their continued dedication of helping people achieve homeownership.

With that said, I am pleased to announce that First Home Mortgage Corporation’s Ryan Paquin and David Toaff were among the 500 Loan Originators named for Top Dollar Volume of 2017. Congratulations Ryan and David!

In addition, James Moran was listed as one of the top 25 Loan Originators in USDA volume (niche category). Niches are rankings of Originators based on dollar volumes of loans financed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). These top 25 Loan Originators of the 2017 USDA volume list closed a total of $217 million in mortgages. Congratulations James!

For the entire list of the Scotsman Guide Top Originators of 2017, click here.

First Home Receives First Place Top Producing Lender 2017 Award by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development

Posted on March 2, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

On January 19th, 2018, the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development honored its top four performing lender partners of 2017 – First Home Mortgage Corporation acknowledged as their Top Producing Lender. With an audience of nearly 300 program partners, the department debuted their redesigned website, presented their new enhancements and processes on new loan and down payment assistance products and expressed their gratitude for these top performing lenders.

Did you know that between 2015 and 2017 the Maryland Mortgage Program assisted more than 7,800 homebuyers? This means over $39 million was provided for down payment assistance and $1.5 billion in mortgages.

INCREDIBLE!

According to the Department of Housing and Community Development, “the Maryland Mortgage Program has been the state’s flagship homeownership program for more than 35 years, providing fixed-rate mortgages, primarily to first-time homebuyers, along with down payment and closing cost incentives.” With the announcement of these new loan and program enhancements, homeownership in Maryland is even more affordable than ever before.

These enhancements include:

The existing 4% Grant Assist program for down payment assistance can now be used for FHA loans as well as Conventional, USDA, and VA loans
Creation of the Maryland 6% Opportunity Grant to increase access to homeownership for lower income homebuyers (for HFA Advantage mortgages only)
New Maryland Credit 640 program to assist homebuyers with FICO scores in the 640-659 range when purchasing a home in Maryland
New program website to be more user-friendly and responsive for all customers

To read more on First Home’s announcement as Top Producing Lender by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, click here.

To learn more on how to get started with a Maryland Mortgage Program, contact a First Home Loan Officer.

Top 1% Loan Originators in the Country for 2017 – Mortgage Executive Magazine

Posted on February 23, 2018November 17, 2020 by Emily Andrews

2017 was a big year for First Home Mortgage Corporation. The Mortgage Executive Magazine compiled a list of The Nations Top 1% of Mortgage Originators. Included in this comprehensive list is 37 of First Home’s very own Loan Originators.

WOW!

To be eligible for such an achievement, each Loan Originator was required to produce a minimum of $30 million in 2017. These leading mortgage professionals continually dedicated their time and energy and worked extremely hard to make sure their clients received the utmost service throughout the 2017 year.

A BIG CONGRATULATIONS goes to:

Darran Anthony, Marc Aymard, Anne Borghesani, Neil Bourdelaise, Heather Devoto, Derek Evans, Michael Farrell, Karen Dulmage, Carolyn Flitcroft, Jeffrey Halbert, Alex Jaffe, Ann Kavadas-Flaherty, Tammi Lewis, Robert O’Connell, Peter O’Donnell, Michael Nadeau, Tony Olmert, James Moran, Ayaz Rahemanji, Ryan Paquin, Gary Pierpont, Bill Payne, Todd Pede, Timothy Reinhart, Evelyn Perez, Jeffrey Richards, Darren Rickwood, John Savastano, Salvatore Savastano, Bruce Rosenberger, Jake Ryon, Michael Taylor, Gabe Tuvek, Kari Story, Scott Story, David Strassner and David Toaff.

Tag: First Home News