“In New York, it takes a long time to close because it’s an attorney state,” he said, referring to the intense regulatory backdrop to the state. Consequently, a process that elsewhere may take a month from signing to close typically takes two to three months in New York, he explained. “It’s a journey,” he said with the clear-eyed lucidity of a mental health professional. “There’s a lot of things that happen and a lot of people involved. So, I found the psychology background really helps versus just a straight business background.”
Better opportunities would emerge
As he proceeded in his career, Russell said he would be presented with new opportunities about every couple of years. “I was never afraid of change or an opportunity,” he said. “Ironically, each time I found a new opportunity, I was doing financially better than I had been doing previously. My family always thought I was crazy taking on a new job when I was doing better financially, but I believe in myself and if I find a good opportunity and believe in something, I jump for it and know I’ll succeed.”
That innate confidence would guide him in launching RCG Mortgage in April 2017. “It took about two years for the licensing,” he said. “In the state of New York, they do a very high level of scrutiny to make sure you’re fit to open a mortgage company. It was me and two people. Fast forward to now and we have, at any given moment, between 40 to 50 people working here.”
Since then, he’s been named broker of the year two years in a row by the National Association of Mortgage Brokers and recognized as one of the top 10 mortgage loan originators nationwide. Russell singled out another accolade of which he’s especially proud: “In the local area, we’ve left our mark as the tried-and-trusted company. So, I think we’re doing pretty well.”
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Source: mpamag.com