Roswell’s Home Town Mortgage has something important in common with Georgia’s beloved breakfast classic, Waffle House. Steve Beecham, founder and partner at Home Town explains, “Yes, we say we are open 24/7 like the Waffle House. In other words we never take time off from doing someone’s loan or answering their questions. Someone is here to help when you need it, including evenings and weekends!”
Steve and his son Connor have built the business over the last decade and have reaped the rewards beyond just success. "We both teach each other. Most parents just want to tell their kids what to do, but I have tried to be very open about new ideas,” says Steve. “Social Media is a big one for me. Connor has a lot more expertise and we have tapped into that.”
Connor has handled hiring with Steve’s input and together they learn what works and what doesn’t. “I always give my opinion if I have one, but I always say, 'try it and see what happens.' A lot of learning to grow and operate a business is by trial and error and you need to let each other try new things,” says Steve.
Together, they find that first-time buyers generally want to know how much they qualify for. “They have no idea what they can buy or how much money they need to have. When we work with first-time buyers, we try to go over everything with them including how tax and insurance escrows are calculated and who can gift them money,” says Steve.
"Right now," he explains, "it is just finding a house that is in your price range and beating out others who might want it too. Competition is fierce in the $300-$600k price range right now and a lot of people are still making multiple offers to get a home."
“Often our clients need our advice on navigating real estate after a divorce with questions like, can they buy a new home without selling their current one? They trust us to help them prepare and handle issues large and small. Others call on us again because we took care of them like family.”
He’s been able to hit the road at this stage of his career, sharing his knowledge at industry conferences for business owners and professional salespeople or Zoom workshops with smaller groups.
This year he did a keynote in New Orleans for Spherion, a franchise model for the staffing industry. He was also a speaker at Tarkenton Financial in Nashville. They wholesale financial products like annuities to mostly independent financial advisors.
We asked him to share three highlights from his recent presentations.
1. I can’t spend money with you if I don’t know you exist. You have to get in front of people so they know to give you a call.
2. If you change your mindset to giving instead of taking there is no one you can't talk to. Go into every conversation wondering how you can be Santa Claus for the person in front of you. How can you WOW them.
3. Always leave people with a picture of what you are looking for, not an elevator speech. People see pictures!
Find Steve and Connor at Home Town Mortgage
199 Academy St Alpharetta
770.634.2531
678.543.4152
A lot of learning to grow and operate a business is by trial and error and you need to let each other try new things
