Full Transcript is Below:
– It is Top Producer time once again. We are in the month of October, 2021. And we are traveling south of where I’m sitting right now. Deep South into the heartland of Texas, to Katy Texas just about 15 miles away from Houston where NFM’s Matt Westervelt is hanging out. He’s a Branch Manager for NFM who’s been here since August of 2020. Once aspired to be an NFL Quarterback and he joins us now on NFM TV. Matt, how are ya, buddy?
– I’m doing great Greg. Thanks for having me.
– It’s a pleasure. Let’s talk about this quarterback thing. I mean, I’ve stood next to you. Right? And, I’m obviously not a tall guy. Did you really think you had the height to be an NFL Quarterback? ‘Cause I think you’re about 5’10”- 5’11” maybe, all stretched out.
– I’m closer to 6’2, but I think I’ve shrunken an inch maybe as I’ve gotten older. That was the dream, back in the day. I grew up as a huge Buffalo Bills fan. Jim Kelly was my idol. I wore number 12. As I got a little bit older and realized that I wasn’t quite going to be the next Jim Kelly or Peyton Manning, I settled to maybe work on Wall Street one day was my dream as I got a little bit older.
– Yeah, they had some tough losses in those back to back to back to back Super Bowls. They lost them all, right? You must’ve been heartbroken as a kid. At you learned how to get over adversity, through those losses, huh?
– That’s right. They say the Bills stands for: Boy I Love Losing Super Bowls.
– I get it, I get it. Well you’re from Danbury Connecticut originally, so I don’t want everyone to think you’ve always been in the Houston area. What was it like growing up in Danbury? And what made you move down south?
– We grew up in a quintessential small, blue-collar New England town. About an hour north of Manhattan. So we considered ourselves, in that part of Connecticut, to be more New York than Boston.
– So you been in the business since 2013. So you’re going on your eighth year, and you kind of cut your teeth at Wells Fargo. How did you start, and how did you transition into this lovely world of mortgage banking?
– When I got out of college, I interned actually on Wall Street. Next to The Stock Exchange. Then took a job with Wells Fargo Advisors. Quickly realized that that’s just one of those business’ where the greyer your temples are the more credibility you have. And no one was handing over their life-savings to a 23 year old kid, right? But I was doing pretty well referring some mortgages to the Wells Fargo Home Mortgage team. So the branch manager of the Wells Fargo Home mortgage office at that time was a close family friend, and convinced me to switch sides and the rest is history.
– You’re a top 1% originator and you have eclipsed the 100 million dollar mark in personal production for two straight years. How have you been able to do that? What do you credit that to?
– I think it’s just having great partners, honestly, in the marketplace. As well as building the team that we built, right? I’m a huge proponent of The CORE. Obviously The CORE is not something that’s for everybody. I think it takes a specific type of person to surrender to that process and to surrender to Rick Ruby. I’ve been in the CORE for about three years now. The CORE and my coaches and mentors that I have through that organization have just changed both my business and my life for the better.
– Everybody hears about the CORE. And they hear about this, “It’s not for everyone”, what exactly does that mean?
– To be a good CORE student, you have to be humble enough to realize that there are people out there that know more than you do, right? I think sometimes as sales people we have big egos and we think our way is the best. And it’s really just the realization that, ‘hey, maybe your way isn’t the best, and let’s go emulate people that are doing what we want to do and what we want to achieve’.
– Can you name one particular thing that you used to do, that you no longer do, you thought it was great, and you learned through coaching that it’s not so great it’s helped to propel you.
– Up until about two or three years ago, I was one of those producers that tried to do it all on my own. And now, between processors and loan partners, I’ve got seven people on my team. So, not only have we been able to grow our business but, I’ve done it with a much better balance outside of the office as well.
– Well not only is your team growing, your family is growing too. By the time this airs here, the first Monday in October, you likely will have two daughters. Your wife is due any minute here. And we’re in late September recording this, so, you’ve got a house full of women, and you have a growing family. What’s that experience like?
– It’s hectic in the best way possible. Got a two year old, and another one on the way. It’s been amazing. Being a father is the joy of my life.
– You also have a couple of interesting hobbies. You love watches, cars, and cooking. I didn’t realize the cooking part. What’s your best dish? And don’t tell me wheat toast with butter, please. No, since moving to Texas, I have started learning about the art of smoking meat. My mom’s 100% Italian, so anything with red sauce, Sunday spaghetti and meat balls, that’s a specialty in my house.
– You hit the gym? You have a regiment?
– I do. Not as much as I probably should, but going back to my football roots, I always like to try and hit the weights a couple of times a week.
– Before I let you go, what made you choose NFM? What was that process like, and what has the experience been like for you?
– The transition has been quite frankly seamless. I think the reason I chose NFM was really the freedom that NFM and the executive team gives us here as branch managers and producers to truly be an entrepreneur with in NFM and build our business the way we see fit. NFM was just a perfect fit for me based upon our culture and structure.
– You just put your head down everyday. You grind, you go to work, you get it done. And we are totally psyched to have you here as a member of the NFM Family of Lenders, Matt. Thanks so much for joining us and for allowing us to feature you as our Top Producer for the month of October 2021, continued success.
– Thank you Greg, it’s an honor.
– That’s Matt Westervelt. Our Branch Manager in Katy, Texas. I’m Greg Sher, from NFM TV, we’ll see you next time.