Leo Suliaga's Journey Into Mortgage Business

Speaker 1 0:00

My name is Leon Suliaga and I am the operator for the Suliaga Group at Luminary Bank . I've been in business since 2003 , extremely passionate about this industry . You know , one of the things that I said in one of the books that I wrote was you know , you kind of trip into , you know , the mortgage business and it's been the greatest trip that I've ever had in my career Not the easiest one , for sure , but definitely the best , the best trip that I've ever had .

Speaker 2 0:26

Talk me through your journey , from how you got to where you are today .

Speaker 1 0:30

It's a long journey . So I'm not sure how many of your listeners know what a reader's digest is , so I'll just kind of give you the bullet points , right ? So you know , one of my , one of my really close childhood friends , you know said to me back then hey , I think you do really well in the mortgage business . You should consider , you know , coming and working with us . And I was like I'm not interested . You know , I'm in school , sounds like a pyramid scheme , you know what I mean . Like I was exposed to some of those pyramid schemes in the past and I was completely like , put off . And he's like well , I just bought my first house . And I was like , I was like what do you mean ? You buy a first house ? You're 19 years old , what are you talking about ? He's like yeah , I'm in the mortgage business . Now there's nothing to flex in that area , because everybody was in the mortgage business back in 2003 , right ? And so I went to his house . I saw the contract he had just put on his new condo and I looked at him and I was like Moses , how are you making so much money ? Is this legal ? Like you know , what are you doing ? Right ? And he essentially said totally legal . You know , it's just like I told you .

Speaker 1 1:33

You know , like we're in a mortgage space and so got into it , dove right in and , you know , started to climb this , this entire ladder , and then 2007 hit right , the liquidity crisis happened . And that was a real gut check , because one of the things that I always say is that is what Mike Tyson says right , everybody has a good plan until they get punched in the face , right ? Well , the entire industry got punched in the face in 2007 and the market just completely like changed , right ? I remember , like going to my boss's desk and saying , you know , hey , nathan , I have to fund this loan here tomorrow and I can't get a hold of the bank , and he's like the bank closed , that bank closed . So he's like you're going to have to find another route . That's how bad it was . But you know , I had two decisions , right , and this is kind of the bullet point version two decisions to essentially go either completely get out of the industry or just double down and to make a very , very long story short industry or just double down and to make a very , very long story short .

Speaker 1 2:28

He , nathan , actually was super instrumental because , even though I knew and understood the high level of the industry . I never really understood the business itself right and he was able to kind of like , you know , unpack . That , for me , pointed me in the right direction . Right before we started this I said you know , one of my passions is being an avid reader and he's like , hey , go read these books High Trust Selling by Todd Duncan , go follow this guy , tim Berheem , loan Toolbox , and then read this other guy , barry Habib , you know , mortgage Market Guide . And that's all I needed , right . So I went doubled down and little by little , like brick by brick , ever since then I've been building this business .

Speaker 2 3:06

That's beautiful . How many years ?

Speaker 1 3:08

So 2003 to now , what is that ? 22 years , yeah , 2025 ? Yeah , I think it was 2026 . Yeah , yeah .

Speaker 2 3:17

So you often say that home ownership should be intentional , not accidental . What does that mean for your clients and your team ?

Speaker 1 3:29

Yeah , I think proper planning prevents poor performance , and I feel like a lot of people in this industry we need to do a better job of giving our clients the plan what's the plan before , what's the plan during and what's the plan after ? Right . And so for years and I'm at fault of this as well , because this is something that I had to learn the hard way For years , all that we talked about was the during piece . Right , like what happens during the transaction . We're going to give you a great rate , we're going to make sure that we close on time and we're going to make sure that this process is smooth . In other words , we're really good at during right , but that's 10% of the value

Intentional vs. Accidental Home Ownership

Speaker 1 4:00

that a mortgage professional should be bringing to the table right . Of the value that a mortgage professional should be bringing to the table right , 40% of that is the before the preparation . What happens if this ? Then that A lot of times , consumers whether it's first-time home buyers , move-up buyers , people that are investors or people that are downsized right , they're probably gonna do this max six times in their life , right , we do this every single day and we're expecting them to be as prepared as we are , and so constant reaction during the transaction is literally a lack of preparation before and then the after .

Speaker 1 4:32

Huge right . The after , you know , is a major piece . You know it's 50% of the actual process , right ? What happens after ? Right , most institutions are just going to drop you and say , hey , congratulations , here are the keys to your house . But there has to be a plan afterwards and how to help these consumers manage the largest liability that they're going to have on their balance sheet , which is their mortgage . And so , yeah , we can't be accidental , we have to be intentional in that process with our clients .

Speaker 2 4:58

Just real quickly , because I don't know what is the after . What do you do after ?

Speaker 1 5:01

Yeah , so we have a client success manager and a team that essentially engages our clients as long as they actually own the property . So it's essentially a concierge service . So , as soon as the transaction closes , jill and her team essentially will not only call the client seven days later , 30 days later , they'll essentially make sure that their payments are actually set up online in the portal . Three months later they're going to make sure that their escrows are about to be dispersed and ultimately have a resource , a point of contact for all things regarding the actual mortgage right . And so if a client gets something in the mail , oftentimes they'll say what is this ? Is this spam ? Is this a legit solicitation ? What is this ? Jill is there to answer those questions , right ? If they need a recommendation for a roofer , if they need a recommendation for a cleaner , if they need recommendations for a gardener , jill can essentially connect them to all . So it really is a concierge service post-closing that we do in a very proactive manner after the transaction closes .

Speaker 2 6:00

I've bought three houses and I've never ever had a level of that service .

Speaker 1 6:04

Yeah , yeah , I mean , and again I can know this is not something that you know I used to do on a regular basis . Yeah , this is something that has come in the last few years . Right , and so to your point . Right , like proper planning prevents poor performance literally means we have to have a process in place .

Speaker 2 6:20

Yeah , that's , that's wonderful . I love that . As a business owner , I love that . Yeah . What core values drive your team and how do these values shape the client experience ?

Speaker 1 6:29

Okay . So on the business side , I really do believe this to the core . Everybody deserves the best price , the best advice and the best client experience . Okay , the best price mortgage rates are mortgage rates . I don't know why our industry is overcomplicated this entire thing and interest rates you can literally Google today and be like what does a 30-year fixed mortgage look like ? And Google is going to give you an

Core Values Driving Client Experience

Speaker 1 6:50

aggregate in terms of where the market is Now for the newer generation . Go to ChatGPT or some of these AI tools and they'll do the exact same thing . So rates are rates , right , so the market . But everybody deserves a competitive pricing right . But they also deserve the best advice right .

Speaker 1 7:10

When you start to your search online . When you start your search , you know on the different platforms that stuff is important , but it needs to be bespoke at some point . That's where advice comes in right . Our designations you know our CMP has designation , for example . Our certified mortgage planning specialist right designation allows us to give the level of advice that a CMP or a certified financial planner , I'm sorry would give on the mortgage side of things .

Speaker 1 7:32

So how does this loan fit into everything we're trying to do financially ? A mortgage is not just a rate and a payment . It really is one slice of your overall financial picture , right ? So how does this entire thing fit together ? So the advice piece is huge and we really drill down on that . But then experience , okay , again , proper planning prevents poor performance , right ?

Speaker 1 7:51

The majority of people if you look at the Myers-Briggs , okay are present voice people , right and so meaning they need a pathway , they need a plan , they need a step-by-step process for them to follow , right ? And I think a lot of times you know people in our industry gets in trouble because you have people that are future voices , people that have big aspirations , big views , but they don't have a process , right ? And so for years now , we've implemented a process it's called our Excellent Loan Process , our ELP , and we work with the Ritz-Carlton Leadership Development to develop this process and every single month , every single quarter , every single year , we refine this process , little by little , so that the consumer , when they come to our practice , they know that it's not just going to be a reactive approach but a practice . So those are some of the fundamental core beliefs that we have in our practice .

Speaker 2 8:42

That's phenomenal . I'm going to have to ask you later about this Carlton piece . How does your family's influence , like your mother's saying , tell me who you surround yourself with and I'll tell you who you are guide the way that you lead today ?

Speaker 1 8:55

Yeah , my mom's my hero . She , she is literally the most important person . I mean no disrespect to my dad , of course , dad , I love you but she has been the backbone of our , of our family and the matriarch of our family , and hard work has been instilled in us since we were kids . But you know , I think that you can tell so much about someone by seeing who they surround themselves with right Now . I have two kids now , so I see Isaiah , I see Lucy , I see their friends and then I see their behavior from their friends . Right has been such an important principle in my household that she's instilled in me because it's allowed me to surround myself with people that are at a much higher degree further along in life and also in business . So , yeah , she's been instrumental in shaping who I am today , and obviously my brothers as well .

Speaker 2 9:49

Speaking of culture , how do you create a culture of growth and collaboration in initiatives like Leo Circle or the upcoming how To Collective ?

Speaker 1 9:58

a core belief of mine . Right , like you know one plus one is 11, . Right Like it's not two right , two minds . You know , if you guys don't know that , quote two minds , you know , one side by side equals 11 , right and Leo Circle , all these projects , the how To Collective , the pod , all of this stuff is literally designed to enhance in that collaboration , but also ,

Family Influence and Business Culture

Speaker 1 10:30

you know it's there because it's one of the core beliefs . You know that I have right , and so community is another one . Right Like hospitality is just one of the things that it just comes natural to me . And so having friends in the industry , not just in real estate , our financial advisor friends , our business partners , is incredible . So that's how that came about .

Speaker 2 10:50

That's beautiful . So for people that see home ownership as intimidating or out of reach , what advice would you give them ?

Speaker 1 10:57

Yeah , I mean it certainly is the biggest financial decision that you're going to make your entire life , right , like I mean , you're not buying a pair of shoes , you're investing the largest liability that you're going to you know to essentially take on your entire life . So it should be intimidating because it is right . But fear , right , false evidences appearing real is a really good acronym that I talk about with our clients on a regular basis . Right , fear is a real thing until you start to engage in the process . Right , again , it comes back to this process piece right , you know a lot of people are intimidated because they're trying to bite this elephant with one bite .

Speaker 1 11:38

It doesn't work that way , right , first , it's timelines , right , like , if you're thinking about investing in real estate , I always talk about the rule of 50% . I say , hey look , whatever your timeline is , if it's two years , it doesn't really make a difference , according to some studies . Right , specifically around the reticular activator , whatever your timeline is , usually it's about 50% once you start engaging and perseverating on this idea . So , if you're thinking about buying a house a year from now , it's probably about six months , because what ends up happening oftentimes is you find the unicorn right , and now we're scrambling right , and so why is that relevant to your question ? Well , we want to make sure you engage with whomever it is that you trust as early as possible . Right , and usually you want to engage with your mortgage professional as early as possible because they are going to be able to give you , hopefully , the plan in terms of how to take this elephant down one piece at a time .

Speaker 2 12:33

Chunk by chunk .

Speaker 1 12:34

Chunk by chunk , that's right .

Speaker 2 12:37

So I want to actually touch on business growth .

Speaker 1 12:39

Yeah .

Speaker 2 12:40

I know we spoke about this earlier . How has video and content creation become a part of your business and leadership toolkit ?

Speaker 1 12:50

Yeah , the one-to-many approach has been a game changer , right , I think TV is literally now on our phones , right , like , people are consuming information very differently , right , like we're no longer taking out the Britannica encyclopedia to look up meanings , we're looking at videos online , right , and so , years ago , you know , I read a book called Jab Jab Right Hook by Gary Vaynerchuk .

Speaker 1 13:13

You know I've I've watched a lot of his content . You know , I'm a huge fan of Alex Hormozy's . You know , huge fan of some of these incredible stories that are out there , and one of the main things that they talk about is this whole concept of one to many , right , one to many in terms of , like , I can't stand in front of a thousand people every single day to , like , get the message out , right , but I can't stand in front of a camera and talk about , okay , the concepts that are important , that I want people to know and see a thousand views , or a thousand people , or a thousand impressions , engagement . And so it's been amazing for us because it's allowed us not only at the top of the funnel to create opportunities for us to engage with clients , but but also behind the scenes , you know , with our current clients and our current database , to provide additional value . So the podcast has been amazing , the interviews that we've done has been incredible , so I you know we're doubling down on this .

Speaker 2 14:06

I love to hear it . I'm a big supporter of video content . That's right . When people think of your team , what do you want them to immediately associate with ?

Speaker 1 14:17

Yeah , I think we have a few models in our household that has bled into my team . One of them is that we can do hard things right . So this world tells us all the time that you know , this is just too difficult , this is just too hard , you know , but one of the things that we've taught our kids , my wife and I , is that Anceliagas can do hard things right . Yes , math is really hard , okay , but Isaiah and Lucy , you can do hard things

Building Leadership and Lasting Legacy

Speaker 1 14:40

. Yes , math is really hard okay , but Isaiah and Lucy , you can do hard things . And that's actually bled into our team right , you know , we can do hard things , we tackle hard things right , and we do it with excellence , but not perfection , because perfection is impossible . But right underneath , perfection is excellence right , and as long as we actually approach our business in that way , you know , we've seen success .

Speaker 1 15:01

I have some . My team as cool as I am , I'm the pretty face in the camera , as you can see right , obviously right . But I mean it's the people behind me , my staff , my teammates , are really the oil that makes this engine move . Huge emphasis on leadership development with us . You know , what does Jim Rohn say ? Right , when you start to work on yourself . You go from making a living to making a fortune right , and that couldn't be further from the truth , like we've invested so much time and energy and effort on our leadership development , constantly improving through various resources that we've gotten from some of the consultants we've hired . But you know we can do hard things is a bedrock of what we believe in . Excellence is another one , and constant growth is the other one as well .

Speaker 2 15:47

Here's a million dollar question that all business owners want me to ask .

Speaker 1 15:50

Okay , go ahead .

Speaker 2 15:51

How do you attract that amazing team ?

Speaker 1 15:56

Oh , all right , I mean , it's a beautiful question . So we want people to grow in their leadership ability , we want people to do certain things right , and we're constantly pointing the finger at people , but what we don't realize is there's three fingers pointing right back at us your team , your company , your . This is a hard lesson that I had to learn . Your growth is gonna be dependent on me , right ? And so , like how do I attract , how do we develop talent ? You have to develop first , because you have to be a leader worth following . You know , one of the greatest resources that are out there on leadership is the Giant Worldwide Training .

Speaker 1 16:39

So shout out to Courtney Jordan and Jeremy Kubitschek . She was , oh , so shout out to her . Yeah , she has been . Her . Jeremy and Steve have been an instrumental , like probably the biggest instrumental change in my life . When I was introduced to that content , I think , started to change , right , I started to become self-aware , and that's when , you know , my team , my , my staff started to grow , right . And so what is the magic ? The magic answer here is if you want to grow , if you want your team to expand and grow . Execution is one thing , but , like , develop them as leaders is the other , and that is a really really hard thing to do but totally worth it .

Speaker 1 17:22

But we can do hard things .

Speaker 2 17:24

What do you mean by it's hard , by the way , to do that ?

Speaker 1 17:27

Yeah , because you have to be self-aware , right . Like you know , the hardest thing to do as a human being is to look in right , because we can always look out and be like , oh dude , you have food on your teeth , right , you have broccoli stuck in your teeth , right . But it's super hard to look at the mirror and say , yeah , that was on me , right . Second , it's hard because if you don't have the right framework and the right tools , it's extremely difficult .

Speaker 1 17:53

One of the reasons why Giant War , why it was huge for me no pun intended is because it gave me the tools and the framework right For years . No pun intended is because it gave me the tools in the framework right . For years , I was reading books on leadership and it was literally all about well , this is what a leader looks like . Now come back to my seminar so I can tell you more about about it , and keep coming so I can sell you more material nothing that could translate and obviously be replicated , right , and so the tools are huge . And then the desire , you know , is the last piece . So my ladies at work are incredible because they took on the challenge and we're an incredible team for that reason .

Speaker 2 18:29

So they had to have wanted to grow as well .

Speaker 1 18:31

For sure , yeah , but they saw it in me first , right ? Like they saw it , they're like , okay , if this is important to Leo , it's important to me , right ? Oftentimes leaders talk about this but they don't do anything about it , right ? They're constantly self-sabotaging their leadership and their clients or their employees , similar to their kids , can see it and kind of sniff it out .

Speaker 2 18:50

Yeah , that's so important . My last question to you , looking ahead what kind of legacy do you hope to leave for your clients , your team and your community ?

Speaker 1 18:58

Man . Yeah , I think about this often . Actually , there's a great quote that I think about often . It says if I find in my heart's desires that nothing in this world can satisfy , I can only conclude that I was not made for this world . Cs Lewis said that . Right , you know , when I die , nobody's gonna come to my funeral and be like man . That guy knew how to close lungs . It's like good for you , leo , like they're going to look at my cast and be like that rate you got me . That was amazing . They're going to look at me and be like I hope my son and my daughter say you know my dad , he made a huge impact in my life because he was present , you know , because he cared and because he instilled in me like great values that I can carry on forever .

Speaker 1 19:38

And as cheesy as this might sound , this is not original content . Right Like impact for me is an acronym right and it literally stands for I must personally act . I must personally act in order to make an impact in this world and so hopefully , like you know , I will be remembered as a great husband , as a great friend , as a great man of God , as a great businessman . Right , but if nothing , if it all fails , okay , as a great dad , and so I always tell some of my closest friends that you know , this is something that is definitely evolved over the years . You know , I'm not a businessman that has a family , I'm a family man that has a business right and that shift is really really hard right . But like shift is really really hard right . But like , the people that are going to probably remember me the most and see all of my flaws and hopefully , you know , remember me , like I've discussed is my family .

Speaker 2 20:30

That's beautiful . Is there anything else you would like to add that I didn't touch on ? That you want to share with the listeners ?

Speaker 1 20:39

Yeah , I mean , I think overall , if you're thinking about , you know , starting a business , right , like ? I interviewed a financial advisor his name is Matt , so shout out to him on this and I very rarely and I posted this on LinkedIn as soon as I had lunch with him . I very rarely take notes right on in meetings like that of like , like massive things that I probably haven't already read , but I remember writing what he said down when he talked about his journey . He said I was told a long time ago there's three I's in this world that we need to always keep in the back of our mind . He goes impossible , improbable and inevitable . He goes .

Speaker 1 21:15

You know , when we start a business , he goes . Everybody's gonna tell you that's impossible . Come on , you're wasting your time , you're going to leave this career to do this . That seems really , really risky

From Impossible to Inevitable: Business Philosophy

Speaker 1 21:25

and probably very , very impossible . And they're right , because at the very beginning you know when you do this , when you start something like this right , everybody looks at the ceiling . There's no ceiling , yes , but there's also no floor , right , like , if this doesn't work , we're moving in to your basement , right , but he goes .

Speaker 1 21:42

But once you get over the impossible part , you get into the improbable , right , and he's like is this probably going to happen ? Maybe , I mean , it's a flip of a coin , right , it's a flip of a coin if we're gonna scale this thing up to eventually sell , like he shared , right , maybe , maybe not , he goes . But once you get past that , success is inevitable . Alex Ramosi , in one of his books and one of his podcasts , said that you know the reason why most people win , it's not because they're smarter than everyone else . It's because they've learned to push through those stages and through the heart . And when you get to the other side , you look around and you're like , okay , now I know why most people aren't here because they don't want to deal with the pain . So if you're a business owner and you're thinking about doing this scaling up hey , it's kind of probably impossible Then it goes into improbable , but eventually it's inevitable .

Speaker 2 22:34

That's a beautiful quote . Thank you so much for being on this podcast .