High Interest In Low Interest Rates Spawns A New Mortgage Brokerage

By Kaaren Valenta

Despite the fact that interest rates are falling to historic lows, economists say that only 40 percent of homeowners in the United States have refinanced their mortgages.

“The rest of them are really losing out,” mortgage broker Nicholas Naglieri said. “If a mortgage interest rate can be reduced one to one and a half points, it can equal a couple of hundred dollars a month in savings for a typical house in the Newtown area. If it can be reduced two percentage points, it can save as much as $600 a month.”

A March 24 article in Time magazine said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Economy.com, also estimates that half of the nation’s $6 trillion of mortgage debt could be refinanced now at a rate that would reduce monthly payments enough to recover all expenses within the first year.

Recognizing the opportunity to provide mortgage services, Mr Naglieri and John Lambo, both of whom live in Newtown, launched a full-service mortgage brokerage company, One Source Mortgage, LLC, which moved into new office space at 188 Main Street in Monroe in January.

“We originally met through our children when they were at the middle school,” Mr Lambo said. “We became friends then. Later we were both with Mass Mutual/Oppenheimer in Manhattan, selling investments, and making the long commute into New York City.”

While working with their clients, they saw the growing need for mortgage services. Eventually they decided to form a partnership and start their own company, which now has a staff of eight.

“We aren’t sure how long the interest rates will be this low, but we have a lot of other products to offer,” Mr Naglieri said.

One Source represents more than 40 lenders across the country and has 120 different programs, which range from purchasing or refinancing a home to debt consolidation, home improvements, and investment properties.

For homeowners it often means more available cash to spend or to pay down debts.

“We can help people with credit problems,” Mr Lambo said. “We’re able to prevent bankruptcies and foreclosures if they get to us early enough and they have enough equity in their house.”

Because of their background in financial services, the two men say they know all the options that are available.

“We’ve told people not to refinance in some circumstances, such as if their existing mortgage has a prepayment penalty,” Mr Lambo said.

There is a wide variety of mortgage loans available, many more than the traditional 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage.

“There are 15-, 20-, even 40-year mortgages,” Mr Naglieri said. “Forty-year mortgages enable you to get into a much bigger house with a smaller payment. The average person stays in a home for six years or less so they often welcome the opportunity to get a bigger house for their money.”

There are interest-only mortgages, in which homeowners pay only the interest on the loan each month, adjustable mortgages, and one-, three-, and five-year balloon loans that have lower interest rates and can be refinanced at the end of their terms.

“There are so many choices that you really need to work with a professional,” Mr Naglieri said. “You won’t get lost in the black hole of mortgages because we take care of the whole process.”

“People just don’t have the time to shop loans these days,” he said. “We can do that for you.”

There are loans for persons with excellent credit, bad credit, or no credit; first-time buyer programs with up to 107 percent financing; commercial/mixed use programs; corporate on-site mortgage financing workshops; and many other services available.

Mr Lambo said the first choice for a location for their company was Newtown.

“We wanted to be in Newtown but at the time we were looking for office space, we couldn’t find anything suitable,” he said. “By the time we found out about the building on South Main Street [SCB Office Park at 153 South Main Street], we had already locked into here.

“To encourage Newtown residents use our services, we are reimbursing the cost of an appraisal when one is needed,” he added.

The staff at One Source Mortgage includes four loan officers: Shelly Kotula, Dave Garofalo, Jack Neto, and Brian Harris; John Elia, IT manager, and Joann Sandburg, accounting manager.

“Shelly teaches an adult education workshop about mortgages in Stratford and Nick and I have given presentations to groups like the Lions Club,” Mr Lambo said.

John Lambo moved to Sandy Hook eight years ago when he worked for Cendant Mobility in Danbury, where he received several Connecticut Quality Awards for innovations and improvements in outsourcing. The Lambos were the focus of a series of articles in The Bee five years ago when Mr Lambo gave a portion of his liver to his son, Jonathon, then 14, in a successful –– and at that time, rare –– living donor transplant operation at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital in New York.

It was somewhat ironic that Nick Naglieri also wound up at the same hospital just before Christmas last year after he had a brain hemorrhage while working out at a health club in Newtown.

“I had a stroke, a torn artery in my head,” Mr Naglieri explained. “I was very fortunate because I have completely recovered. I didn’t have any side effects except that all my hair fell out. It’s still growing back in. The doctors said they had never seen anything like it.”

A Newtown resident since 1996, Mr Naglieri came to Connecticut from New Jersey while he was with Prudential Securities, later becoming an associate general agent with Mass Mutual. He and his wife Joann have two children, Nicole, who is a student at Fordham University, and Lee, a junior at Newtown High School. John Lambo and his wife Pat have three children, Jonathan, now 18, Andrew, 17, and Megan, 14.

One Source Mortgage is located across Main Street (Route 25) from SkateTyme roller rink in Monroe. For more information call 268-3322 or 800-765-8664.