Jan-Feb2020

“IT’S A NICE FEELING WHEN you can help someone reach a goal they didn’t think they could achieve—to give them pride in solving their problem with their own assets. And because of that, they come away happy.” So states Lance Canada, a Certified Reverse Mortgage Professional (CRMP) who has been a mortgage industry professional for more than 20 years, the last 14 of which he has specialized in serving seniors with Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) and other equity- release products. He is affiliated with Victorian Finance of Durham, NC, and achieved his CRMP certification in 2012. The North Carolina-based loan officer stresses client focus and education about the options: “Helping and assisting them in securing their happiness and the home that fits their needs.” Canada had been in the “home” business long before becoming a mortgage professional. He grew up in Poughkeepsie, NY, “a beautiful area near Vassar College and the ‘other CIA,’ the Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde Park,” he says. “I owned and ran a small home business, doing sheetrock, taping and repairs, building and rehabbing in the Hudson Valley. It was hard work, and I maxed it out, but I ended up working with a lot of interesting people. I guess what got me out of the business was one time when a job called for oil-based paint. I real- ized I’d been sniffing this stuff for over 20 years, probably inhaling haz- ardous chemicals. So, I thought, it was probably time to make an exit.” That exit took about four years because Canada worked almost exclusively on referrals and “people kept calling.” “I bounced around a little bit. I was a musician and started a small record company while I tried to figure out what to do. I had always loved the concept of sales, which all comes down to need and the ability to give it to [the customer] at a fair price,” Canada says. “A friend suggested I come work for him at Household Finance in Kingston, NY. And once I learned about the business, I moved down to Holly Springs, NC, working for a wholesale mortgage company while selling long-term care insurance...I kept running into seniors who wanted long-term care insurance, Securing a Client’s Happiness A Chat With Lance Canada, CRMP By Mark Olshaker CRMP: Across the Kitchen Table Lance Canada 16 REVERSE MORTGAGE / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2020