THE 76-YEAR-OLD neighbor called, crying because she was about to lose her home. It was 1992, and Mario Martirano was in his mid20s, working in mortgages with Bank of New York. He knew that his neighbor, a recent widow on Social Security, couldn’t pay back a traditional mortgage. He learned that Bank of New York offered reverse mortgages—new to the market then—but had no one to service them. “I learned how to do it,” he says. “It took about six months. We saved her house, and it was my inspiration to get into this program.” Today, Martirano looks back on a nearly, 30-year career in reverse mortgages. He has worked independently and with large and midsized firms. He helped shape the Certified Reverse Mortgage Professional (CRMP) credential that has elevated the profession and built trust among potential clients. After that situation in the early 1990s, Martirano experienced a version of that phenomenon when you buy a new car and suddenly see the same model everywhere. He started spotting people who would benefit from getting money out of their homes while aging in place. He started a reverse mortgage program for the bank. In his first year, he processed 100 applications. “I was learning everything from soup to nuts,” he says. Approached by a California firm about starting an East Coast division, he agreed on the condition that they would sponsor him if he decided to start his own company. His continued success convinced him that he was on the right track, so in 1994, he started his own company, Agency for Consumer Equity Mortgages. The company grew, providing reverse mortgages in New York, Connecticut and Florida. Martirano became Varied Career Lays Foundations for Industry A Chat With Mario Martirano, CRMP, Homebridge Financial Services By M. Diane McCormick Mario Martirano CRMP: Across the Kitchen Table 16 REVERSE MORTGAGE / MARCH-APR I L 2022
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQ1MzY1