Good Neighbor Podcast: Union
Bringing Together Local Businesses and Residents of Northern Kentucky! Based in Union, KY....The Good Neighbor Podcast helps the residents of Northern Kentucky get to know local business owners as people. We allow the business owners and influencers in NKY to tell the stories of how they started their business and why. We hear about their families, their personal interests and why they love living in and serving resident of Northern Kentucky!
Good Neighbor Podcast: Union
Mortgage Secrets Revealed: How to Make Your Homeownership Dreams Come True
Jason Crouch from Innovative Home Loans shares his expertise as a mortgage loan broker with over 23 years of experience. Through his role, Jason can offer clients numerous financing options that traditional banks can't provide, enabling him to truly advocate for his customers' best interests rather than following restrictive institutional guidelines.
• First-time homebuyers often mistakenly believe they need 20% down to purchase a home
• Many loan programs exist that require only 3% down, allowing buyers to build equity over time
• Various mortgage options are available for investment properties, from rental homes to multi-family units
• Young people should consider real estate investment as a wealth-building strategy
• Critical credit advice: avoid large purchases or opening new accounts during the homebuying process
• Jason acts as a "mortgage coach" for clients who need time to prepare financially
• Customer service is Jason's priority - he's available evenings and weekends for client questions
• His philosophy differs from others in the industry - he's willing to work with challenging credit situations
• The satisfaction of helping someone achieve homeownership when they thought it impossible is incredibly rewarding
To learn more about your mortgage options or begin preparing for homeownership, contact Jason Crouch directly on his cell phone at 859-468-2221.
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, mike Murphy. Thank you, charlie. Yes, I am Mike Murphy, host of the Good Neighbor Podcast. We talk to local business owners, influencers, movers and shakers people that help us live better lives here in northern Kentucky. One of those people is sitting next to me right now. His name is Jason Crouch, so Jason is a good friend of mine. I've known Jason for years now. We've done a lot of business together through BNI. Shout out to BNI If you don't know about BNI, well, you need to know about BNI.
Speaker 1:So, in any event, you'll see that we're wearing our colors. I'm maize and blue, michigan. He's Ohio State. What's scarlet and gray? Scarlet and gray? Boo. We'll get to that later, but yeah, we did that on purpose, but this is just proof that Michigan and Ohio State fans can sit in the same room without killing each other. We are friends. So Jason is with Innovative Home Loans. He's kind of like the mortgage guy that many of my friends go to, and so I'll have Jason tell you more about Innovative Home Loans here in just a second. Jason, welcome to the show. It's good to see you here in Murph's basement doing a podcast with me. We knew it would happen. We knew it would happen one day. So here we are.
Speaker 2:Here we are, love it.
Speaker 1:So, jason, tell us about Innovative Home Loans.
Speaker 2:Innovative Home Loans. We are a local mortgage loan broker, so that gives us a lot of options that local banks and local mortgage companies don't have. Local banks and local mortgage companies don't have. I've been there a few months now, but I've been in the industry for over 23 years.
Speaker 2:So I finally joined Intimative Home Loans to give myself the opportunity to work more for myself as to not have to work for a bank and follow their rules and guidelines, or a mortgage company and follow their rules and guidelines. A broker essentially has the ability to go out and find unique financing, your normal everyday financing, but we can go out and shop different companies, find that right fit for the customer, which allows me to really empower my customer instead of empowering my employer that I work for.
Speaker 1:Okay, so you're an advocate for your client, your customer, correct. They come to you and say I want to buy a house.
Speaker 2:I don't know what the heck I'm doing. Jason, help me find them the best fit so that I'm not trying to cram just that one broken puzzle piece into the puzzle that it won't fit into. I can really figure out the best fit for that customer, okay.
Speaker 1:So on occasion I'll see in the news or just hear people talking about various different programs that I mean, let's face it, right now it's tough for young people to buy a house, okay, and they all feel like they have to accumulate a 20% down payment before they can do anything. And as they're trying to do that, life hits them in the car tires or hits them in the you know broken water line or whatever. So they feel like it's a hopeless cause. Right, and it's the job of someone like you to say all hope is not lost. So in the here and now, are there different programs that you would say to the first time home buyer hey, let's have it, let's have a talk, because there are probably options that they might not know exist because they're not you.
Speaker 2:Correct, and that's essentially what I enjoy doing the most is helping that first time home buyer understand what options they have and make it so that they can feel comfortable about the decision moving forward depending on how much money they want to put down, what they can afford. Are they payment driven um? Do they have money saved up, do they not? All these things are important when you're buying a home, but if you know that you can buy a home with only 3% down and let your money or let the equity of in your home earn you that money back over time, then that may be better than putting 20% down. 20% down is, of course, the best scenario, quote unquote but you don't have to do that and I'm going to make sure that my customer knows all the options they have so they can make the best choice for them.
Speaker 1:Okay Well, is there a particular program happening right now that's sort of got time limit on it that you're trying to promote to people?
Speaker 2:No, not really. A lot of those programs have kind of gone away. There aren't essentially any time-driven programs out there like there used to be. There are programs available for everybody, depending on what their need is. We have loans that will allow a 0% down payment. We have loans that will allow you to buy a house, maybe if you want to just buy a property that you're looking to rent out. Maybe, instead of buying your own home first, you want to buy investment properties and and and start making money that way, we have loan programs that will help people do that. So we have many different programs for first-time home buyers, whether it be for the house that they're going to live in or maybe they're going to become an investor, right now, okay, investing.
Speaker 1:That's an interesting thing because I think when I, when I think of my mortgage buddies, for the most part I just think you know, traditional 30 year loan, et cetera, et cetera, right, but more and more, I'm seeing a lot of my especially real estate friends talk about hey, you can buy investment properties. If you or someone you know is looking for an investment property, come see me, because there are ways that people don't realize if you're not living in that world already. Right To be able to take advantage of the real estate world to build wealth, and there are people that are flipping homes, there are people that are buying homes to do short-term rentals, airbnb, burbo, whatever. So do you get involved in deals like that, then, with investors?
Speaker 2:Absolutely. We have many programs that will cater to an investor and type of situation they're in, whether it's their first purchase and it's going to be a rental, or whether they're looking to buy a four family. You know, anything like that we can help somebody with and I think that's important nowadays. You know, I told my, I told just one of my daughters the other day. I said you know, one of my wishes wishes is that my kids started buying properties now, because it will be a way for them to invest in their future. Owning properties is one of the things that is constant in America that we can do when we have the privilege to do, and it doesn't go away. We're always going to have a need for housing and housing, typically, is going to increase your value by owning it. So I think starting young and having these investors start buying properties to rent out to Airbnb, to or renovate and flip properties to rent out to Airbnb, to to or renovate and flip is a great way to invest in their futures.
Speaker 1:right now, okay, there's a country song, I think called like buy dirt or something, right, right. So you help people buy dirt, do you kind of sort of kind of, and the sticks and bricks that go on it? Correct?
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:Okay. So, um, I know that there are people that have that dream and you can help them realize that dream. Part of helping them realize that dream is helping them understand that, as soon as they engage with you and you help them understand, yeah, this is possible, you could do this. You have to make sure they don't run out and buy a car or start racking up credit card bills on furniture that's going to go in that eventual house. They very quickly go from high to the depths of despair because they have shot themselves in the foot by screwing up their credit in the 11th hour just as they're getting to the finish line. So any advice for people there, just in terms of how they need to handle credit while they're in the process of dealing with you and buying a house?
Speaker 2:Absolutely, you know the credit is one of the most important things when buying a home. I mean, this is a mortgage loan, is the biggest loan you're probably going to take out, possibly ever. So credit and realizing you know that you're good at paying your bills is important. So you know the things to do. You know the biggest thing to do, especially when I first speak with a customer, is you're in home buying phase right now. This is a car buying phase. This isn't go out and fill that house up with stuff phase. You're in the let's find a house and buy a house first.
Speaker 2:So, essentially what I tell people to do is A don't make any big purchases without talking to me first. B don't go up, go out and open a bunch of credit accounts. Up, go out and open a bunch of of credit accounts. Don't uh, there's no need to add to your credit card collection. Uh, right now, and pay all your bills on time. Um, make sure you don't miss that one payment, that one email. Um, do not be late on anything. Um. Then, once I look at their credit, I can kind of coach them and maybe they still have the ability to go out and buy a car if they need one, if one broke down. But they need to speak to me first, or they're going to be living in that car that they buy instead of living in that house that they want.
Speaker 1:Okay, so can people come to you and say I know I want to buy a house one day and instinctively I think I can't do that now, and you may agree with them. But then you enter a mode of here's how we're going to prepare you to eventually buy that house. So here's the homework you need to do over the next month, year, whatever it is. Can you coach them in?
Speaker 2:that regard Correct. I mean, that that's you. You, you stole a word right out of my mouth. I can become mortgage coach, credit coach, um, lifestyle coach, uh to uh get that person ready to buy, and then I can give them a pretty accurate uh timeline on that. It could be six months, it could be a year. You know, if they follow my coaching direction, more than likely they're going to get to that point, you know.
Speaker 2:But again that famous phrase you can lead a horse to water. I'm not sure if they're going to drink right. So yes, but that's again, one of the things that I love about my job is the fact that I get to know a lot of people in a lot of different situations, and helping them get to that point makes it feel even better. I like those more than the person that comes to me and has said I bought four houses and this is easy, breezy, jason, just know, just tell me what my rate is and we'll move on. You know I leave that transaction feeling like, yeah, I helped somebody, but they could have gone anywhere for that. The ones where I coach somebody from them having a dream to actually fulfilling that dream is pretty rewarding.
Speaker 1:Okay, yeah, that is kind of cool that you get to be there for them to help them realize maybe one of, if not the biggest dream for some people, absolutely so.
Speaker 2:I hear that a lot. I hear I know this is going to be impossible, or this you know their their home, with all their furniture in it and saying thank you. You know, I didn't think this was possible. That's pretty rewarding.
Speaker 1:OK, good. Well, hopefully they invite you to their housewarming parties.
Speaker 2:And sometimes, yes, sometimes for sure.
Speaker 1:Sometimes for sure. So, speaking of housewarming parties emphasis on party you have a very nice house yourself and I think the kind of the signature of your house is you've got a nice pool out back. Yes, so I've enjoyed hanging out by your pool out there in Villa Hills. Shout out to the VH. So you know, part of our relationship has been our rivalry between Michigan and Ohio State. Absolutely, it is what it is. I think it's pretty cool that you know your team won the national championship last year. We won the year before.
Speaker 2:So who's it going to be this year? I don't know, that's a tough one.
Speaker 1:I mean, we can't even beat you guys.
Speaker 2:So until we can do that. I don't know if it decides. It's been what four years in a row? I think you've gotten us. So you know I would love to see us. That would be my national championship this year is letting you guys know we're still here to play ball with you and we're not scared anymore.
Speaker 1:The ebb and flow of that relationship, that whole series. I remember there was a time when I think Michigan, this was the John Cooper years we beat you guys like nine out of 10 years or something like that, and then for the longest time I was convinced we would never beat you again, right. But you know a pendulum always swings the other way. You just have to wait it out. And I think the same can be said for somebody's finances. You know it's like if you find yourself kind of in the doghouse, you know down in the dumps you've made some bad decisions or life has just kicked you in. Wherever you, eventually, if you do the right things, you can rebound, you can recover. And I would say you know a measuring stick that many of us judge that recovery by is can we afford a house? Or you know, conversely, like are we going to lose our house? Right, you can go either way. Conversely, like, are we going to lose our house right now? I go either way.
Speaker 1:So part of what I just want to make sure anybody listening to this is hearing is never, ever sit back and think you're a hopeless case. I have learned in talking to my mortgage pals there's no such thing, there's always hope. It's just a matter of never delay having that conversation because you think it's hopeless. The sooner you have that conversation, the sooner you can get on the track to realizing that dream. And if you have hope, you have everything. It just puts a more, it just puts a pep in your step. I agree, I agree. So, uh, I want to encourage people to contact you and have that, uh, that conversation. Now back to your house with the cool pool. Who lives in that house? Uh, you, you've got beautiful wife and you've got some kids. I do.
Speaker 2:Who are they? I do so. Charisma is my wife. We are a blended family. We have four kids together. We have one still living in the house, under 18. She is a senior at Highlands. That's Presley. That's my stepdaughter, my stepson Gannon. He stays with us as well. We have a beautiful granddaughter and grandson from him, so they are at the house a lot.
Speaker 2:And then I've got my two daughters, justice and Cadence. And then I've got my two daughters, justice and Cadence. Justice is a firefighter here in Northern Kentucky, yep, so she's out in, I believe it's Pendleton County, and she kind of found a passion for it and loves it. So she is spending a lot of time putting out fires and I think she's EMT as well. And then my daughter, cadenceence, is a senior down at UK, so she is going to possibly be a pediatric dentist, as that's what she's looking at right now. So so, yeah, we've got the four kids. And then I've got three dogs that I think run the house more than I do. One enjoys the pool more than I do, and yeah, so it's a pretty full house sometimes I love your dogs too.
Speaker 1:It's like whenever we're over your place by the pool, the dogs are running around like little humans, just kind of interacting, like they belong amongst us and I guess they do but uh, yeah, they're, they're fun.
Speaker 1:Yep, it is uh cc's pool um I just get to swim in it sometimes with her. All right, yep, I get it. So, um, I just want to shout out your kids names. I mean, they're very cool names. Um, I don't know that I've ever heard anybody anybody else with the names of your kids. So whoever was responsible for naming the kids, shout out to them.
Speaker 2:You know, we, we, I think we both wanted to be unique in that decision. Sometimes the kids hate us when they're looking for key chains with their names on them. Yeah, but, but they, I think at the end of the day, they, they liked the uniqueness and you know.
Speaker 2:I mean I was, I was Jason growing up. You know I remember taking attendance in school and, and you know, jason are here and four of us would be like, yes, in the same class. So I I didn't want that for any of my kids. I wanted them to be able to hear their name and and they were being called on.
Speaker 1:It's worse being Michael, because I mean there's tons of.
Speaker 2:Mike's, I get it, I get it.
Speaker 1:Growing up, you know there was a Mike a few houses down and he was older, so I was little Mikey.
Speaker 2:You were little Mikey.
Speaker 1:Little Mikey. Oh man, when I moved away from that neighborhood, that was my chance to make a fresh start in life. Otherwise you'd be calling me Little Mikey, little Mikey.
Speaker 2:Little Mikey likes it. Right, yeah, that commercial.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I got that thrown in my face constantly, I bet. So back to business.
Speaker 2:If people want to reach out to you, what's the best way for them?
Speaker 2:to do that Typically it's just my cell phone. Again, I don't work for a bank or a mortgage company, so I don't have a separate phone, and I think that's one of the things that I've always tried to say out loud about myself is I am customer service driven. So, even though my wife may not like it half the time, I will answer my phone at eight o'clock, nine o'clock at night. I will answer my phone Saturdays, sundays. There's been plenty of times that I'm actually waist deep in the pool having a conversation with a customer about down payment money or how much do they make, and try to do math right there for them to give them an estimated payment.
Speaker 2:I don't mind doing that. That's what makes me different from the person that says they only work nine to five. You know I want to. I want my customers not to sit there and think, oh my God, I got to think about this or worry about this all weekend until Monday morning when I might get somebody to call me back. So my cell phone is the quickest and easiest way to me and I can promise if I don't answer, you're going to probably hear back from me within an hour or so Okay.
Speaker 1:So when I post this, I'll post the cell phone number too. But what is it?
Speaker 2:859-468-2221.
Speaker 1:Okay, jason Crouch, yep, all right. Innovative Home Loans yes, sir, all right. Well, that's easy enough. I'll make sure to put that in all the things that we discuss. Well, is there anything else that we have not discussed that you want to make sure people know, either about you or about Innovative About me, or Innovative, I think you know, just remembering for me.
Speaker 2:There are a lot of mortgage loan officers, mortgage loan brokers out there and I believe a lot of them will look at a lot of customers and go this is going to be a hard deal, or this person is going to take me time, or this is an immediate paycheck.
Speaker 2:And so that's when they don't return phone calls, or they will tell a customer and I don't think you qualify, when, truly, if they would have put in some extra effort, they do qualify or they will qualify in six months or a year. And that's what makes me a little different is I've had many managers tell me to you know, oh, that's a 600 credit score, jason, just just turn it down, you can go make more money. Go go find, you can find two more customers. Replace them in the amount of time it takes to coach them, uh, to buy that house. And I've just never followed that philosophy and never will. Um, I look at everybody as as an opportunity to help them and, um, even if I don't make very much money off the deal within time spent, um, that doesn't matter to me it never has.
Speaker 1:Well, I, I do believe in karma in terms of if you put effort into somebody, um, it spins back on you tenfold eventually. Yes, yeah, good for you, and I know that part of dealing with anybody, no matter what their credit score might be, is walking around in the pool on a Sunday with the cell phone up to your head talking them off of a financial leg, right.
Speaker 2:I mean, you know, there could be worse places to do it.
Speaker 1:That's for sure so well, I think that's it for now. This wraps up this episode of the good neighbor podcast. Jason, I appreciate you coming by and sharing the good news of innovative home loans and letting people know a little bit about you, regardless of your preference for awful football teams. But really it's. It's nice to have an Ohio state fan come to my domain and see how the other half lives.
Speaker 2:Hey, I appreciate you having me. As soon as I get home, I'm showering or jumping in the pool to wash the funk off, but I really appreciate it and enjoy coming.
Speaker 1:I'm sure, the pool is the de facto shower for you some days. Sometimes You're in the pool so much you don't even have time to get dirty. All right, well, that wraps it up for this episode of the Good Neighbor Podcast. Everybody out there until we talk again. See you in the next episode. Everyone out there. Be good to your neighbors. So long, everybody, bye-bye. Thanks for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast Union. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to GNPUnioncom. That's GNPUnunioncom. That's gnpunioncom.
Speaker 2:Or call us at 859-651-8330.