Couldn't recommend Keith enough! His consultative approach is very thorough, thoughtful, and…read morenon-pushy - providing peace of mind throughout the stressful home buying process. Keith has a deep understanding of the mortgage market dynamics and was always willing to hop on a call to share insights and perspectives on the best approach throughout the process. Keith was able to secure a highly competitive rate while delivering top-notch service and closing couldn't have been smoother.

Best loan officer in the world! Super communicative and informative. Very knowledgeable. Easiest…read moreclosing ever. Best value that one can get from a home loan officer!!

I started shopping mortgage rates on Saturday, calling all mortgage loan officers with excellent…read morereviews. Not so many loan officers are available during weekends but Dan Chapman's office was open. On Monday I got several rates from different mortgage officers, but Dan was able to lock down the best rate (3.0 no points) for me. For free. Later it appeared to be the best rate I could have had during the last six months. Dan uses special and expensive software which gives real-time alerts for constantly changing mortgage rates and can provide the best rates to his clients. I decided to move on with Dan and it was the best decision I could make. Dan's team works like a clock. He provides a step-by-step plan with the schedule, so that you know what to expect in advance. Every commitment that his team gave (like document delivery or loan submission) was delivered strictly on the scheduled day. Dan's team uses online software for document upload and filling. It is not ideal but simple and convenient. As a first-time buyer, I had a lot of questions during the process, and Dan was always happy to address all of them. If he's not available, he always calls back shortly. Needless to say, I closed on the date that Dan mentioned during the very first phone call with him. There was not a single issue during the process, so I recommend Dan to all my friends. With Dan you can get the best rates and service. Thanks for such a smooth, stress free and transparent loan application process!

This wasn't our first mortgage but it was the first time we realize how much of a different a great…read morelender can make. Dan has been very communicative and reliable throughout the process. We went through multiple options while Dan and his team working efficiently to make sure we could secure a loan we are comfortable with. He really made a process that was stressful in hindsight went by smoothly. I'd totally recommend Dan to anyone looking for a mortgage.

Mike at Westlake Mortgage has been a total game-changer for me, honest, low-pressure, and genuinely…read moreon my side. Two years ago he walked me through refinancing, knocked a full point off my rate, laid out every number crystal clear, and made the whole thing painless. Saved me serious cash without any surprises. Then this year he popped back up, had spotted an even better deal, another point drop, and didn't just wait for me to ask. He proactively hunted it down, explained why it made sense, and handled everything again. No sales pitch, no hidden fees, just real savings when it actually mattered. He's not out to nickel-and-dime; he's looking for the big wins that actually move the needle. Feels like he's working for me, not the bank. If you want someone who'll keep an eye out for you without the hassle, Mike's your guy.

I purchased my first home and Mike Hermsen with Westlake Mortgage did the financing…read more He was very attentive, knowledgeable and by far gave me the best rate and lowest costs. I would recommend Westlake Mortgage if you want the best rates and professionalism.

Jeff was the lender on my first home loan. He was knowledgeable, patient, and thorough in helping…read moreme understand and work through all the options. He was on top of the process every step of the way and made the whole process feel like a breeze. I highly recommend working with him.

Jeff was the lender on my first home loan. He was proactive, thorough, and responsive. I greatly…read moreappreciated the level of detail he provided in his explanations and materials. He is generous with his time and a pleasure to work with. While our home purchase was in escrow, I was a victim of identity fraud which impacted my credit. Jeff worked with me to navigate that stressful circumstance to resolve it and find a viable path forward. We were able to complete the home purchase with our original loan terms in the end. I cannot recommend Jeff enough!

This mortgage keeps an escrow account after closing even I paid more than 50% downplay and have…read morearound 800 credit score. It caused big trouble because Bay equity sells the mortgage right after closing, so do not accept request to close the escrow account. It is very clear no borrower wants to have escrow account to save property tax and insurance beforehand, no interest and lost control. I was not being asked and explained during mortgage application process. Bay equity is also very pushy especially when asking me to sign, I was not being given enough time to ask all my questions, I was told that version is not final, only after I signed they could schedule appraisal to keep closing in time. DO NOT RECOMMEND unless you are super clear and all hidden agenda in mortgage!

STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY AT ALL COSTS. I would leave 0 stars if I could. they will not…read morecommunicate with you throughout the process and then they will rush you at the very last minute. You will be ignored, pushed around, transferred to different contacts, and will be working with inexperienced loan officers in training. DO NOT TRUST THIS COMPANY.

We worked with Ruby at Salmon Bay for about a year and a half as we searched for and bought our…read morefirst home. At the end of the process, my husband said to me, "Now that we've experienced Salmon Bay, no other services are good enough anymore. I want everything I interact with to be as good as Salmon Bay - banking, insurance, everything." A few things we loved: responsive and crystal-clear communication from Ruby and her entire team, sound education for us on how home loans work (I feel like I ACTUALLY understood what was happening and what all the numbers meant the whole way through, as a complete novice), proactive check-ins for 1.5 years just to make sure they stayed updated on our thinking and finances, professionalism in all forms of correspondence, a team that inspired so much confidence with their expertise (special shout out to Paige), kindness and cheerfulness without exception, proactive outreach to the seller's agent within minutes of us making an offer to assure them we were in a strong position to buy (even though it was a major holiday), local credibility and relationships that certainly played a role in getting us our house even though there was a competing offer for $50K more, a clear roadmap for closing and frequent video updates for the whole buying/selling team along the way, willingness to answer all 5,000 minor questions I had during closing as if each one was important and worthy of attention and time, and absolutely no surprises the entire way - not a single surprise. I can't recommend Salmon Bay highly enough!

Ruby and her team were so friendly. They ran scenarios for me and made the refi process quick and…read moreeasy. The weekly video updates were a whimsical touch. Thank you!

SCAM ALERT!!!! We paid a "commitment fee" up front. Now they…read morewon't answer the phone or return our emails or phone calls

The branch manager at first FIX AND FLIP LOAN gives you excellent customer service and is very…read morehelpful and explains everything before you sign the paperwork.

The folks at Sammamish mortgage including Trevor and Priscilla almost cost me our house. We've…read moreworked with 2 other lenders, including Bank of America and had decent experiences where our lenders were personable and had close relationships with the underwriters. I'm not 100% sure with Sammamish but it seems they are just an intermediary and do not have close understanding of the underwriting process. Trevor was unreachable by phone and would e-mail me back or call back a day later. Priscilla seemed to be off or have a vacation notification on every time I tried to email her. Without warning us, Trevor went on paternity leave the week of closing, and Priscilla left on vacation. We were left with their supervisor who was 100% more competent, but extremely busy. Right before closing, Trevor also told me that we either needed to buy down more interest and pay them more money, which didn't make sense as we bought a house that was 1/2 our purchasing power. Our realtor emailed and called them (we had given consent) without any response and noted they were one of the worst and most nerve wracking groups she had dealt with. We had no idea if we would close on time, even the day of closing. We were living in an AirBnB and not sure whether we would be homeless the next day or if we should book a hotel. When I spoke with Stacey their supervisor about this the day before closing, she said "this isn't even as close as we come sometimes, don't worry!" which made me worry even more. I just found out that they immediately transferred our loan to another bank a month after closing. They have a ton more reviews than other servicers and I would be extremely concerned some of them are fake.

Sandra is awesome, give her a call! Extremely knowledgeable and always replied to calls/emails…read moreExcellent rates and easy to work with. 10/10 I'd recommend to anyone

We were referred to Umar Gebril to buy our next home and he expertly guided us through several…read moredifferent stages - pre-approval, possible bridge loan (didn't end up using, fortunately), how to best use our $$ while processing our new loan. Once we found the house we wanted, we were already well positioned to make a strong offer! He also was able to close our loan in as little as 15 days - and in the Seattle market, you HAVE to have a strong offer and your lender's reputation and ability to close on time is critical. Also, Umar is just a great guy overall - we enjoyed his candor and felt very confident following his guidance.

We were first introduced to Umar over two years ago, when scrambling to submit an offer on what we…read morehad believed to be our "dream home." Umar was exceptional. He was incredibly responsive, turning around a pre-approval in record time, and walking us through every step of the first-time homebuyer process. From that time to now, I'm pleased to say that we did indeed finally secure our "dream home," in no small part due to Umar & the Academy Mortgage team's partnership & support. It was thanks to Umar that we were able to offer competitive terms, including the fastest close that I've ever heard of, even in spite of holidays. If you're in the market to secure a home loan, I highly recommend Umar & the Academy Mortgage team. They're THE BEST.