Homeowner Refinancing Leads Charlotte-Based Lender To Hire

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Danny Trapp works in the nonprofit world uptown. He has one daughter in college, another who is college bound, and a wife whose hours at work could be shrinking.

 

“We're kind of feeling the economic squeeze, like a lot of people are,” he said.

 

So refinancing their Cotswold home made financial sense.

 

“We weren't just watching rates fall. We had it on our radar screen and knew they were getting better. Then we were hearing the buzz around refinancing,” Trapp said. “We looked at it and it was going to make some sense.”

 

Because of families like Trapp's, Charlotte-based Ameritrust is looking to hire 40 more loan officers by the end of May -- doubling the number already working at its Ballantyne office.

 

Ameritrust CEO John Owens said, “The last quarter of '08 is when we saw a pickup in terms of applications in refinances."

 

He said that since last fall, he’s seen a monthly increase of 20 percent in refinance applications, and he said he needs more staff to make sure closings are done in days, not weeks.

 

"We want to be a leader in this community to rebound this economy, rebound this market," Owens said.

 

Trapp said he hopes this is one move that will keep his family from having to move.

 

"Cash flow -- (it’s about) being able to leverage our house to weather whatever happens in this economy," he said.

 

Charlotte-based Ameritrust Mortgage will hold a job fair May 15 and anticipates taking on 40 loan originators. The fair will be at 14045 Ballantyne Corporate Place. For information, call 704-909-5555.