Timothy Hero built his business around rental real estate. The independent loan broker exclusively serves a community of investors in 45 states. He works with fixed and reverse investors, but specializes in mom-and-pop small rental owners with one to four unit real estate portfolios. It’s a niche, he explained, that is about long-standing relationships with clients and lenders.

Rental space gets a bit crowded, especially in single family families. As large institutional players begin to buy entire swathes of properties, brokers like Hero have had to work hard to maintain the competitive edge of their clients. Hero takes pride in being able to outperform any other broker, which has helped his business grow. He expects his lending partners to work as hard as he does, because by working with the right lenders, Hero knows he can make solid deals for his clients. With a combination of rate and high quality service, one lender has stood out for Hero in recent years: LendingOne.

“I checked out LendingOne and they happened to be headquartered in my hometown of Palm Beach, Florida,” Hero said, when asked how the partnership started. “Their program matches my rental business and their broker portal is absolutely amazing.

“I have 30-40 investors who want quotes every week, and I can just log into the LendingOne portal and quote those borrowers myself. Some lenders require you to send the information to an account manager and wait for them to send you a quote, but I’m on time. I am able to do the volume I do because I don’t waste time and let people read. I like to work as much as possible on an hourly basis and can’t do it if I’m waiting for messages to arrive.

Hero explained that with LendingOne’s portal, he can produce loan quotes until 2 a.m. if he needs to. He can use the portal to assess what he did in the last year and see how quickly those deals have closed. As the markets in which its clients operate become increasingly competitive, this rapid access to key early information is crucial to Hero’s continued success.

While technology has been strong for Hero, human relationships have been stronger. His account manager, Mark Zummo-Hurley, is available almost any hour for a case call. It is a relationship that has been forged with seriousness on both sides. Hero made it known early on that when it came to generating volume, he was serious. Zummo-Hurley and the LendingOne team responded in kind. Hero is hoping that if he emails Mark at midnight, he’ll get a response before 1 a.m.

With strong technology and a strong relationship, LendingOne has established itself for Hero. Recently, they were able to strike a deal that no one else would touch. It was for a strong borrower with a credit score that fell just below the minimum standards most people saw. The score has gone down, however, due to only one late payment in the past 60 days. In all other areas, Hero noted, it was solid. Unlike other lenders, who were looking for reasons for rejection, the LendingOne team was able to find reasons to approve. They saw beyond a small credit default to the larger deal opportunity and delivered for Hero.

Knowing that he has this kind of lending partner, Hero is confident in helping his clients navigate the tightening rental market. It can build strong pipelines and increase its volume, attracting new business by making deals for them that they never thought possible. His work ethic, speed in gathering information and communication skills have been key to his success. Its partnership with LendingOne also played an important role.

“LendingOne has never failed me,” Hero said. “Their subscribers are very responsive. Right now I have about $ 2.25 million in the pipeline with LendingOne. He is an extremely responsive lender.