Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Peter Costakos. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Peter, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
We simply look to be a cut above the rest by building a group (The Carbon Team) that embodies commarodity to the next level. Typically our environment is a bit more cold and cut throat. We very much believe that the best environment breeds excellence. It’s not always easy and we have had our ups and downs but overall we are one of the most successful groups in the country. We are the #1 group at CrossCrounty. We still have plans to grow.
Peter, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Here’s my bio from my webpage.
https://www.crosscountrymortgage.com/purchase-ny-5606/peter-costakos/
Ultimately i had 3 non negotiables.
1. I didn’t want to work for someone meaning I didn’t mind having a boss but I wanted to kill what I ate.
2. I wanted to make an impact on other peoples lives.
3. I didn’t want to force myself on friends and family.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
Wow… I made many pivots but the biggest was in 2006 when I went to wholesale coming from the retail side of the business. I was promised that I would get rich and it would change my life. It did but not the better. It was my greatest failure. I made a 1/4 of what I was accustomed to making. I hated my job. I thought I was burned out from retail and it would be refreshing to go from the client side to the B to B side. I learned I really don’t like most mortgage originators. Ironic because of our culture and I really do love working my mortgage originators. I endured it for 2 years and pivoted back to retail. I took a step down from previously running a branch. I was no longer insterested in the added responsibities of being responsible for other origintors at that point in time. I focused on myself. I restarted my career as mortgage originator. I went from not knowing where my first loan would come from again to being a top producer within 2 years of my return. I also changed the way I did business. I change my philosophies and who I would let in as a referral partner/client. I was previously burned out because I never realized you had this choice but everyone has if they are bold enough to believe in themselves.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
Quite simply is the ability to remain authentic and put them first. Authenticity seems to be a trend this part 5 to 10 years however I pride myself in that I always let partners/clients know who I was. That connection is everything and I want to learn about them too. It’s not just me… I want them to see the real me so I can get to know the real them. This is not the easiest thing to do in a transactional business and I have plans to keep in better contact with clients I deem to be my VIPs. It’s everything! After all, who doesn’t love a little recognition??
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.crosscountrymortgage.com/purchase-ny-5606/peter-costakos/
- Instagram: @thewizardofloans
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/peter.costakos
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/peter-costakos-9a258518
- Twitter: @petecost73
- Youtube: @petercostakos
