Leah Hadley [00:00:01]:
Welcome to Intentional Divorce Insights. I'm Leah Hadley, certified divorce financial analyst, accredited financial counselor, and the founder of Intentional Divorce Solutions. I'll be your guide through the complexities of divorce, finance, and emotional wellness. Join me as we uncover practical tips and empowering insights to help you navigate your divorce with clarity and intention. Hi there, and welcome back to Intentional Divorce Insights. I am so happy to have our guest here today because we are talking about something that comes up in so many cases that I work on, and that is mortgages and divorce. So I am thrilled to introduce LeeAnn McKeon. LeeAnn is a distinguished professional with over thirty years of comprehensive experience in the mortgage lending industry.
Leah Hadley [00:00:50]:
Recently, she achieved her certified divorce lending professional designation, recognizing the unique challenges faced by clients going through divorce. Understanding that individuals in this situation need specialized support and knowledge, LeeAnn is committed to providing essential information and insight. Her approach is grounded in empathy and understanding as she navigates clients through a particularly challenging period in their lives. With compassion, kindness, and patience, LeeAnn is dedicated to guiding her clients every step of the way. Thanks for being with us, LeeAnn.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:01:27]:
Thank you, Leah. It is an honor to be here. I look forward to our time together today.
Leah Hadley [00:01:32]:
Absolutely. I'm wondering, you know, you've been doing this for a really long time, over thirty years. How has that prepared you for working with divorcing clients?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:01:44]:
You know, I have worked with people in so many different phases of life and I realized there is so the biggest gap in sharing of knowledge and information seems to be in the divorcing segment. Clients that are divorcing, there is a lot of misinformation as well as, lack of access to information to properly strategize. So I realized with my experience in working with people through all their phases, I have something to bring to the table. It's of value.
Leah Hadley [00:02:18]:
Yeah. Absolutely. And I love what you said, LeeAnn, about strategizing. Because so often, you know, when I'm working with a client or a couple, very early on in the process, I'm encouraging them to speak to a lender because we don't necessarily know what all the options are, and I hate for people to start negotiating before we truly know what those options are. So I love the fact that you're looking at it really through that strategic lens.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:02:47]:
Mhmm. That is crucial. And the sooner, the better, I say. The sooner you can talk to financial and, mortgage professionals, it really is it's really ideal.
Leah Hadley [00:03:02]:
Sooner the process. So a lot of people haven't heard of the certified divorce lending professional, CDLP designation. Can you talk a little bit about what that is and what motivated you to pursue it?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:03:15]:
Absolutely. So any lender can essentially take the course and study and, become a CDLP. There are some criteria, you have to have some experience and know some basics, but it was an investment of time to really dig deep into the different aspects of mortgage lending with professional training specific to divorcing clients. It's not a traditional loan officer type role. It helps take into consideration all of the different nuances of, how the real estate component works in the legal divorcing process. It's beyond just a regular loan officer. I had to go through, over 40 hours of training. I go through additional, continuing education specific to the laws, both in the state of Michigan and Ohio as well as, the requirements to maintain the designation, which is typically updates on underwriting guidelines, as well as the, some of the, I can't act as an attorney, but understanding some of the legal nuances that go into the mortgage side.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:04:41]:
So it's keeping me up to be up to date and up to speed on this particular, the real estate aspect of of, mortgage lending.
Leah Hadley [00:04:51]:
Okay. So how is the approach when you're working specifically with clients who are going through a divorce, How is that different from just working with clients that are, under different circumstances?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:05:06]:
Yeah. Absolutely. Well, I start with tell me your story. I you know, first and foremost, I'm dealing with people. I'm not dealing with a loan. I'm dealing with people in their lives. So, what I do, I I listen to the the person, their story, why they need to talk to me if it if the goal is to keep the home or take the proceeds from the home and purchase a new home, understanding the why behind it because sometimes it might make sense for a client that might wanna keep the home. It might make more sense for them to sell it, and we go through the numbers and the math and the understanding of all of it.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:05:44]:
Again, with empathy and compassion because there's so much that goes into making that decision.
Leah Hadley [00:05:50]:
Absolutely. In your experience, what have been maybe, like, a specific instance where you provided significant support to a client who was in a challenging situation?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:06:03]:
You know, I would say this is the story that kind of really pushed me to become a CDLP. And it's it's very near and dear to my heart as someone who's both a product of divorce and watched family members go through some icky divorce stories. This was a gentleman who, has four children. His wife had filed for divorce, left left him with the four kids, and she had never worked so was entitled to both alimony and child support for joint custody that she was awarded. We realized that he he just desperately wanted to have some stability for the kids. He's like, is there I'm trying to figure out a way to keep the house. I really, really want this home to be their home, that they have that place that they can always count on will be here. So in doing the math, I just couldn't get the numbers to work with all of the, you know, the existing, mortgage as well as the child support and alimony.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:07:05]:
What we came up with was he had a lot of equity in the home. So in lieu of paying monthly alimony or spousal support, I guess, is the correct terminology, we gave a lump sum settlement in lieu of that monthly, alimony and he was able to afford it. And he was so relieved, like, the sound in his voice and the relief. And he literally he told me he said, LeeAnn, I'm actually crying right now. So, it meant so much to him to have that type of answer and I'll tell you most, you know, in years past I may not have thought of that and it was actually a recent, I attended a little seminar regarding becoming a CDLP and I don't know that it was this particular, answer but it was using equity in a home as part of the equity buyout but also for things like alimony. And it just triggered something in my brain and I thought, yeah, I need to be able to provide these types of answers because it's so impactful, to be able to provide that type of advice to a client and just se the pure relief. So that would be a a recent example.
Leah Hadley [00:08:23]:
That's such a great example and such a common struggle for people to figure out the cash flow issues. Right? Like, a lot of times, some of the work that we're doing is looking at how do we reposition investments to generate additional cash flow, to generate additional income for people. You know, a lot of times, people are invested for growth, but they may benefit from that change in strategy, post divorce depending on what their needs are. But I like that looking at the equity as an option. I mean, there's so many it's just a puzzle that needs to be solved. Right? And so knowing that there are lots of pieces that can be moved around and looking at all the different angles, it's so important to have people like you in in clients' corners so they know that they do have options, and they can kinda figure it out. Yeah. What are some of the most common concerns clients have during the divorce process regarding mortgage lending?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:09:18]:
The biggest concerns are, number one, affordability. Can they afford the new payment if there is an equity buyout? Number two is, the timing. When can I do it? How soon can I do it? Nobody wants to sell a home and then have to move twice. So, working with clients and putting up the putting in front of them essentially different strategies again to save expenses and perhaps sell and immediately buy or purchase a home without selling the home. The biggest thing is that, again, that stability and simplicity in in that, particular segment. The other piece is credit and I think that's something we sometimes forget about in this whole process. With credit, when you had joint credit with a spouse and then all of a sudden you have to close that account, it can impact your credit score. So I find, again, the sooner the better I can talk with clients about, the process and what credit they have.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:10:21]:
We start with a credit report. Like let's start with credit report, see what credit you have that isn't joint. Even if you don't have a card, it might still be on your credit report, and making sure that's been addressed. Again, look at what that credit score might look like for credit qualifying because that impacts both the interest rate and the ability to actually be able to, you know, get a mortgage. So that's one of the things, the credit. Another component is, just being able to maintain a home, on your own. I had a woman that had gone through divorce, had big beautiful home and she realized she didn't wanna buy another house. She wanted a condominium and that's a different a little bit different qualifying piece as well because you have to factor in, some additional expenses.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:11:14]:
But just knowing lifestyle and being able to either maintain a lifestyle or have the, information to make that lifestyle manageable.
Leah Hadley [00:11:28]:
Yeah. I like that you brought up especially the credit issue because so many people don't pay attention to their credit through the divorce process itself.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:11:36]:
Mhmm.
Leah Hadley [00:11:36]:
They may have started the process with stellar credit, but then, you know, with legal fees or, you know, with changes in kind of the living expenses and things like that, a lot of times, they accrue a substantial amount of debt during the divorce process. And then at the end of it, they wanna be able to do something with the mortgage, and it's like, well, you know, if you hadn't done this, that, and the other, it would have been a much simpler transition. But it certainly does complicate things when people aren't paying attention to that. So, I agree it's so important to talk to that lender early on so that they know what they can and can't do. And then, of course, a lot of times, people don't think about what happens when you start to cancel and close accounts. And being very strategic about that and thinking about the timing and and all of that is so, so, so important. I know one of the big things that I work with a lot of clients on right now, specifically within, you know, recent years, of course, is that people have amazing interest rates on their mortgages, from several years ago. Oftentimes, we're looking in, like, the three percent range, and certainly are not able to get that kind of an interest rate now.
Leah Hadley [00:12:50]:
And so really struggle with, well, do I keep the house and have to pay a higher interest rate? How do I keep the existing mortgage? What can I negotiate? What do you tell people who are really struggling with that?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:13:04]:
Oh, man. Those were good times. Those interest rates were phenomenal. The reality is rates are higher now. We know that. There actually are some lenders or servicers, I should say, companies that are actually, servicing the mortgage loans that will allow an assumption. And that's not something I can do. It's something that they have to contact that servicer to see if they're able to assume the remaining loan terms removing the other party from the note in the obligation.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:13:39]:
It's not something standardized. It's not something that is required of lenders to do as I understand it, but it's worth a shot and it's worth looking at if you wanna maintain that home or keep it, seeing if that can be done. I know it can be a lengthy process, and again, it's understanding, what words to use. There are some terminology I share as well as a little bit of again, being part of my CDLP, part of the certified divorce lending professional divorce lending association group, we share information with each other for this type of circumstance. And there are some lenders that have criteria, and I'm using the word lender and servicer interchangeably. So, whoever does that servicing that loan may have criteria where they'll do it, but there's some different steps to it and it can take some time so making sure you understand what that is, if it's doable, if you can afford it, and then also allowing time within the, judgment of divorce to be able to accomplish that. So that's ideal. The other piece is maybe downsizing, so with rates being higher, folks might need to reset expectation either on how much money they want to borrow on a new home or, again, look at a little different lifestyle, maybe a little lower mortgage amount compared to what they have to have that same payment.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:15:14]:
Yeah. Absolutely. Know that I I tell clients in all phases that I, you know, that I'm working with, especially in today's current market, in the irony of the comment, Marry the house and date the rate. Meaning, if you're looking at a new home, if it's the right house, know that the rate is not permanent. You can always refinance down the road. We can't predict or project what rates we'll do in the future, but that part is not permanent. So I don't know. Just kind of an irony of our conversation, just something to keep in mind.
Leah Hadley [00:15:50]:
Yeah. It's a really good point. Absolutely. So I know that divorce and clients in particular are coming to you feeling emotionally overwhelmed, financially overwhelmed. How do you ensure that empathy and understanding are really at the center of your interactions with clients who are going through a divorce?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:16:13]:
Well, as I started out our conversation, I start with I wanna hear their story. I wanna hear who they are and what their goals are. So with that, I ensure, that I'm keeping up with where they are emotionally in the phase. There are the multiple phases of divorce and my promise to my clients is being transparent with information and that I think could be incredibly reassuring because then you're not having to guess. Where do I sit? Where do I stand with this person? Sometimes the news isn't what I wanna tell. It's not comfortable. We're you know, it's this is a tough decision and a tough answer, but it's the right answer for the circumstances. So, an example would be a client who was going through a divorce who wanted the big house and wanted the lifestyle and her income just didn't match that.
LeeAnn McKeon [00:17:13]:
And I told her what her budget was and how that would look and what it would look like and she goes, you know, in my mind that makes a lot more sense. In my heart, I had to try. So, providing that information and she wound up finding a really lovely home just in a different city and it worked out well and it, you know, it was a win win. But giving that transparent, honest information with the kindness and the compassion and the understanding of here's the information and let it kind of settle and we'll kind of go through the different options and see if this if there are any other pieces that might make sense to you, whether it's maybe taking additional cash and putting it down more larger down payment, whatever that might be. But truly listening, hearing the goals and providing information both in writing as well as verbal and having that dialogue. It's not just black and white. Here's what you need to do. Some there are some communication dialogue pieces that need to happen too that might be helpful to both of us.
Leah Hadley [00:18:16]:
Absolutely. Yeah. For sure. Well, LeeAnn, I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with us today. I know the mortgage can be a complicated, difficult, emotional issue for a lot of people. Who are going through a divorce. And it's just nice to know that there are people like yourself who have that certified divorce lending professional credential, have the resources of that association, and other professionals with that designation to really bounce ideas off of so you can get creative with solutions and, you know, come up with ideas that maybe your traditional more mortgage lender wouldn't be able to think about.
Leah Hadley [00:18:52]:
So this has been really helpful. Thank you so much for being with us. If people wanna learn more about you, where can they find information about you?
LeeAnn McKeon [00:19:00]:
So, I have a Facebook page, and it's just LeeAnn McKeon. I'm on Facebook. I have Instagram, same name. and my current mortgage company that I'm affiliated with is Movement Mortgage. So it's LeeAnn McKeon and Movement Mortgage if you Google it, and I' should pop right up. So those are my social media areas. But then also anytime, call or text. My phone number is a great way too, and that's
LeeAnn McKeon [00:19:27]:
(734) 564-1909.
Leah Hadley [00:20:16]:
Oh, it's my pleasure. And for our listeners, thanks for being with us this week, and we'll see you next week. Thank you for joining me on intentional divorce insights. It's a privilege to share this time with you. I hope each episode offers valuable guidance to navigate your journey. If you find our content helpful, please leave a review to help others discover the benefits of intentional decision making in divorce. Until next time, take care and continue to embrace your path with intention.
