It started around a kitchen table.

HomeFirst began in 2012 when two loan officers — tired of watching families get lost in fine print — sat down at a kitchen table and sketched out a simpler way to lend. The rule they wrote at the top of the page still hangs in our office: "Explain it like they're family."

Since then we've helped more than 1,900 families through first homes, bigger homes, downsizes, and fresh starts. We've celebrated closings with cupcakes, talked nervous buyers off ledges at 9pm, and learned every kid's name along the way.

We're still small on purpose. Real people answer our phones, your loan officer knows your story, and nobody here has ever said "per my last email."