Jason Accola

Senior Mortgage Consultant
Wintrust Mortgage

If you’ve never met a mortgage professional with a passion for complex loans, you owe yourself an introduction to Jason Accola.

A senior mortgage consultant with more than a decade of experience, Accola has thrived as the go-to provider of special financing for firsttime homebuyers. In 2013, he was recognized by the Illinois Housing Development Authority as the No. 1 mortgage originator in Illinois of specialized first-time buyer loan programs.

“Much of what I do on a daily basis is educate clients and Realtors that the supposedly-impossible is actually possible,” he explains. “Many first-time buyers are referred to me after being informed by other lenders that there are no special financing programs available. In fact, I help first-time buyers purchase homes for as little as 1 percent – not 1 percent down, but 1 percent total.”

Accola became specialized in FHA lending very early in his career. At the time, few lenders followed suit because of the steep learning curve and high amount of work involved. When the lending world finally awoke to a full-documentation environment,

Accola already had a significant amount of experience working on complex borrower situations. This led to his expertise in the world of first-time buyer lending.

“The programs I specialize in really sell themselves,” he says. “When a buyer tells their family members and friends they were able to purchase their first home and take advantage of reduced rates, down payment assistance and loan-lifetime income tax credits, everyone wants to know how they did it.”

Looking ahead in 2013, Accola is placing a strong focus on presentations to the Realtor community. He hopes to get agents excited about first-time homebuyer programs and continue their success of converting renters into buyers.