Even in the wide world of Chicago real estate and mortgage lending, you’d be hard pressed to find a team like that of loan consultants Kenny Idstein, Ben Diaz and Dan Palmer at loanDepot. With more than 66 years of combined experience and the ability to speak multiple languages, this one-of-a-kind trio brings a remarkable amount of life and professional experience to lending, with relationship-building and solutions that are simply unparalleled.

With backgrounds in real estate, appraising and asset management, Idstein, Diaz and Palmer have a valuable foundation for navigating pandemics, family needs and countless other aspects of the home-buying process.

“We’re good listeners,” Palmer says. “We help customers understand new programs, how those fit with their needs and ability to pay, and at the same time, we’re working to better understand who they are and how we can serve them best.” Process-driven yet fun, these checklist junkies have a good time with clients while ensuring no surprises pop up, and in a year of surprises, 2020 proved to be one for the books for the team.

“We were able to help some young first-time buyers navigate through a new Housing Development Authority program,” Idstein says. “The customers were able to pay off nearly $28,000 of student loan debt at the closing of their new home, and that one has stuck with me.”

Members of multiple national and regional mortgage professional associations and winners of countless awards for production and leadership, the trio stays dedicated and focused on the mission at hand. “Clients say to us that we’re accessible, and we always answer their calls,” Diaz says. “And together, we’ve built repeat and referral business to show that.”