Meet Brandon...loving the Sacramento life
By Michelle McDaid | Photography by Memories By Michelle | www.MByMphotos.com
Brandon Haefele is one of those guys who gets up at 4am to workout and is still bursting with energy at 6pm, who loves his job as CEO of his own company and would love to work more hours (if we could add them into the day), who adores his wife, Brittany, (the feeling’s mutual), and who still finds time to take his daughter to school every morning. In short, Brandon is the guy we all want to be: successful, happy, and fulfilled.
When I show up to his Fair Oaks home on one of Fall’s first evenings, he’s at the door before I can even ring the bell, immediately warm and effervescent, as if this is the 10th time we’ve met, not the first. I quickly learn that Brandon makes fast friends and that this is most likely a
big part of what has driven his success while building his company, Catalyst Mortgage, straight out of school.
If Brandon and Catalyst sounds familiar, it’s because Brandon is a frequent guest on News Radio KFBK with Amy Lewis, talking about mortgage trends and giving local homebuyers tips on how to negotiate the home purchase process successfully. Brandon built Catalyst with the vision of being a different kind of lender, promoting transparency and putting customers’ interests (vs. targets and numbers) at the heart of that philosophy. It’s clear, when he talks about his company, that he’s both incredibly proud and still very engaged and, as a fourth generation
Sacramentan, part of that pride rests in being able to use his success to give back to the community that supported him.
Every year since 2007, Brandon and his team have fed local families for Thanksgiving (Brandon’s favorite holiday). It started with simply volunteering at a local food locker and has now grown to Catalyst’s staff donating a complete family meal for 1,000 people, something
which the whole team takes part in every year, getting up at 5am to coordinate and deliver the 5,000 pounds of food to local food charities, St. Vincent de Paul food locker, and the Sacramento Food Bank. This year will be the first year that Brandon’s 5 year-old daughter, Catelyn, will be joining them, helping her to see the impact of her family’s donation.
Both Brandon and Brittany take any opportunity they can to participate in local charitable events. All this, as well as the fact that Brittany also works a demanding job as an attorney. Balancing it all requires great teamwork and communication (which the couple seem to have down). Brandon counts himself lucky to have found such a great partner in life. “I love how she manages to be strong and supportive for me, and yet loving and attentive to our daughters, all while still managing to build a successful career,” he says of Brittany. Meanwhile Brittany describes Brandon as “the father every little girl would want to have.”
Having grown up in Sacramento, Brandon has seen the area of his childhood change a lot over the years. He and Brittany definitely enjoy the benefits of Sacramento’s recent culture shift, embracing Farm to Fork and leaving behind the “cow-town” stereotypes of old, the renaissance of the downtown area including the arena, and the growing amenities that the region offers as it expands its footprint. Yet, while some native
Sacramentans have misgivings about the region’s growth, Brandon and Brittany feel like the region has maintained its essential appeal: a safe and family-friendly region that, even despite rising house prices again, manages to be relatively affordable by California standards.
“We love living in Sacramento,” they both say. “We wouldn’t want to raise our family anywhere else.”
Brandon’s advice to Sacramento homebuyers:
Don’t believe what you hear on the adsask lots and lots of questions and do your own homework about different kinds of loans before you start the process.
Talk to 2 to 3 people before choosing a lender. By all means call the person your agent recommends, but be sure to also shop around for the best deal and the most experienced lender.
Don’t assume that availability equals the best professional. Often the best lenders and agents are the busiest and cannot always call you right back or get you on their schedule right away. Busy can mean experienced and in-demand while over-availability can mean that someone
doesn’t have any business, so don’t count someone out just because they don’t call you back right away.
Brandon Haefele is one of those guys who gets up at 4am to workout and is still bursting with energy at 6pm, who loves his job as CEO of his own company and would love to work more hours (if we could add them into the day), who adores his wife, Brittany, (the feeling’s mutual), and who still finds time to take his daughter to school every morning. In short, Brandon is the guy we all want to be: successful, happy, and fulfilled.
When I show up to his Fair Oaks home on one of Fall’s first evenings, he’s at the door before I can even ring the bell, immediately warm and effervescent, as if this is the 10th time we’ve met, not the first. I quickly learn that Brandon makes fast friends and that this is most likely a
big part of what has driven his success while building his company, Catalyst Mortgage, straight out of school.
If Brandon and Catalyst sounds familiar, it’s because Brandon is a frequent guest on News Radio KFBK with Amy Lewis, talking about mortgage trends and giving local homebuyers tips on how to negotiate the home purchase process successfully. Brandon built Catalyst with the vision of being a different kind of lender, promoting transparency and putting customers’ interests (vs. targets and numbers) at the heart of that philosophy. It’s clear, when he talks about his company, that he’s both incredibly proud and still very engaged and, as a fourth generation
Sacramentan, part of that pride rests in being able to use his success to give back to the community that supported him.
Every year since 2007, Brandon and his team have fed local families for Thanksgiving (Brandon’s favorite holiday). It started with simply volunteering at a local food locker and has now grown to Catalyst’s staff donating a complete family meal for 1,000 people, something
which the whole team takes part in every year, getting up at 5am to coordinate and deliver the 5,000 pounds of food to local food charities, St. Vincent de Paul food locker, and the Sacramento Food Bank. This year will be the first year that Brandon’s 5 year-old daughter, Catelyn, will be joining them, helping her to see the impact of her family’s donation.
Both Brandon and Brittany take any opportunity they can to participate in local charitable events. All this, as well as the fact that Brittany also works a demanding job as an attorney. Balancing it all requires great teamwork and communication (which the couple seem to have down). Brandon counts himself lucky to have found such a great partner in life. “I love how she manages to be strong and supportive for me, and yet loving and attentive to our daughters, all while still managing to build a successful career,” he says of Brittany. Meanwhile Brittany describes Brandon as “the father every little girl would want to have.”
Having grown up in Sacramento, Brandon has seen the area of his childhood change a lot over the years. He and Brittany definitely enjoy the benefits of Sacramento’s recent culture shift, embracing Farm to Fork and leaving behind the “cow-town” stereotypes of old, the renaissance of the downtown area including the arena, and the growing amenities that the region offers as it expands its footprint. Yet, while some native
Sacramentans have misgivings about the region’s growth, Brandon and Brittany feel like the region has maintained its essential appeal: a safe and family-friendly region that, even despite rising house prices again, manages to be relatively affordable by California standards.
“We love living in Sacramento,” they both say. “We wouldn’t want to raise our family anywhere else.”
Brandon’s advice to Sacramento homebuyers:
Don’t believe what you hear on the adsask lots and lots of questions and do your own homework about different kinds of loans before you start the process.
Talk to 2 to 3 people before choosing a lender. By all means call the person your agent recommends, but be sure to also shop around for the best deal and the most experienced lender.
Don’t assume that availability equals the best professional. Often the best lenders and agents are the busiest and cannot always call you right back or get you on their schedule right away. Busy can mean experienced and in-demand while over-availability can mean that someone
doesn’t have any business, so don’t count someone out just because they don’t call you back right away.
Michelle McDaid is a photographer and writer based in Sacramento. Through her business, Memories by Michelle, she captures real, playful, and
unposed moments for families and children. When she’s not behind the camera, her favorite thing to do is travel and visit new places with her 8
year-old daughter. Learn more at www.MByMPhotos.com.
unposed moments for families and children. When she’s not behind the camera, her favorite thing to do is travel and visit new places with her 8
year-old daughter. Learn more at www.MByMPhotos.com.
