Elliot stuck with us through a difficult refinance. He went to bat for us to get the best rate and the money we needed to payoff our credit card debt. Easy to talk to, and I think he lives at his office because he always answered my email so promptly. We closed today and are truly thankful for him and Green Mortgage NW. read more

This is an edit to a prior review that I'd written based on my having sent an inquiry e-mail and a voice mail a couple of days later, and never having received a response to either of them. I waited to write the review since the COVID-19 pandemic was in full force at the time of my initial query. While I was very disappointed to have not received any responses to my initial inquiries, I was VERY impressed to have received a personal response on Yelp within minutes of my posting my original review, apologizing for my not having received any responses, and asking for supplemental information so that they could investigate and try to find a root cause. They checked their systems and couldn't find my contact attempts. Their demonstrated concern for potential customers was very evident, as was their professionalism in taking the time to write a thorough and thoughtful response as well as their desire to find and fix the root cause. I'm not sure when or if I'll be in the market for a mortgage broker service again, but if I am, I'll definitely give Green Mortgage Northwest a shot before I contact anybody else based on their excellent response. read more

My experience with Elliot West at Green Mortgage Northwest was nothing short of fantastic. We have a tricky mortgage application that required a lot of moving pieces and Elliot was the only broker who said he could get our refinance done at the rate we wanted. He was extremely communicative throughout the process and very efficient. He had a clear set of items every time and put together a great underwriting package which only came back with a few minor but fortunately easy hurdles to overcome. We were thrilled with our rate as well as the minimal discount points to buy down our rate to make the monthly payment work for our family. From the time we initially connected via yelp to our closing/recording date, it was about 30 days on a jumbo refinance. That is lighting quick. I do have to say we were very prepared and had all the documents pretty much available at a given moment. I really can't say enough of how easy and straightforward our out of state refinance went. I would highly recommend Elliot for any of our mortgage needs. read more

If you're somewhat disorganized, forgetfull, scatterbrained at times, but still concerned you are getting the best service... Ask for Elliot. He is rediculously patient Does not pass any judgement Answers all questions with ease and competence And is willing to wait you out until you get your chit together. And close the deal. You will not be disappointed. Thanks Elliot for all your efforts, Doug and Dawn read more

Elliot and the entire team at Green Mortgage are easy to work with and very efficient. This is my 2nd time working with Elliot and once again we closed early and under the original estimated closing costs. Don't think twice about using a bank or credit union or you will pay more and end up with higher costs or more headaches. Thanks Elliot and Marci for another successful loan exceeding expectations once again! Shashi and Rachel read more

I've probably done ~6 loans with Elliot over the last 16+ years. He's helped me both in the early stages of my career (immigrant, no credit, good income) and as things got more complicated (business owner, 30+ staff, COVID). Elliot has exceptional product knowledge, is constantly moving things forward, and brings a great team with him. He's flexible and is willing to put in the work. I doubt you'll do better elsewhere :-) read more

Elliot worked tirelessly to keep the ball rolling on our refinance. He was patient and responsive which helped reduce the stress of the transaction considerably. His accuracy was also impressive as the initial cost estimates came in very close to what the actual costs were! I would not hesitate to work with him again! read more

Working with Elliot was a breeze from start to finish. Very much appreciate his professionalism. Highly recommended.

Two words: Highly recommended! Even though the whole process took almost 2 months to complete, it was well worth it. Elliott West helped me complete the paperwork process from start to finish. Mr. West showed no-pressure and tell-me-like-it-is. Communication via email from Mr. West was also outstanding. Big thanks for helping me save tons of money from high interest and pay off my mortgage debt faster. Phat L. Hillsboro, OR. read more

Elliot at Green Mortgage NW was great to work with on my home refinance. He is professional and a clear communicator, making a complex process as simple as could be. I would definitely work with him again. read more

Dakota Gale was...fine. I imagine he'd be more than fine with a conventional loan. With a VA loan, he was a bit lost. There were several times when he'd give us information we knew from our own research was incorrect ("your fiancé can be on the loan even if you aren't married" was my favorite) and then later attempt to cover for it by saying something like "They've just changed the policy" or "this is highly unusual." No they didn't and no it's not. However, we did get our loan, and at a very good rate. Hence, three stars! Would recommend for a conventional loan. read more

Holy moly! Almost 70 5-star reviews? This can't be correct. Surely someone out there only feels that he's just worthy of the "Yay! I'm a fan" or "A-Ok" ratings... Psyche! This guy deserves ever bit of the praise the other yelpers wrote and more. I've worked with Dakota to buy two houses and am working with him on a re-fi on my first house now, and he has exceeded our expectations the whole time. He's been very patient with the barrage of questions we've asked, never pressured us in any way, and been amazing responsive when we made offers on houses and needed to submit pre-approval letters. And to top if off, he's a genuinely nice, honest person and a pleasure to work with - the kind of guy you want to have a beer with after getting a deal done. Speaking of that...Dakota, I owe you a beer or two when you're back in town! read more

I cannot recommend Dakota enough. Whenever things got tough or hurdles presented themselves, Dakota stepped up and rose to the challenge. When the home that we wanted did not want to deal with FHA loans, he voluntarily contacted them and walked them through the process of FHA, and how it really isn't that different than a conventional loan. That was the home we bought and I am sitting in now, thanks to Dakota. He flat out rocks and you should use him. read more

We had a wonderful experience working with Elliott. He was incredibly responsive, rarely taking more than a few hours to answer any of our emails or questions. We were transitioning from a construction loan to a conventional mortgage; it was something we've never done before but he was extremely knowledgable about the process, got us a great rate and made it so simple for us. We would definitely work with him again on a future loan. read more

My wife and I decided to refinance our home and take advantage of the low rates. We were so lucky to find Dakota. After being let down by the overly complicated mess and lack of response my lender at the time was providing I read the reviews on yelp and decided to send Dakota an email just to see what he could offer. I sent the email 11pm and got a phone call then next morning 9am. His customer service, response time, ability to simplify, explain, and answer all questions is second to none. It became a little bit of a joke between my wife and I that I don't think Dakota ever took more than 30 min to respond to any email or phone call. He makes you feel like your loan and business is the most important thing going on in the world. For the more tech savvy Dakota uses all the latest technologies to make the entire loan process unbelievably easy. He generated and shared a clear and competitive analysis of our refinance options online. All docs were shared via dropbox and signed via eSign. He truly embraces the new way to home financing while maintaining that small town customer service feeling. It took me awhile to write this review after the closing of our refinance because I felt like nothing I could write would do justice to how truly thankful my wife and I were to find someone like Dakota to help us through this process. Because of his knowledge, skills, honesty, and communication there is no doubt who I will go to with any future refinances and who I will refer all my family and friends to. Dakota easily earned this 5 star review. I only wish he fixed cars too. Thanks again Dakota. read more

If I were to compare Dakota's loan-shopping ability to a game of Scrabble, Dakota is one of those players that doesn't need triple-word plays to score huge. Why? He brings a natural level of qi to the mortgage lending process. He makes buyers feel comfortable and has strong relationships with lenders. He's upfront regarding what you'll qualify for and will do his best to get the job done. I don't think it's fair to say that he can make the impossible, possible. However, he's extremely intelligent and knows how to present loans to lenders. That's something most mortgage brokers aren't equipped to handle. Dakota is big on e-mail (because he likes rain forests). I also think he uses an Iphone, but is surely anti-DRM. He knows FHA's and will prepare you for all the hurdles that come with buying a home. I worked with multiple people before finding Dakota, I wish I had spoken with him first. read more

As a first-time home buyer, I went into this process with a little bit of naivety, a healthy dose of skepticism, and a metric ton of questions. The whole thing couldn't have gone smoother and that is 110% thanks to Dakota. My home purchase went through without even the slightest of hitches, Dakota explained everything thoroughly along the way, my every question was answered in detail (so promptly, it was as if he'd finished composing a response before I'd event hit Send), and docs were ready to sign a full week before closing. I do not have much experience in this domain, obviously, but I cannot imagine a higher level of service than that which Dakota provides. Even the realtors and escrow officer were all blown away (and totally outclassed) by his thoroughness and timeliness. And to top it all off, Dakota also recommended an insurance broker that ALMOST rivals him for awesomeness (that'd be Violet Marsh @ RISC Insurance, for anyone looking!). Thank you, Dakota! read more

My husband and I were referred to Dakota by our (also awesome) realtor(s). As first-time home buyers, we were a bit paranoid about getting screwed over and, thusly, were in discussions with other brokers to get the best rate possible. After some back and forth, it became pretty clear that Dakota was the best of the bunch for several (important) reasons. He's prompt, professional, detail-oriented, and, at the end of the day, earns (and deserves) your trust and confidence. We had one broker actually completely ignore 3 questions that I had posed about timelines and such and another broker actually wanted to confirm bonus income but reduced it by a factor of 10! Clearly, details like that are sort of important when you think about how many numbers are actually thrown about in this whole business of buying a house! At every step throughout the process, it became clear that Dakota was head and shoulders above his "competition." I could cite a few more specific examples but that would just be mean (to his "competition"). Dakota actually let us know of the possibility of a lower rate through a big bank, even though it would clearly mean he would lose our business should we pursue that route. If that doesn't inspire confidence that he's trying to get you the best deal out there, then I don't know what else would. Being out of state home buyers, in our experience, made no difference as we have never had to follow-up (or manage) Dakota and everything has been handled electronically. We were never made to offer redundant information (like submitting forms online and then have to re-enter them elsewhere), wait for a reply, or decipher hastily-written emails. In a nutshell: All these glowing reviews are definitely well-earned. We would heartily recommend him to anyone looking for a hard-working, honest, and responsive broker. Dakota is a consummate professional. (My only fear is that adding to these glowing reviews will make him too busy should we need to call upon him in the future! ;)) read more

Dakota helped my husband and I finance our first home a year ago using a VA loan. Imagine my surprise when he contacted us in December to let us know that he could get us a better deal with a refinance. Dakota made the entire process as simple as possible, and the majority of all the signing etc was completed electronically. I can't recommend Dakota enough! read more

I was referred to Dakota by a couple trusted friends, for him to hopefully help me with my mortgage refi, which was not the easiest in the world. He went far above and beyond the norm on this one, and we worked together closely to get all the pieces in place. To say we had to jump through several hoops in the new-economy climate of mortgage financing is quite the understatement. But he worked tirelessly to make it happen for me and get me in a better financial position for the future. My sincerely thanks Dakota! I'll definitely refer people to you any chance I get. read more

Dakota could not have made my refinance any easier. Our conversation began a few months back about how low interest rates have gone. Dakota was insightful and full of good suggestions about different options that may work for my financial re-investment, all the while never pushing me to make a quick decision. Feeling fully informed I decided to go ahead with the refinance and it could not have been more seamless. Dakota works his magic behind the scenes. He keeps you updated along the way, but does not bother you with the day-to-day hiccups that many banks throw at their customers these days. There were a few occasions where my loan qualification did not fit into the bank's "perfect check box", but Dakota never called me freaking out about the issue, he simply took care of the problem and told me about it afterward. Dakota also makes strong efforts to be a low impact business. He rides his bike to almost all of his appointments, uses electronic signatures to save paper (and time) and he has a strong focus on teaching the community around him about sustainable living. Based on his strong work ethic, efficient time management skills, sustainable business practices & positive attitude I would highly recommend Dakota to anyone looking to buy or refinance their home. read more

We found Dakota through Redfin, searched him out on Yelp and couldn't believe all of the 5 star reviews. We interviewed 3 different brokers and Dakota by far, out worked all of them to earn our business. We are first time buyers and like others, had many questions. We were pre-approved and had been looking for about 6 months before we finally closed with Dakota on Dec. 13th. Through that 6 months, looking back now, we were very indesicive with what we were really looking for and we had done 28 summaries, holy cow that's alot of work for Dakota. When we finally had an offer accepted, Dakota walked us through and anwered every question we had. In the process, my wife began working and put us over the amount to qualify for USDA. Dakota was very diligent in getting us the info we needed to make the best decisions in the process of a conventional loan. Our closing day was origianlly set for Dec. 15th, but that was a Sunday and we changed it to the 13th, a Friday. Unfortunelty, we forgot to tell Dakota about the change and he found out on the 12th. Dakota, the true superstar that he is, sped things up and we had the keys at 3pm on the 13th. We couldn't be happier with Dakota and highly recommend him!!!! read more

Dakota recently helped my wife and I buy our first home, and he was an absolute pro. I started my search for a lender on Lending Tree, which was a bit of a learning experience. Most of the posted rates are those sites are not completely accurate, and most of the phone calls I got were from brokers that had no interest in explaining options or pros and cons of different loans. They just wanted to know if we found a house yet so they could make the deal. I had one guy, who will remain nameless, send me the completely wrong timeline and interest rate. Not exactly reassuring from someone who can make or break your transaction. After a little search on Yelp (thanks Yelp!), I found Dakota, and he was fantastic. He actually asked a ton of questions about our lifestyle and long term strategy. He gave me a full breakdown of different loan options, explained the long term fiscal benefits of each, and really knew his stuff. Because he was local to Portland, he knew the area, had some suggestions on where we should look for our needs and budget, and was super helpful. He has a very efficient and tech-savvy process. We swapped documents with dropbox, e-signed the paperwork, and almost all correspondence once the ball was rolling was done via email. When we found the house we wanted, we had only a few hours to make an offer due to high demand, and Dakota was super fast with getting our realtor the info we needed to put in the offer. The seller's agent even mentioned that part of the reason they took our offer was because we were working with Dakota, and he's always on point. I received notifications throughout the process of what the next step was, and what was required from me for a smooth closing. We had zero hangups and Dakota had everything lined up well before our closing day. Overall, it was great experience for my first home purchase and I would use him as a resource again in a heartbeat. read more

Dakota is awesome! It was so refreshing to work with someone who genuinely loves what he does and cares about the people he works with. He was great at explaining all the complicated aspects of home loans. I couldn't believe how fast he was at responding to emails and phone calls. He also found us a really great deal on our mortgage. It was so nice, through this whole process, knowing that the money-end of things was all good, and that he was taking care of it personally. After so many frustrating experiences with banks, it was amazing working with a real PERSON. He even showed up at our signing and is coming to our house-warming party. I think that says a lot him as a person and as a professional. read more

Dakota is amazing! I recently found myself wanting to refinance my home. I called Dakota and another mortgage broker to get a couple of different opinions. Dakota called me back right away and talked to me about my options. Unfortunately, it turned out that since my loan is owned by Freddie Mac, it is not open to being refinanced through a broker. (by the way, once the other broker found that out, he never called me back.) Thankfully, Dakota told me what steps I should take to try to get a lower interest rate and he said that he would even help me look through the good faith estimate from my bank to make sure that everything seemed legitmate. And he did it for NOTHING! It felt so great to know that someone who had no monetary interest was on my side and helping me make sure that I would not get scammed by the big bank servicing my loan. Dakota has renewed my faith in people and in customer service. Thanks to his advice, I am now paying hundreds of dollars less per month at a much lower interest rate. I will be recommending him to anyone I meet who is thinking about financing their home. read more

I second the sentiment that if there was a rating higher than 5 stars, Dakota would get it. Just completed my second loan with Dakota and I can't say enough about what a great job he did. Very prompt, thorough, and knowledgeable. He even renegotiated my rate down .25% the day he returned from vacation as market conditions changed abruptly after the "debt crisis" passed. I've had much simpler loans take way more effort on my part. Dakota and his team offer great, stress-free service. read more

If you're looking for a terrific mortgage broker, your search should stop right here! Dakota recently helped me through a refinance that ended up saving me a whole lot of money. As much as the banks tried to make the transaction as difficult as possible, he did a great job keeping things on course. And, he did so with a perfect balance of professionalism and friendliness that can be very difficult to find. We communicated almost exclusively by Email and he was always lightening fast at responding. I never felt like I was waiting for him for anything, and I always knew exactly where we were in the process. Dakota uses Dropbox to exchange documents and, aside from the final signing, I believe no paper was generated, which is pretty amazing. This was a most welcome change from the last mortgage broker I used, who seemed to enjoy rambling on the phone and "had trouble printing" any PDFs that I Emailed to him! At the very last minute, my appraisal was "revised" and the bank tried to change the conditions of my loan. Dakota ensured that the original terms were honored. This alone demonstrates the amazing level of integrity that was evident from our first contact. He is extremely sharp, honest, professional and very easy to work with. And, he's a really nice, down-to-earth guy, too. I'm looking forward to meeting him for a beer to celebrate the closing of my loan! I feel really lucky to have been referred Dakota and can't recommend him strongly enough. If you have any questions on the financial side of home ownership, you will not regret getting in touch with him. read more

Absolutely solid! If you're in the home buying process or looking to refinance, you can do no better than going with Dakota. He was knowledgeable, responsive and utterly professional. Even with a minor hiccup in our process, things went smooth as silk. Do yourself a favor and give him a call. One caveat: You must be comfortable with working electronically (email, scanned docs, e-signing, etc...) in order to work well with Dakota, but then you probably wouldn't even know about Yelp if you weren't.... read more

Can I say enough about Dakota, this guy's fantastic! Where do I start. Could it be the fact that he actually got me a great rate in this market with my less than perfect credit? Or the fact that within an amazingly short period of time we were able to close? (I thought these things took months!)... How about the fact that when we went to close, there were no surprises, and it took about 45 mins since all the t's were crossed and i's dotted? Maybe his ability to make the complex world of mortgage paperwork evaporate into an easy line of E-signed documents? Or the crazy fact that he actually responded to emails at ungodly hours, not just 9-5... I have never felt more comfortable, or felt that someone was fighting behind the scenes for me more than Dakota. I wasn't easy, but he made it seem effortless on my end. The stress of signing your life away into a house never seemed less stressful! I am eternally grateful to Dakota, and don't think that I would be in my home if it wasn't for him. Remember that your home will always have the lasting impression of the process to get it, and Dakota made it a very very pleasant process indeed. Thanks again Dakota! Props to you! read more

SUMMARY: Dakota really deserves praise for his responsiveness, competency and professionalism. If you are comfortable using Dropbox, dealing with scanned documents, and electronically signing documents then you will enjoy working with him. We would recommend him without hesitation. OUR EXPERIENCE: My wife and I found Dakota through Redfin, and after reading the almost-unanimously glowing reviews here, I decided to drop him a note. Many people commented that he is very responsive, and true to form, he responded to my message within five minutes. He promptly set up a Dropbox shared folder that evening, and within a few days we were pre-approved and ready for serious house shopping. It did help that I had all my documentation nearby and ready, but basically I never felt like I was sitting around waiting for him. After we had an offer accepted, he got to work getting the loan set up. He kept me updated on progress at every stage, so throughout it I never wondered what was going on nor worried about his competence. Although this was not our first home, and we didn't have as many questions as some first-time home buyers, he did a fine job guiding and helping us through a minor credit-report error that was uncovered during the process, and little time was lost. We closed on-time. read more

Dakota was a pleasure to work with and made the loan application process so painless and routine it was almost enjoyable, and that is saying a lot. My family and I were relocating to Portland from out of state and had a lot on our plate already. Not having to worry about whether our loan would get processed in time to close on our new home was a great relief and helped make the relocation process that much smoother. Dakota came highly recommended by our realtors and did not disappoint. I echo a lot of what other reviewers have to say about him and would not hesitate to work with him or refer him to others in the future. read more

Super easy, super fast, super rate. This is my fifth or sixth home loan and by far the most painless. I agree with what others have said about Dakota being personable and easy going. He was also really knowledgeable, patient, and responsive to all my questions, and I asked a lot! I wish I could think of something negative to say, but I can't. It was just great service. A+. Oh, and no minor detail: he gave me an amazing rate! I wouldn't think twice before going back to Dakota for help with a mortgage in the future. read more

Excellent at what he does. Prompt, knowledgeable, honest, transparent (which is important when you are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars), and fast. I love that all of his correspondence and documents were done electronically. I e-signed my loan while at work, on my phone. Amazing! read more

I found Dakota through Yelp during my initial house-hunting in the Portland area when I relocated from Denver, and he was straight-forward and provided great advice. After I spoke with a couple other brokers, it was evident that Dakota really knew the process and made it easy for me to understand. I used Dakota to purchase my new home, and he quickly became the best broker that I have ever worked with. He responded to my questions/concerns extremely quickly (usually just minutes) with detailed answers, and worked well with my realtor and closing agent. The loan application process and document transfer system that he used made the entire process very easy. Together, I had the perfect team to purchase my new home (despite working with a difficult relocation company as the seller), and we closed on-time and under the original estimate for closing costs. I highly, highly recommend Dakota for your mortgage broker needs, and will not consider even interviewing another broker for future mortgage needs. Thank you again, Dakota - my family and I are exceptionally happy in our new home thanks to your hard work. -The DiRosa Family read more

I cannot recommend this company, especially our mortgage advisor, Heather, enough. The escrow process is long and grueling but Heather McGarry, and her assistant Ashlyn, were so incredibly patient, helpful and thorough. All my questions (and there were MANY!) were answered lightning fast. It was truly comforting knowing that, however urgent, any issues that arose would be addressed ASAP. The best part, as others have mentioned, Green Mortgage Northwest can do almost everything digitally and remotely. This was incredibly convenient, especially since my co-borrower lives in another state. I will definitely be going to Heather and Green Pacific Northwest for any future lending needs, because they will truly take care of you and accommodate your unique situation, whatever that may be. read more

Elliot guided us through the process of closing on our first home. His professionalism and attention to detail made the whole process easy. We were always aware of the documentation that was needed on our end and there was never any rushing or last minute issues. Everything just went smoothly. As first time home buyers, we had a lot of questions about mortgage rates and the different associated costs. Elliot was available around the clock to provide updated information to our realtor. Elliot was also upfront about everything and allowed us to properly budget our closing costs and mortgage expenses. In the end, we ended up saving money thanks to Elliot's guidance. read more

Elliot was great to work with. No matter how many questions we asked he always had a quick friendly reply. This is the second time we have used Elliot and we highly recommend him and the team at Green Mortgage Northwest. Everything went super fast, and Elliot made this process so easy. read more

Heather was very knowledgeable and communicative. We deferred the timing of our move so I didn't ultimately proceed with a mortgage at this time with Heather. I will definitely reach out to her again in summer when we are ready. read more

Elliot was a joy to work with. This was my second time working with him (initial mortgage then a refi). He made everything so smooth and organized. It never felt frantic or overwhelming. He has great clear communication and always let me know what to expect next! read more

Elliot from Green Mortgage NW was incredibly easy to work with. It felt so much safer knowing that everything could be submitted electronically and most signatures/initials could be done through Docusign. Throughout the process, Elliot laid out every document he and underwriting would need, communicated clearly and promptly, and made purchasing our first home a seamless transaction. There were a few questions that came up for us along the way, and he was so easy to get ahold of--particularly by email. If we ever purchase again in the future, I wouldn't hesitate to work with Elliot again and I'd absolutely recommend him to my friends/family moving to the Portland area! read more