16 branches in more than 30 states. Its lending volume has skyrocketed from $20 million per month at the company’s inception, to $559 million in loan production for first quarter 2022—and Tessar says this is just the beginning. “I actually think the real movement of this company hasn’t started yet. We’re just getting our sea legs underneath us,” he said. PRODUCT OFFERINGS CIVIC offers a variety of loans for real estate investors and developers, including bridge, fix‑and-flip, rental, and rehab financing. New products rolling out this year are ground-up construction for new developments, short-term rental for vacation rentals such as Airbnbs and VRBOs, 30-year rental, and multifamily rental. Tessar said his company is one of the last to jump into ground-up construction loans—but by design. CIVIC has observed the market for the product and how it has performed, learning the dos and don’ts from other players. CIVIC has benefited from its backing by a new parent company. In 2021, Pacific Western Bank purchased CIVIC from Wedgewood LLC for an undisclosed amount. Tessar said being owned by a publicly traded bank makes the cost of capital significantly cheaper than CIVIC’s competitors and insulates it from the “wild interest rate swings that we’re seeing right now.” As others fight to retool their business model to respond to Wall Street’s changing rates, Tessar said “this is a great time to be wearing a CIVIC jersey.” “If you lend money, don’t run out of it,” Tessar said. “I think we have seen through the pandemic and through these interest rate
changes that it has gotten quite a few companies in a jam.”
“I believe the whole customer service experience begins with ‘hello’ and it never ends,” he said. “If you’re in this business and you are in a position to serve, then that’s exactly what you need to do. … It’s like breathing: It should just always happen.” To ensure satisfaction, CIVIC has an entire department devoted to the customer service experience. It tracks statistics to measure success. Its net promoter score (NPS), which rates customer experience, is consistently around 94, Tessar said—well above industry average. In any cases where the customer isn’t happy, the situation is made known to executives and the team works with the customer to solve the problem or misunderstanding, he said. Another statistic on Tessar’s radar is CIVIC’s repeat customers, which stands around 50%.
COMMITMENT TO CUSTOMERS CIVIC also has what Tessar called an “excessive commitment to technology.” It offers a digital mortgage platform called Origin8 to simplify and streamline the process for borrowers. As a testament to that excessive commitment, Tessar said the company employs 30 coders who are constantly improving the platform. “We believe technology plays a big role in the whole customer service experience,” he said. But CIVIC doesn’t rely solely on technology to attract and keep customers. It impresses five core tenets upon employees: act with honor, be a great partner, communicate clearly, create smiles, and simplify. Tessar calls it the “customer-for-life approach.”
Enriching Our Communities: Tessar presented Tara Nierenhausen, executive director of Community’s Child, with CIVIC’s very first Lending With Love donation. Tara and her husband founded Community’s Child, a transitional home for homeless women and children, in 2005.
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