The MLO Project

Send us Fan Mail The mortgage industry has a bad habit of taking new technology and forcing it to fit processes that should have been rebuilt years ago. AI can make that mess move faster. It can also give us an opportunity to rethink how mortgage origination should work from the ground up. In this episode of The Mortgage AI Podcast, I sit down with Oren Michaely, CEO and co-founder of Elio Mortgag...

Send us Fan Mail Most mortgage professionals are using AI to write emails, create social posts, summarize documents, and complete a few isolated tasks faster. Jonathon Haddad is building it into the operating system of his business and his life. In this episode of The Mortgage AI Podcast, Jonathon shows me an AI-powered neural network that connects his text messages, emails, meetings, social media...

Send us Fan Mail Frazier welcomes Michael McAlister as a co-host on the Mortgage AI Podcast and explains the transition from The MLO Project to focus on AI.  They discuss the difference between “AI agents” (a tool that automates specific tasks) and “agentic AI” (an approach where AI is embedded with autonomy across business functions). Miguel describes moving beyond prompt-based assistants to work...

Send us Fan Mail How Jason Kindler Uses AI to Create Real Leverage in Mortgage In the first guest episode of the Mortgage AI Podcast, Frazier interviews mortgage broker owner and producing LO Jason Kindler of First Coast Mortgage Funding (400–500M annually) about what the mortgage industry misunderstands about AI and how to use it for real business leverage. Jason says most people still see AI as...

Send us Fan Mail Stop Paying $40 to Win $1: Avoid Rent-Seeking With AI in Mortgage In the first episode of the Mortgage AI Podcast, Frazier introduces the transition from the MLO Project to the Mortgage AI Podcast and explains his goal of helping loan officers use AI to create real leverage, not just surface-level hype.  He shares a game-theory example from economist Martin Shubik’s 1971 “$1 bill...

Send us Fan Mail Episode Zero: Transitioning Growth Notes From The MLO Project to The Mortgage AI Podcast Frazier announces the final episode of The MLO Project and introduces “episode zero” of The Mortgage AI Podcast, explaining that Growth Notes is pivoting to focus on where the mortgage industry is going and how to create the most impact with AI. Past episodes will remain available, and episode...

Send us Fan Mail Google Ads are not dead. But the cheap-lead fantasy needs to be. Michael and Frazier dig into the real state of Google Ads, search intent, and mortgage lead generation in today’s market. This episode picks up right after the “Be the Answer” conversation and looks at the other side of the same coin: paid search, consumer-direct funnels, and what actually makes a lead worth chasing....

Send us Fan Mail The old internet rewarded people who knew how to get found. The new one is going to reward the people who become the answer. Frazier and Michael are back on the MLO Project, and they are coming in direct, tactical, and very clear on where mortgage content is headed next. The conversation centers on Frazier’s shift toward helping loan officers become the answer in their local marke...

Send us Fan Mail AI is moving fast. Most mortgage teams are still trying to figure out what actually matters. Frazier and Michael sit down with Chris Nielson at the High Table Mastermind in Myrtle Beach to talk about the real role of AI inside a broker business. Not the hype. Not the buzzwords. The actual use cases that buy back time, simplify operations, and help LOs focus on revenue-producing wo...

Send us Fan Mail This one is for every broker owner who thinks compliance is something they can deal with later. Frazier and Michael sit down with Jim Bell, the guy who helps brokers handle the stuff most people want to avoid: 👉 Licensing 👉 Compliance 👉 Call reports 👉 State exams 👉 Information security And Jim makes one thing very clear. Compliance does not have to be scary. But ignoring it a...

Send us Fan Mail This one is going to make a few LOs uncomfortable. Frazier and Michael are calling out one of the quietest money leaks in the mortgage business: 👉 Buying tools you don’t fully use 👉 Switching platforms before building a process 👉 Confusing activity with progress 👉 Building “solutions” that don’t actually create revenue Because here’s the truth: A new CRM will not fix a lack of...

Send us Fan Mail This one pulls no punches. Frazier and Michael go straight at two of the most common excuses in today’s market: 👉 “I’m not techie” 👉 “I have ADHD” And they’re not buying either one. In a market that’s evolving faster than ever, these aren’t just harmless statements—they’re self-imposed ceilings. If you’re using them to justify inaction, you’re already falling behind. This episod...

Send us Fan Mail Most loan officers aren’t failing because they’re not working hard enough. They’re failing because they’re building a business that doesn’t fit them. In this episode, Frazier and Michael break down one of the most overlooked problems in the mortgage industry: misalignment between your strengths and your business model. You’re told to:  Prospect like this   Build relationships like...

Send us Fan Mail The market isn’t “getting tough.”  It’s changing. And most loan officers are still operating like it’s 2021. In this episode, Frazier and Michael break down the reality of the new economy —where AI, inflation, global conflict, and shifting consumer behavior are rewriting the rules in real time. No predictions. No false hope. Just a blunt question: 👉 If the market flipped tomorrow...

Send us Fan Mail This one gets heated. On this episode of The MLO Project, Frazier and Michael break down a real-world lawsuit involving loan officer poaching, data handling, and alleged email surveillance, and what it exposes about the mortgage industry. Spoiler: nobody looks clean. From loan officers forwarding borrower files… To lenders locking people out overnight… To shady transitions and bro...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Frazier and Michael break down one of the biggest silent killers in production: overcomplicated CRMs and bloated pipelines. 15 stages. Endless automations. “What if” scenarios everywhere. It feels productive. It’s not. This conversation cuts through the noise and shows you how to simplify your pipeline, clean up your CRM, and actually use your system the way it wa...

Send us Fan Mail This episode is a straight shot at the junk flooding your feed. Frazier and Michael break down the rise of fake engagement posts, real estate mastermind nonsense, AI generated garbage, and why too many people are getting pulled into content that has zero value. From ridiculous Facebook group drama to obvious bait posts and recycled AI takes, this conversation is all about protecti...

Send us Fan Mail The mortgage industry is buzzing about one headline right now: Veterans United is being accused of steering and deceiving military veterans. In this episode, Frazier and Michael break down what the lawsuit actually says, what parts of it matter, and why loan officers should be paying attention. This conversation goes deeper than industry gossip. It touches on the ethics of VA loan...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode of The MLO Project with Frazier & Michael McAllister... Compass pulled 500,000 listings from Zillow overnight. Redfin gets the inventory. Rocket gets the mortgage. And most loan officers are still asleep. Frazier and Michael break down the Compass, Redfin, and Rocket trifecta, what it actually means for your pipeline, and why the loan officers who have been bui...

Send us Fan Mail Look, we are going to piss some people off today. Good. That means we're doing our job. Michael and Frazier are coming in hot on this one, and if you've been spending your weekends hunched over a laptop vibe coding some custom AI tool you think is going to crush it in 2026, you need to hear this episode right now. Like, stop what you're doing and press play. Here&ap...

Send us Fan Mail Fresh off MortgageCon, Frazier and Michael break down what made this event completely different from the typical mortgage conference experience. From hosting the event inside Universal Studios to AI duels, practitioner-led sessions, and private park access, this wasn’t just another sit-in-a-ballroom event. It was immersive, high-energy, and packed with real, usable insights for lo...

Send us Fan Mail Thinking about running paid ads in 2026? Pump the brakes. Frazier and Michael are breaking down the truth about paid advertising — what works, what doesn’t, and where most loan officers go wrong. Whether you’re sitting on a 30K marketing budget or barely spending $300 a month, this episode is a tactical deep dive into interruption vs. intent , social vs. search , and why Google st...

Send us Fan Mail You think that client is “yours”? Think again. In this episode, Frazier (COVID-stricken but still showing up) and Michael (running on espresso and spite) break down a brutal but necessary truth: you don’t own the customer, you’re just renting attention. From trigger leads to servicing transfers to Rocket buying Mr. Cooper, the guys explain why your feelings don’t belong in the pip...

Send us Fan Mail It’s a new year, which means your feed is flooded with goal-setting posts, vision boards, and all the same recycled motivation. But here’s the truth: None of that matters without execution. In this episode, Frazier and Michael torch the traditional January BS and get straight to what actually drives success in 2026. You’ll hear why most loan officers set goals that are more about...

Send us Fan Mail In this special New Year's edition of The MLO Project , Frazier and Michael tackle two hot headlines shaping the future of the mortgage industry. From National Mortgage News’ prediction that 2026 will be the industry’s “reset year” to HousingWire’s deep dive on the growing dominance of DSCR loans—this episode is packed with straight talk, strategic insights, and zero fluff. F...