What makes a mortgage transaction unforgettable is “the people, not the loan,” said Steve Abraham, president of Neal Communities Funding.

“There have been a few [memorable loans], but there’s this one when I fell into the position of salvaging a loan that was going in the wrong direction at the last minute,” recounted Abraham, whose mortgage career spans 20 years. “The family was not native speakers of English, had a complicated income situation, and we needed to add an additional family member to make it work. They started out frustrated and distrustful, which was understandable.

“We worked through it and got them closed. Two years later, they still call me with questions about mortgages, the junk mail that goes with a new home and questions around taxes and escrows when that time of year comes around.”