Michael Newmann is a Senior Loan Officer and Branch Manager at CMG Financial, leading The Newmann Group out of Medford, Oregon, near the California border — joining CMG in November 2024 after building the bulk of his nearly 20-year mortgage career at one prior lender.
Michael's path into the industry was pure fate: a former collegiate baseball player who studied sports psychology at UC Davis, he was floundering after graduation until a random sales call, pitching advertising to a woman named Mary, turned into a job offer instead. She wasn't buying what he was selling, but offered to hire him into mortgage lending. About a year later he took her up on it, and he's worked with her ever since.
In this episode of Chasing Excellence, Michael joins host Tony Thompson to talk about why he thinks interest rates are more perception than reality, how his psychology background shapes the way he serves clients, and why he believes AI should amplify human connection in mortgage lending rather than replace it.
🔑 What You'll Learn:
- Why Michael sees the interest rate "challenge" as mostly psychological, not fundamental
- His personal filter for every client: "do they walk out my doors better than how they came in?"
- Why he's leaning into CMG's All In One Loan as his focus and passion
- How he thinks originators should use AI — to offload tasks they don't love, not to replace human connection
- Why he believes the future belongs to originators who understand "the power of connection"
Connect with Michael Newmann: https://www.cmghomeloans.com/mysite/mike-newmann | https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelnewmann
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