KIRKLAND, WA—Opes Advisors, a financial services firm with headquarters in Cupertino, CA, has launched a planned expansion into the Puget Sound area with a new branch in Kirkland. Robert Lipston, a veteran mortgage professional with 27 years of lending experience is directing business development as the regional director of the Pacific Northwest for Opes.

Donovan Douvia is the manager of the first new branch in Kirkland.  Additional branches will open in 2014 with total employment projected to be almost 100 people, establishing a significant local presence for Opes.
"We have been planning this expansion into Washington for some time and are very excited that Robert decided to join Opes,” said Susan McHan, Opes Advisors CEO and Mortgage Bank president. “There are many similarities between the real estate market in the Puget Sound area and California.  Our experience with creating tailored financing solutions combined with Robert and Donovan's local relationships and market expertise make us well positioned to be a valued partner for Realtors and homebuyers.”
Founded in 2004, Opes Advisors has grown to become a leading mortgage bank on the West Coast and the 26th largest in the US.  Its approach is different from that of traditional mortgage lenders. Opes offers an innovative method of helping people look at the home buying decision in the context of their other financial goals. Clients benefit by having the confidence to make effective financial decisions around what is the biggest life time purchase for most people—their home. 
Lipston looked at over a dozen firms before deciding to join Opes. He says his decision was centered on people, and he was inspired by the Opes management team and confident in the products and services his mortgage advisors would be able to offer customers. 

"Opes Advisors is not just another mortgage bank - it has a different approach that offers a higher level of personalized service in the mortgage transactio,” Lipston said. “As a result, homebuyers in this area will be able to buy a home with a new level of confidence.

"People are looking for this kind of help when they are making the decision to buy a home.  Opes is savvy and has offerings across all the agency products, jumbo loans, and wealth management that allows my team to find solutions that fit all different types of homebuyers in today's market.  And referral partners are looking for something different in the mortgage process that helps their clients be comfortable with the decision to buy a home."
McHan said that the team in Kirkland will be an asset to the community.

"We are excited to work with Robert, Donovan and the entire team; they are a dynamic, talented group,” she said. “We share a common passion and vision and immediately connected on the satisfaction in helping make people be more confident and more capable in achieving their goals."
McHan has over twenty years of experience in the financial services industry. Prior to Opes Advisors she co-founded and served as President for Elliot Ames, Inc.
Lipston has received several career awards, most recently being named as one of the Top 100 Most Influential Mortgage Executives in America by Mortgage Executive Magazine.  He currently serves the community as a board member and education committee chair of the Seattle Mortgage Bankers Association.