Ray StrahlNMLS# 195562
Ray started his banking career in 1971 after serving a two-year tour of duty in Vietnam with the U.S. Army, flying with a medevac team. He attended the University of Illinois and the American Institute of Banking in Chicago and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management. He is the 11th person in the history of Arizona to graduate from the MBA equivalent Leadership and Life Institute. Ray has also been insurance licensed since 1994 and holds a Property & Casualty and Life insurance licenses.
Ray has spent over 30 years as an institutional banker with First of Chicago and VP at CitiGroup and for 20 years as a Vice President of Business Development for a large Arizona-based mortgage lender. Currently, Ray is licensed in Arizona and Tennessee. He is also a Certified Continuing Education Instructor for Arizona. He has been named 2014 Toastmaster of the Year for WESERV Speakers and received the West and Southeast Association of Realtors Affiliate Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. He served from 2017-2020 as a Director on the WESERV Board of Directors and the VAREP Phoenix (Veterans Association of Real Estate Professionals) Board of Directors for 5 years.. He is involved in charity organizations helping Veterans and advocating for Veterans' housing rights. Ray is also Vice President of the Lutheran Hour Ministries Grand Canyon District Board of Directors and an Actor and Movie Producer and appeared in several of Michael Jason Allen feature films. Ray and his wife Diana of 27 years are longtime members of Life in Christ Lutheran Church in Peoria, Arizona. For several decades, Ray has maintained the philosophy of doing what's right for the client. He is a specialist in VA loans. Ray is also a Verified MLO and meets the highest client approval rating while adhering to an elevated standard of ethics and standards required to obtain the Verified MLO mark. Less than 1% of all Mortgage Originators own this unique distinction. |