They say necessity is the mother of invention. While financing for home buying had been around for almost as long as there have been homes to buy, Rachael and Brandon Burgan knew it was necessary to bring about a change to the process. 

“I was working in the oil and gas industry, so we moved around a lot,” Brandon said. “We bought and sold a half a dozen houses and never had a good experience. On house number seven, the experience was even worse. No one took the time to educate us on the financing process. Both of us walked away from that closing saying, ‘What did we just sign?’ That’s when I knew there had to be a better way.” 

While the Burgan’s desire to make the mortgage process better stayed in their brains, they took a bit of a detour and started their own utility construction company. They grew that business into a $12 million company before selling it to their partner. That’s when Brandon decided to get into the mortgage lending business. While he liked the work and was focused on learning as much as he could about the business, he became frustrated that he lacked the products to help all his clients. He was convinced that by opening his own shop, he could offer financing products that the big-name lenders couldn’t. “I got extremely tired of saying ‘No’ to my clients,” said Brandon. “So, when Rachael and I seriously started discussing opening our own brokerage, our main focus was immediately on what we could do to make the entire process better for our customers and real estate agents. Open and honest communication, being accessible, and staying true to our word has been essential to our success so far.”  

Besides being open and honest and sincerely trying to educate each and every client about the mortgage process and the available products to help them finance the home of their dreams, the Burgans also credit their work ethic with the secret to their success. They also bring to the table a broad spectrum of life experiences that help them understand their clients’ needs.

Brandon was born in Bossier City, LA and spent his early childhood in Marshall, Texas. “My grandmother worked at the Ramada Inn restaurant in Marshall as a waitress and a cashier. I can remember coming to work with her when I was five years old,” Brandon said. “I would help seat customers, clear tables, and wash dishes in exchange for eating at the buffet.”  

His family moved to Houston when he was six years old. He attended Klein Forest High School and then Sam Houston State University. “I quickly realized that college was not for me,” Brandon said. “So, I decided to start my first business at 19 and grew it into a successful landscaping company until the housing market crashed in 2008.” He decided to switch gears and started working in the oil fields. He managed drilling rigs all over the world, including places like Angola, Africa, and Pakistan before a medical issue forced him to switch gears once again. “After years of traveling and being away from my wife and kids, I decided being away for weeks and months at a time was not in our family’s best interest.  I took my knowledge of drilling in the oil and gas industry and applied it to utility construction,” said Brandon. 

As for Rachael, her family was also in the oil and gas business. She was born in Wyoming and grew up mostly in Texas, but her family moved around a lot. “My dad was a ballistics engineer. He designed and built explosives for Baker Hughes,” Rachael said. She was a NCAA division one soccer player at Arkansas State University on a soccer scholarship and later graduated from UT Arlington with a bachelor’s in nursing. 

Besides being partners in business and in marriage, Brandon and Rachael are also raising two daughters together. “Mackenzie is 13 and Maddison is 11. The girls and I are horse lovers, so we spend a lot of time at our barn in Flower Mound and at horse shows watching our daughters compete,” Rachael said. “Mackenzie has a handsome Hanoverian Warmblood named Levi, and Maddison has a spunky pony named Monte.”

When I asked the Burgans if they could sum up what made Titan Lending different in one sentence, they actually did it with one word. “Yes,” Brandon said. “When other lenders say no, we say yes.” 60 percent of Titan Lending’s products are considered alternative lending products that are geared for people that are self-employed or aren’t otherwise W-2 employees that have a more traditional income record. “Our clients are typically turned down two or three times by other lenders before we see them,” said Brandon. “We understand tax returns and self-employment, and we get that there’s a whole niche there. Plus, we can close faster than the big lenders. Where other lenders are closing in 28 to 45 days, we can close in 10. We have the processes in place to do solid pre-approvals and appraisals in four days,” Brandon said. “It’s all in how we work it. We help realtors close deals.”