In this episode, Len welcomes Chris O’Sullivan from Alta West Capital to break down the ins and outs of private lending and how it fits into a broker’s toolkit. Chris shares his unique background—from private brokering to auto finance and now to advocating for brokers at Alta West—and outlines the flexible mortgage solutions that Alta West offers.

The conversation touches on key areas such as the difference between the Express and Flex mortgage products, how Alta West evaluates files based on exit strategies rather than just TDS, and why private lending isn’t just for bruised credit. Chris also clarifies appraisal designation requirements, discusses their broker loyalty program, and provides insight into how Alta West partners with brokers to offer speed, transparency, and flexibility.

Brokers will also hear about tools like the draw-style HELOC, bundling first and second mortgages in-house, mixed-use financing, and opportunities to support charitable causes through mortgage referrals. Whether you’re new to private deals or looking for smoother underwriting, this episode is packed with practical tips and valuable context.

About Chris O’Sullivan

Chris O’Sullivan is the Business Development Manager (BDM) for Alberta at Alta West Capital. With a background in private brokering and a stint in auto finance at KDK Financial, Chris brings a well-rounded understanding of alternative lending solutions. At Alta West, he’s known for championing broker success, as well as advocating for strong deals, supporting education around private lending, and offering white-glove service to help brokers close more files efficiently.

Chris is also passionate about partnerships that make an impact. He regularly works with brokers to support charitable initiatives and strives to create financing solutions that prioritize both broker and client outcomes.

Resources discussed in this episode:

• Alta West Capital Program
• Alta West Broker Portal for pricing update (register through the Alta West website)
• Alta West mortgage program PDFs (available upon request or through internal broker library)

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Contact Len Lane | Brokers for Life: 

• BrokersForLife.ca
• Linkedin: Len Lane
• LinkedIn: Brokers for Life
• Facebook: Brokers for Life
• X: @Brokers4Life

Contact Chris O’Sullivan | Alta West Capital: 

• Website
• LinkedIn: Chris O’Sullivan
• LinkedIn: Alta West Capital 

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Transcript 

Len  00:02

Welcome. My name is Len Lane, and I am the founder and president of Brokers for Life Inc., and we are Dominion Lending Centers in Western Canada. The topic of our podcast will be about what we consider to be Real Life Mortgage Solutions.

Len 0:24

 Alta West long time in the industry. Chris O’Sullivan. We’ll let you take it away, Chris. 

Chris 0:27

Yeah, thanks for having me. Len, I know we had a meeting last week, and I thought there was, you know, with your group and our group. I thought there were a good fit with the types of files you do. And what I want to go through today is, you know, just who Alta West is, how we you know, more files can get submitted through us, the process and the offerings that we have. And obviously, if there’s any files that are real time that anyone wants to discuss, I’m more than happy to do that here as well.

01:01

But for those that don’t know me, I’m Chris O’Sullivan BDN for Alberta. I used to be a private broker years ago, and what I realized about myself is I enjoyed really working with referral partners. And so I transitioned out of doing that to KDK, which is in the broker channel, and I did auto financing for a couple years with Kevin there in Edmonton, bringing the TDS down for AB files and then Alta West had an opportunity, and so this was a good fit. My role really is twofold—to be an advocate, obviously, to, you know, educate on the programs, how to use private but also to be an advocate for the broker and the client. So if there is a file that maybe gets declined, but you know, the broker thinks it’s a good deal, I think it’s a good deal, there’s a solid exit strategy, I’m more than happy to go to branch or the underwriter and just try to get reversed. But I’ve, I’m pretty successful do that as long as there’s the solid exit strategy and, you know, just having the underwriter look at a file in a different way. But also, you know, think of me as a concierge service as well. If you need things rushed, or if you need, you know, our underwriters to maybe work differently, feel free to contact me. I can definitely help, you know, make the process more seamless, if need be. Lawrence Walker, for example, they’re one of our appraisers, and I can call Chantal anytime to get things rushed. So that, you know that comes in handy. 

Chris 02:44

So, why private? So private? You know, over the last probably, you know, five years it’s went up, you know, 10% in total mortgage volume. And so what that for the broker? What that means is that there’s more opportunity to increase your book with private and with private, you can then graduate the client to a B or an A lender. So there’s more income for you, and it allows you to also be more of a full service type of broker where, you know, clients may need flexibility. It’s not just about, you know, bruised credit when you do look at private—it’s about flexibility. Maybe the TDS is too high, so the client needs another solution, and as long as there’s a solid exit strategy, we’re happy to look at files. And even though TDS plays a little part, the bigger part is the exit strategy when it comes to having a file approved. Alta West, we’ve been around for 30 years. We operate two mix. What that means for the broker as well as we already have funds in place. 

Len 3:48

And can I ask a question about your appraisers? There’s two, two designations floating around out there. We’re having some issues occasionally. DAR and a AIC, I believe. Are you accepting both? 

Chris 4:00

No, we aren’t accepting DAR, but the other other ones, we are. So, yeah, so with that, with appraisers, if they’re not on our approved appraisal list, we can make exceptions. But one of the exceptions is… can be DAR-certified. As far as the reason why it’s just for our, I guess, for our circumstances, the other designation is just a bit more specific to what we need, and maybe a bit more encumbered, encompassing so, but I can definitely get you kind of a more specific answer when I can talk to Brent about it, Len, for sure. 

Len 4:35

Nobody can give me a full answer. We’ve been… We just went through this. But… 

Chris 4:39

Oh, really. Okay, and what are the kind of comments that come back to you? 

Chris 4:43

Well, no one actually gives us a comment that they actually just… It just won’t acc…