Free Brief in Support of Motion - District Court of Colorado - Colorado

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11

Filed 01/31/2006

Page 1 of 12

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IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO

CAMILLE MELONAKIS-KURZ,

Individually and on behalf

of other similarly si tuated
employees,

Plaintiffs,
vs.
Case No.03-MK-2485

HEARTLAND HOME FINANCE, INC.,

Defendant.

ORIGINAL

The Videotaped Deposi tion of TONY DIBLASI,

Taken at 30800 Telegraph, Suite 2925,

Bingham Farms, Michigan,
Commencing at 12:20 p.m.,

Tuesday, November 15, 2005,

Before Nora Morrissy, RMR, CRR, CSR-2642.

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/1512005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camile Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.

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they could have?
A.

2

I i d look through Heartland i s rate sheets to find the
best deal available for them and give them options

3
4

from there.
Q.

5 6
7
8

Wha t kind of options were there?

A.

There was di fferent -- depending if they were -depending on their credit score, there i s sometimes

options were limited, but it was just different

9

products like a five-year balloon or seven-year
balloon, there was just different products.
Q.

10

11
12

Okay.

So, after you presented these options to the

cus tomer, then what would happen?

13
14

A.
Q.

If they turned me down or if they wanted the loan.
Let i s start with if they turned you down, then what

15

would happen?
A.

16
17 18

Then we had to send them a credit denial form in the

mail.
Q.

Did you contact them other than that?
Not if it was a dead deal, no.

19

A.
Q.

20 21
22 23
24

And then if it wasn't a dead deal if they decided to
go forward, then what would happen?

A.

I'd go ahead and take the application, 1003, and get

the appraisal ordered and get the loan going, turn it
into processing.
Q.

25

When you say take an application, what does that mean?

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/1512005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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1

A.

No, I don 't.

I mean if they are new to the business,
I don't know

2

I i m sure it was all sorts of ques tions .
anything in particular.
Q.

3
4

Do you know if Brian or Al ever gave any help to other
team members?

5 6
7
8

A.

I don't know.

I'm sure they did.

I'm sure there is
I'm sure they

always questions in this business.

helped.
Q.

9

All right. After you would take the application, then
what would you do?

10

11
12

A.

We'd order the appraisal and after we got all the

documents -- we tried to meet with the customer and get all the documents signed and information they each provided us and if we had a signed package, we'd turn
it to processing.
Q.

13
14

15

16
17

Did you decide who to order the appraisal from?
Yeah, I think, yeah, I think it was up to us.

A.
Q.

18

Did customers ever express concern to you about the
cost of an appraisal?

19

20
21
22

A.
Q.

Yeah.
Wha t would you tell them if they were worried about

it?
A.
Q.

23
24

I don't know what I'd tell them.

Would you help them over their worries?
Yes, I would.

25

A.

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/1512005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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1

A.
Q.

I was showed by my manager.

2 3
4

Did the customers ever have any questions for you
during those meetings?

A.
Q.

Yes.
What kind of things would they ask?

5

6
7
8 9

A.

Mostly about payment and just questions about other

programs, whatnot.
Q. A.
Q.

Other programs at Heartland?

Yeah.
And other programs elsewhere?

10

11
12

A.

I didn't sell other programs elsewhere if Heartland

could do the deal.
Q.

13
14

If Heartland couldn't do the deal would you sell

programs from elsewhere?
A.

15 16
17
18

I'd try, but that was still hard too.

They really

didn't like you sending deals out -- yeah, if it was

dead through Heartland, that's when we were allowed to
try to find other lenders.
Q.

19 20 21
22

Is that something the customer would appreciate?
Yeah, dead deal or it's a no deal or a deal, yeah.

A.
Q.

How often would you be able to do that, a dead deal at Heartland and still be able to get the customer a

23
24 .

loan?
A.

I don't know how often. Most of my stuff went right

25

through Heartland.

Yeah, if there was a lender that

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/1512005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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could do it and Heartland couldn't do it, I, of
course, tried to save the deal because that's how I

2 3
4

made my money, but that's the only way Heartland would
let me do it is if they had a denial in the file.
Q.

5
6 7
8

Okay. And you said that was how you made your money.
Explain that to me a little bit.

A.
Q.

I close a loan, I get paid on it.

Okay.
So, that's how I make my money.

9

A.
Q.

10 11
12

Is that through fees that you charged?

A.

Yeah, we got paid a commission on the fees that we

charged.
Q.

13
14

How is it determined what fees were charged?

MS. NOVAK: Obj ection. Vague as to the
word fees in this context.
A.

15

16

How it was determined? We'd just -- there was no set

1 7 numb e r, we'd jus t - - it' son a i 0 an - b Y - i 0 a n bas is, sit

18 down with the manager, we'd go over deals, we'd kind 19 0 f come up wi th what was to be charged.
20 BY MS. RAYMOND:
21
22
Q.

Mr. DiBlasi, I just want to show you this document.
MS. NOVAK:

I just want to make an

23
24

objection on the record about that document if it's
the one prepared by opposing counsel.

25

MS. RAYMOND: Would you like to see it

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/15/2005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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solutions, you know, like I said before if Heartland
turned it down, we were allowed to look at other
lenders, so we'd see if somebody else could do
something that Heartland wasn't doing.
Q.

2 3
4

5 6
7
8

As a senior loan officer did you come up with some
other solutions for the customer?

A.
Q.

Sometimes.
And then would you explain those to the customer?
Sure, yes.

9

A.
Q.

10
11
12

Would you help the customer pick between the different

solutions?
A.
Q.

I would give them their options.

13
14

Would you give them advice on which option would be
the best fit for them?

15

A.

I'd gi ve them their options.

I'd go over the numbers

16
17
18
Q.

with them and let them make the decision.

And where did the numbers come from?

A.

Based on what rate we could provide them and, you
know, what their payment is.

19

20
21

Q.

So, you'd explain to them what the different rates were and the different payment options?

22 23
24

A.
Q.

Right.
And then you would let the customer make the decision
based on that information?

25

A.

Yeah, and sometimes we'd payoff debt for a customer

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/1512005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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and we'd show the savings there if we were paying debt

2

off.
Q.

Different numbers we would go over.

3
4

Were the customers ever confused by all this and
needed a little bit extra explanation from you?

5 6
7

A.

Sometimes, sometimes customers were a little confused.

It's not always the easiest thing to do refinance your

house.
Q.

It's confusing sometimes.

8 9

And did you feel good when you were able to help them
figure it out?

10 11 12

A.
Q.

Yes.
We were just talking about when a loan was turned down

by the lender, right?
A.
Q.

13
14

Right.

And the advice you'd give clients in those s i tua tions .
What about would you give clients advice on going with
Heartland versus not going with Heartland?

15 16
17
18

A.

No, because Heartland was always -- that's always

sold.

We didn't have another option unless Heartland
So, I really couldn't, you know, I
Only time I used other

19

turned us down.

20 21 22 23
24
Q.

didn't compare the two.

lenders is a backup plan by being turned down by

Heartland.
And how did you learn about the differences between
other lenders?
A.

25

Actually that's Brian, the other senior loan officer,

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/15/2005

Filed 01/31/2006

Page 8 of 12

Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
34 I didn't really know -- I was new to the business so I

1

2

didn't know anything about other lenders, so, he was
on my team and my manager.
Q.

3
4

So, it was just knowledge you acquire over time as you

5 6
7
8 9

A.
Q.

Yes.
If a loan was approved, then what would happen?

A.

They'd give us an approval, they'd give us conditions

on other documents that may be needed by the customer
and fill all the conditions of the loan, should have
clear to close and we'd schedule it to close.
Q.

10 11
12

I'm sorry. What did you mean by the conditions of the

13
14

loan?
A.

Just documents that the bank may require from the
customer, just other additional paperwork to fill
to complete the loan.

15

16
17
18
Q.

Was that different depending on the customer?
Depending on the loan, yes.

A. Q.

19 20

Would you say loans are all different from each other?
Yeah, every customer's different.

A.
Q.

21
22 23 24

You say you would schedule it to close. Where would
the closings take place?

A.
Q.

A lot of them right there at the Southfield office.

Anywhere else?
Sometimes at the customer's house but mainly at the

25

A.

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/1512005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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office.

That's again with the local.

When they were

2 3
4

too far to come to the office, we would have to send a
closer right to their house.
Q.

If it was not local and you needed to send the closer
to their house, were you available at the office --

5

6
7
8

A.
Q.

I was always available by phone, yeah.

And why would you need to be available? In case they had more questions about the loan that I
could answer for them.

A.

9

10

Q.

Is that also why you were present in the office and at
their house if it was local?

11 12 13
14
Q.

A.

Yeah, just to make the customer -- just be there for

them.
Did the customer ever have questions for you during
the clos ing?

15

16
17
18

A.
Q.

Yeah.
What kind of things would they ask you about?
It varies loan to loan.
I really couldn't say.

A.
Q.

19

Were there any issues that would come up pretty

20 21
22
A.

regularly?
Not with my loans, no.
They were normally pretty
I normally go over

clean clos ings with no questions.

23
24

all the figures and everything before the customer
even made it to the closing table just to prevent

25

questions at the closing table.

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/15/2005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camile Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
50
1

A.

I don't know.

2 MARKED BY THE REPORTER
3 DEPOSITION EXHIBIT NUMBER 3

4 1:37 p.m.
5 BY MS. RAYMOND:
6
7
8

Q.

Mr. DiBlasi, do you recognize Exhibit Number 3?

A.
Q.

Yeah.
And what iS that?
It looks like an application I had to fill out.

9

A.
Q.

10

Is that your signature on the last page?

11
12

A.
Q.

Yes. Not the last page but second from the last.

Sorry. That's right. On the last page it says
interviewed by James Smi th?

13
14

A.
Q.

Yes.
Do you remember that interview?

15

16
17
18

A.
Q.

Not really.
So, you wouldn't be able to explain what you talked

abou t ?
A.
Q.

19

No.

That was a long time ago.

I don't remember that.

20 21 22 23
24

Why did you send an application in to Heartland?

A.
Q.

Trying to get a job.
Why did you want to work for Heartland?

A.

Because they provided leads.
seen that as an advantage.

One of the reasons was

it was a big company, they did their own banking and I

25

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/15/2005

Filed 01/31/2006

Page 11 of 12

Camille Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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1

Q.

Did you talk about hours during your interview with
Jim Smith, what hours you were going to be working?

2 3
4

A. Q.

I don't recall the interview.

On the second page it says that you previously were
employed by Hamlin Mortgage, iS that right?

5
6
7

A.
Q.

Yeah, that's correct.

What did you do between April of '02 and August of
, 02?

8
9

A.
Q.

I must have been unemployed.

10
11 12

Says you were a loan officer when you were at Hamlin?

A.
Q.

Uh-huh.
How did what you did there compare to what you did at

13
14

Heartland?
MS. NOVAK: Obj ection. Vague as to
comparing what aspects of the job.
A.

15

16
17
18

Well, Heartland like I said they provided leads.

This

place here just pretty much gave you a desk and a
phone and you were pretty much on your own.
Tha t ' s

19 why I only worked there two months and I learned more

20 at Heartland.
21 BY MS. RAYMOND:
22
Q.

Says here on the first page under subjects of special

23
24

study or research work, it says sales. What does that

mean?
A.
I don't know.

25

It means I sell I guess.

I sold

Case 1:03-cv-02485-MSK-PAC

Document 339-11
Tony Diblasi 11/15/2005

Filed 01/31/2006

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Camile Melonakis-Kurz, et al v. Heartland Horne Finance, Inc.
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from?
A.

2 3
4

Well, the 350 looks like it was my father, so, I
pret ty much did the deal for free.

Like I said the
I mean

range comes from the benefit to the customer.

5 6
7
8

the harder the loan is, the more money we charge. If
it's a complicated loan we had to put a lot of time
into, we'd actually charge more money.
That's what we

do.
Q.

9

So, it would vary based on how much time you had to

10 11
12

spend on it?
A.
Q.

Yeah.
And, for instance, that loan you closed where the fee

13
14

was just 350 dollars for your father, you did that on

your own, right?
A.

15 16
17 18

Right, that's an exception because that's my dad.
I didn't -- we just didn't charge any fees.

So,

It

doesn't really matter how much time I put into it.
Q.

Well, did you have any input in any of the other fees
that are on that column?

19

20

A.

Like I said, yeah, I had input, me and my manager sat

21
22

down. We'd sit down and figure out what we would

charge on each loan.
Q.

23
24

And then on the appraisers, how did you pick between
the appraisers?

25

A.

Our team actually had one appraiser we used all the