Ken Perlmutter
Perlmutter was born in El Paso, where his father served the military as a dentist – and later moved to Medway, Mass. He earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees (both in electrical engineering) from Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. He moved to the Chicago area to conduct research for Continental Can Co., and then worked in sales for Allen Bradley – which later became part of Rockwell Automation.
In the early 1990s, interest rates were on a downward spiral. Perlmutter and his wife, Stephani, had become parents to their first of two sets of twins. They’d re-financed their home for the third time in two years. Envisioning college tuition bills ahead of them, Perlmutter began to broker mortgages on the side. The work was both profitable and enjoyable, and he put his mathematical assets to good use. He soon went into the mortgage business full-time and launched PERL Mortgage Inc. in December 1994.
“I love dealing with numbers, analyzing various scenarios, and finding the best way to help people out,” he says. “There’s such an amazing array of mortgages available on today’s market, and so many more people can realize the dream of owning their home. It’s a matter of finding the right fit for each individual.”
Perlmutter started PERL with one office employee and a slogan: Your Lender for Life.
His belief then – and now – is that honest, ethical treatment of his clients and employees will reap the greatest returns. That belief has served him well. With a roster of 100 employees and an industry-wide reputation for excellence, PERL Mortgage Inc. has the ability to link clients with hundreds of lenders and mortgage products. PERL has established marketing relationships with real estate developers and financial institutions including Magellan Development, Mesirow Financial, Habitat Realty and W Development.
PERL has offices in Chicago, Deerfield, Lake Forest, and affiliates throughout the country. In 2003, the company funded about $1.1 billion in loans and was named # 14 on the prestigious Crain’s Chicago Business List of Largest Mortgage Lenders.
Contact Ken at 773.413.6234.