Mike Scalise began his mortgage career in 1995 as a Loan Officer with a local bank. In 1997 he became a mortgage broker and is currently the Senior Loan Officer and Marketing Director with 1st Step Mortgage Group in Illinois.

He spent many of his earlier years attending many different mortgage marketing and coaching seminars and in 1998 decided that the For Sale by Owner marketing strategy was going to be his niche.  Many lenders were already soliciting these prospective clients; however, Mike was determined to come up with a way that would differentiate his services from the rest of the pack. 

In 1999, Mike developed his own local For Sale by Owner website called HomesSoldByOwners.com. His site was a FSBO website that would allow Sellers of Real Estate to advertise their properties at no cost and as a result, his business has never been the same since. In late 2006, due to many requests, Mike converted his For Sale by Owner website into a national website in order to allow Mortgage Loan Officers nationwide to enjoy the benefits.