Forward Mortgage  ·  NMLS #1109257  ·  Licensed in Michigan
Professional referrals: brian@goforwardmortgage.com
For attorneys · mediators · financial professionals

Housing decisions your clients can actually live with.

The home is often the largest asset — and the most fragile part of a settlement. I'm a Certified Divorce Lending Professional who helps you keep housing decisions realistic, keep the numbers defensible, and keep the mortgage piece from quietly unraveling an agreement after the decree.

Refer a client How referrals work
Neutral & educational
No cost to you or your client to refer
You stay informed, with consent
Why the housing question needs a specialist

The mortgage sits underneath the settlement — whether or not anyone plans for it.

A settlement can be fair on paper and still fail at the closing table. Support income that isn't documented the way lenders require won't count. An equity buyout that looks clean can be impossible to finance. A refinance assumed to happen "later" can stall when rates, income, or credit don't cooperate.

When a divorce lending specialist is involved before terms are finalized, those problems surface while they can still be solved — not months later, when the agreement is signed and the options have narrowed.

The core idea
"Structure it so it still works when the ink is dry."
Early involvement turns housing from a risk into a settled question.
Settlements that survive underwriting
Support income and equity buyouts checked against real lending guidelines before they're written into the agreement — so what's promised can actually be financed.
Fewer surprises after the decree
Realistic timelines and documented qualifying income mean your client isn't blindsided later by a refinance that won't approve or a deadline they can't meet.
A neutral educator for your client
I inform and explain — I don't sell. Your client gets clarity and options, and your relationship with them stays protected.
How I work with you

A quiet, dependable resource behind your work.

However you're involved in your client's case, the housing question touches what you do. Here's where I fit.

FAMILY LAW ATTORNEYS
Language lenders will honor.
I help you word support and buyout provisions so they hold up in underwriting, and provide feasibility input before signing — so the housing terms you draft don't come back to haunt the client.
MEDIATORS
A neutral both parties can trust.
I keep housing options realistic at the table — what each party can actually qualify for, and what each path really costs — so the conversation stays grounded and productive.
DIVORCE FINANCIAL ANALYSTS
The mortgage math, run properly.
I run current qualifying scenarios alongside your projections — rate, payment, and eligibility on real guidelines — so the housing line in your analysis reflects what's truly achievable.
REAL ESTATE AGENTS
Clients who are genuinely ready.
When it's time to buy or sell, your client arrives with financing mapped to the decree and expectations already set — fewer stalls, fewer surprises, smoother closings.
How a referral works

Simple, low-friction, and easy on your client.

1
Introduce us
A quick email intro, or complete the form below. No phone tag required — I know your time and theirs is tight.
2
I meet your client
A calm, confidential conversation over coffee, at my office in Rochester, on Zoom, or by phone, whichever is easiest for them. We walk through their options and obstacles and run real numbers. No pressure, no obligation.
3
You get a clear picture
Feasibility, realistic timing, and settlement language underwriters can live with — shared back with you where the client consents, so the housing piece is never a guess.
About Brian

A processing background is the difference.

Most loan officers come from sales. I came up through loan operations and processing — more than twenty years of it — which means I think first about how a file actually gets approved, not how to close it. In divorce, where the details in an agreement decide whether financing is even possible, that difference matters.

As a Certified Divorce Lending Professional and a member of the Collaborative Practice Institute of Michigan, I work the way you do: through information, education, and clear communication. Quietly, carefully, and in your client's interest.

See full CV & published work More about Brian
Resources for your practice

The mortgage side, on paper.

Short, printable one-pagers. Keep them for your own reference, or hand them to a client who needs the housing piece explained plainly.

First page of the handout: Five things that decide whether the housing plan survives
New · For attorneys & mediators

Five things that decide whether the housing plan survives

A settlement can be fair, signed, and still impossible to finance. This covers what an underwriter actually checks, while the language can still be changed.

  • How a buyout is worded
  • The support-income clock
  • How support is labeled
  • Deadlines that assume a yes
  • Who is on the note
Open the PDF Have a draft? Send it my way
For you
The mortgage side of divorceWhat I do for your clients, and when to bring me in. PDF Will the housing number actually qualify?For CDFAs: where the settlement model and the underwriter part ways. PDF Sample: what your client gets from meAn Options Brief for a fictional client. The short version on page one, the details for you on page two. PDF
To share with your clients
Keep the home, or sell it?How to weigh the biggest decision with clear eyes. PDF How a home buyout gets pricedWhy the way a refinance is classified changes the rate and the reachable equity. PDF Court-ordered assignment of debtWhat it does for the spouse who moves out, and what it doesn't. PDF
From your peers

Professionals refer their clients to me with confidence.

Attorneys, financial analysts, and divorce coaches on what it’s like to have me on their team.

“

Brian is an outstanding resource and an expert in his space. I have been referring clients to Brian for many years, and he treats everyone as the communicative, knowledgeable, creative, and supportive professional and person that he is. For anyone seeking advice and information about their mortgage and lending options, particularly those prior to, during, or after a divorce, you should absolutely work with Brian.

Max S. Emmer
Family Law & Collaborative Divorce Attorney · Emmer Law PLC
“

Brian is my go-to resource for any mortgage issue my divorcing clients face, big or small. He’s creative and proactive—always thinking a few steps ahead to build strategies and flag potential roadblocks before they derail a case. That’s why I bring him in early, as a consultant: in divorce, one wrong move can’t be undone. I refer clients to him with full confidence, knowing he’ll treat them with as much empathy and attention as I would myself.

Jacki Roessler, CDFA
Certified Divorce Financial Analyst · Host of the Divorce Rich podcast
“

Brian Mutter is not only an exceptional divorce mortgage professional—he is a genuinely kind person who cares deeply about his clients. His incredible sense of humor makes him an absolute joy and pleasure to be around. I have confidently referred my clients to Brian and will continue to do so, knowing they will be in compassionate and capable hands.

Nanette Murphy
Divorce Coach · Live Life Now with Purpose
Start a referral

Let's make the housing piece one less thing to worry about.

Send an introduction and I'll take it from there. If you'd rather just ask a question first, that's welcome too — there's no obligation and no cost.

About you
About the referral
Everything you share is confidential. I'll respond within one business day.

Thank you — I'll be in touch shortly.

I'll follow up within one business day. Your client will be met with the same care you'd expect — information, patience, and no pressure.

Prefer email? Reach me any time at brian@goforwardmortgage.com.