Ep. 81 | How Cyrus Habibi Built a $350M Mortgage Business with Zero Ad Spend

Are you leveraging relationships to scale your mortgage business? In this episode of The Canadian Private Lenders Podcast, we sit down with Cyrus Habibi—a top-producing mortgage broker with Premier Mortgage, consistently ranked #1 in volume in Atlantic Canada for five straight years. From humble beginnings in life insurance to dominating $350M+ in mortgage volume with the Premier Private Client Group, Cyrus shares how building relationships, not budgets, fuels growth. This episode is your roadmap to reputation-driven success.

Show notes:

01:43 - How Cyrus transitioned from insurance into real estate finance
02:45 - Got his start thanks to Don McFicker's mentorship
04:43 - Why mortgage brokering is more service-based than sales
06:01 - Met his future business partners through a shared love for cars
10:22 - Mentorship saved him from early mistakes in brokering
15:14 - Premier team closed over $350M in mortgage volume last year
17:42 - Atlantic Canada market is stronger and more resilient than expected
20:28 - Referral-based growth beats cold leads and ads every time
21:45 - Their team acts as a “walking brand”—authenticity matters
23:14 - What Cyrus loves most about this business and lifestyle
25:52 - What’s next? Cyrus shares how the team plans to grow further
27:04 - Bonus question: Cyrus’s favorite pizza spot and dream car

Resources:

• Keystone Capital Group
• CPLP Instagram: @cplpodcast
• Keystone Instagram: @keycapgroup

Find Cyrus on:
Instagram: @cyrushabibi

Find Neal On:
Instagram: @neal.andreino
LinkedIn

Find Ryan on:
LinkedIn
E-mail: [e-mail]