On this episode of Coffee with Cool People, host Chip Munn sat down with Kevin Medlin, a mortgage veteran, devoted dad, avid golfer, and man of deep faith. Kevin begins with identity, not résumé. He calls himself a child of God first. He is also in long-term recovery, and he talks about it plainly, not for attention but because hiding it would help no one. The hard parts of his story became the superpower that lets him meet people where they are.
Recovery did not arrive in one dramatic turnaround. It came after years of trying it his way, treatment stays, and hard lessons, until surrender opened the door to a durable relationship with God. That shift forged resilience, the kind that shows up in quiet decisions and long seasons. Kevin says many people in recovery are capable, driven, and resourceful. Once the chaos is cleared and purpose has a chance, they often fly.
Professionally, Kevin has spent most of his adult life in mortgages. He entered the business in 2001 and has ridden every cycle since. He remembers the refinance booms, the whiplash of 2008 and 2009 when lenders failed on the eve of closings, and the recent climb from three percent rates to seven. The work is one hundred percent commission and the market can change in minutes. What steadies the ride is preparation and honesty. He sets expectations early, explains why rates move, and revisits pre-approvals as conditions shift. When a buyer finally finds the home that checks all the boxes in a tight inventory market, he urges them to weigh the full picture. You can refinance a rate later. You cannot reclaim a year of lost appreciation on the home you loved and let pass.
Kevin is candid about college too. He did not finish, and that closed some doors. It also sharpened his work ethic. He sees student debt on credit reports every day, and he will not romanticize it. For some careers, the degree matters. For others, drive and integrity can carry you farther. Commission sales fit his wiring. Early on, accolades and income were his scoreboard. The low-rate frenzy during COVID made him rethink that equation. John Maxwell’s line stuck with him. Once you taste significance, success alone will not satisfy. These days, the metric is impact. Who was helped, not just what was earned.
Asked how to buy a home in a choppy market, Kevin offers a simple process. Define the goal. Accept the facts on the ground. Adjust the budget where you can. If a house fits your life, move forward and plan to improve the rate later if conditions allow. If your timeline is short or uncertain, renting may be wiser. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. There is a thoughtful path for each person.
As a father, his advice to his kids starts with priorities. Define success for yourself. Put God first. Let everything else take its proper place. You cannot be everything, and you do not need to be. Aim at what matters, like a tee shot on a clear target, not endless swings on the range.
For a fictional stand-in, Kevin chooses Andy Dufresne from The Shawshank Redemption. Intelligent. Quiet. Steadfast under pressure. A man who crawls through the dark and comes out clean on the other side. The comparison fits. Kevin’s story is not only about recovery from addiction or survival in a volatile industry. It is about resilience anchored in grace, and the steady, humble work of helping people find home.
