Juicy Gossip — Testimonials

"Captain Save A Loan" is what we call her… "TERA PALEKA". Me and my husband are first time home buyers, and we were in escrow for about 7 months with another loan company that gave us confusing information, kept advising us our monthly payments were going to be higher than originally quoted (3 times), and finally they came back to us advising we would need to put more money down if we didn't want to lose the home purchase. It was very stressful and frustrating. We needed to make a choice quickly before losing our DREAM HOME in Waiehu. After hearing Tera's radio commercial, I had no doubt in my mind, so I emailed Tera the scenario we were in. She immediately got back to me. BOOM SHAKALAKA…we were closed out in less than 2½ weeks. Tera aka "Captain Save A Loan" made our 2½ weeks fly by, and it all seemed too good to be true. But everything she advised us was accurate and we didn't have to bring in any down payment and our monthly payments were even less than Tera originally quoted us! Tera you and your staff are amazing, and I would definitely recommend Hawaii Financial Services to our friends and family.

I would like to share my gratitude and a big "tongs up" for helping make my financial move to the next chapter in my life so much smoother than anyone else could. You accomplished something that I had attempted 3 times in 10 years and made it to the finish line in under 30 days! My refinance was more complicated and challenging than most other clients. A good friend of mine recommended you. We had never met in person (until closing day), and only worked online, texting & phone but I felt like we are old friends. You and your team's communication from the beginning felt as if we were meeting person to person. I was kept feeling confident and you are very trustworthy. You showed amazing determination in my case both professionally and personally, which no other banker or financial institute had done all these years. If you need someone that will guide you and shine light where the bumps in the road may lay without giving up while finding plan A, plan B, plan C — it's Tera Paleka at Hawaii Financial Services!

Kūpuna taught us that good work is rewarded. We found in Tera Paleka, someone who understands the values that Kūpuna passed down through the generations. She is driven to excellence and getting the job done. Email her at 4am and she responds. Email or call on any day of the week, and she answers or calls back in a short period of time. Our whole process took under 30 days. It wouldn't have happened without Tera at Hawaii Financial Services. He leo kāko'o kēia iā 'oukou, ke kāhea iā ia no kou kū'ai 'ana i ka hale! (This is a recommendation to you, call her if you are buying a home!).

"Everything totally works out and I am never worried with you Tera! We are really happy and Thank You so much for getting it done where others could not! You have a customer for life now! Great Job!"

"Our pleasure to work with the most amazing lender on Maui! Tera Lyn closed this transaction in just 25 days which is almost unheard of. Thank you for making this whole transaction go so smoothly. With so many pieces to the escrow puzzle beyond our control you made what normally would have been a deal killer [regarding an old County easement] a 'non-issue' and all within a day I might add. You are an amazing lender!"

Just prior to a year-long business trip to Thailand, I summoned Hawaii Financial Services to refinance my home. Time was short: I was packed and hunting for competent service. After 2 frustrating refi failures with my local Hawaii bank, I needed performance. When Tera and her team heard of my nightmare, they confidently responded, "We specialize in Miserable Mess Avoidance!" Rushed, I dumped much of the footwork chores on to HIFIS, who literally worked around the clock to finish the job in my absence. In record time, the loan was efficiently secured. With complete confidence, I exclusively recommend Hawaii Financial Services. Tera is straight, upfront and if she can't close your loan than nobody can!

"Thanks Tera!! With your mad re-financing skills, we will be saving $590 per month!! I love dropping mortgage rates. You Rock! If anyone needs to refinance or buy a home and want to save money then call Tera Paleka!!"

"I am grateful for Tera providing my 'ohana with the opportunity to purchase our first home. Our dream has become reality. We were blessed to have Tera financing us with no down payment as well as we were able to move into our home ahead of scheduled closing date. I am so grateful for Tera and her persistence, diligence, honesty and aloha. I highly recommend Tera Paleka for your mortgage needs!"

"Thanks again for all the wonderful work you and your team have accomplished. I never doubted your caliber and persistence. I am glad we got it done in such a short time (15 day closing). With the quick, accurate and professional way you helped me when my other lender failed, by all means please post my comments with my blessings and appreciation. Again thank you and your staff for a job well done!"

"Tera did a lot of good things for me over the years. She has helped me purchase one of my investment homes and refinanced three of my homes to get better interest rates lowering my monthly payments. Tera also helped relieve a lot of stress during a difficult time. Tera helped me with all the paperwork making things smooth and way easier on me all together. Tera is awesome — she takes care of everything and lets me know exactly what is going on at all times. I recommend Tera to anyone who needs to get a loan!"

"Being a self-employed borrower I was worried about the loan process but with your help and advice I knew we were in good hands right from the start. Your service was excellent, without the usual expected grief. We are very satisfied. Looking forward to near future transactions."

"You guys are the best! We were referred by our friends and they were right. You got us the best rate! With the least amount of paperwork hassle and we didn't expect that. You got us a better deal than you originally quoted us and we can't say enough good things about your service. Thank you Tera!"

"It took me awhile to find a lender I could deal with. My Business Banker told me about Tera and after our first visit everything went very smooth. I would rate Tera and her staff at a 10. I have never met anyone like her! Tera got me a better rate than what she quoted me and she made sure I saved money on everything in between! I recommend Tera to everyone I know!"

"I received such excellent service in refinancing my loan in 2005; I came back again in 2006 & 2007 and we just purchased a wonderful investment property on Kauai with Tera. Tera really knows what she is doing. Tera helped me pay down debt and stopped the IRS from placing a levy on my properties. I can't thank her enough!"

"I enjoyed learning and laughing with Tera. Not only did she 'over deliver' on the rate and terms of our various loans with her company, but she is a fun person to be around. I recommend Tera and her company to everyone in the Hawaiian Islands!"

"I can't think of anything you could have done better! You are my new best friend. I have told all my friends to use you for all their Hawaii home loans! Any girl that isn't afraid to meet me in the Waihe'e Valley to sign my loan docs is a rockstar in my book!"

Want to own a home in Hawaii?? Call Tera!! I'm serious. Call her. Email her. Send in your application to her, no matter how scary or discouraging the thought of homeownership ma Hawai'i Nei may seem to you. As a young family of 6, with one income, raising family and owning a home in Hawaii seems near impossible. Enter Tera Paleka and the Hawaii Financial Services team. My husband and I have used Tera in two separate instances. Through a moment when she was dealing with her own wellness challenge AND the covid crisis alongside the rest of the world, she worked hard for us! Owning a home was our dream, but Tera shared in that with us by working her tail off through it all and getting us beyond our wildest dreams! No kidding, she works MAGIC! Before the close of 2020 we were homeowners, with unbelievable rates, in a highly coveted neighborhood. One income, 4 kids, 6 mouths to feed. Tera got us there! Mahalo Piha Tera!!

"Tera and her team exceeded ANY and EVERY expectation we had. We wouldn't have been able to purchase our home without them. As first time home buyers we had no idea what was needed, but Tera made us feel like this process was a breeze! We came to her unsure if it was even possible to buy a home in Hawaii, but she got us preapproved the next day! We even closed on our dream home in under 30 days! She was so fun to work with and I would recommend her to every single person/family who is looking to buy a home."

"The week we were set to close escrow on our first home with another lender we were notified that our original loan fell through and we would need to bring in more money for closing costs and our projected mortgage payment would double. We almost gave up. Our friends referred Tera Paleka @ Hawaii Financial Services to us. Within hours of calling Tera she not only had us approved for the 100% program but she spoke to the seller of the home who decided to give us another chance to close the loan. Tera actually closed our loan in 3 weeks flat! The unbelievable thing is that she got us a loan paying more than a thousand dollars LESS than our original quote with the lender who failed us! Thank You Tera Paleka! We appreciate all that you and your company has done for our 'ohana! Thanks to you our dream has come true!"

"Tera and her group are amazing!! We are 'self employed' business owners who were turned down by the traditional banks when looking to purchase our first home on Maui. It was not an easy task, but Tera and Hawaii Financial Services made it happen!! In an amazingly quick time, especially considering all the holidays. We are so grateful to them for helping to make our dream come true. They are awesome to work with and genuinely care about their clients. Communication and updates were great! MAHALO!!"