Meet Tres Miller

Tres Miller — pronounced "Trace" — is a Utah mortgage banker, U.S. Army veteran, and longtime residential lending professional specializing in reverse mortgages, VA loans, and mortgage strategies for Utah homeowners.

And if you're wondering about the name, there is a story behind it.

Tres was the third child in his family and was born in Puerto Rico, so his parents named him Tres — the Spanish word for "three."

A lot of people naturally give the name a very Americanized or "Gringo" pronunciation, almost like saying: "Uno, dos, Trace."

And that is actually how his name is pronounced.

It's spelled Tres. It's pronounced Trace.

That small difference has been breaking the ice for more than 50 years and is often one of the first questions people ask when they meet him.

More Than Three Decades in Mortgage Lending

Tres has worked in residential mortgage lending since 1995, serving as a loan officer, sales manager, branch owner, trainer, and mortgage educator.

Over the course of his career, he has helped homeowners and buyers navigate everything from first homes and traditional mortgages to more specialized financing decisions.

Today, his primary areas of focus are reverse mortgages (HECM), VA loans, and strategic home-equity and mortgage planning.

His approach is less about simply finding a loan and more about answering a larger question:

What mortgage strategy makes the most sense for this homeowner's circumstances, goals, and long-term financial plans?

That is especially important when working with retirees considering how to use home equity or veterans trying to make the most of their VA home-loan benefit.

Veteran Helping Veterans

Tres served in the United States Army as a Chaplain's Assistant with the 1457th Engineer Battalion from 1992 to 2000.

That experience gives his work with VA borrowers a personal dimension.

He understands that the VA home-loan benefit is not simply another mortgage program. It is a benefit earned through military service, and eligible veterans should understand how to use it effectively.

Tres helps veterans evaluate issues such as VA eligibility and the Certificate of Eligibility, entitlement, zero-down financing, residual-income qualification, VA appraisals, seller concessions, assumptions, refinances, and how VA financing compares with other available options. The VA Loan Resource Center collects those topics in one place.

Helping Utah Homeowners 62+ Understand Their Equity

Tres also specializes in reverse mortgages and Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) for Utah homeowners age 62 and older.

A reverse mortgage is not automatically the right solution simply because someone qualifies for one.

Tres believes the more useful conversation is whether accessing home equity improves the homeowner's overall retirement strategy.

That can mean comparing a HECM with alternatives such as keeping the existing mortgage, using a HELOC or cash-out refinance, selling, downsizing, or simply leaving the equity untouched. Related questions — eligibility, payout and line-of-credit options, HECM for Purchase, and what happens for heirs and a surviving spouse — are covered in the Reverse Mortgage Resource Center.

The objective is not to sell a particular loan. It is to help a homeowner understand the tradeoffs well enough to make an informed decision.

Utah Is Home

Tres works with homeowners and homebuyers throughout Utah, with a particular focus on Utah County and the communities surrounding his home market.

Through the Utah Homeownership Authority, he publishes educational resources designed to answer the questions Utah consumers actually ask about mortgages, home equity, VA benefits, reverse mortgages, government-backed financing, and homeownership. Most of it lives in the Knowledge Center.

The goal is straightforward:

Give people useful information before asking them to become clients.

The Magic Mortgage Lender

Outside the mortgage business, Tres is also a performing magician known as "Tres the Great."

That part of his life eventually led to the nickname:

"The Magic Mortgage Lender."

The magic and mortgage businesses are separate, but they share something Tres values in both: connecting with people, explaining things clearly, and making what can initially feel complicated a little easier to approach.