Words by Anna Lee Vaughn | Images by Ryan McGill
For years, Laura Hiott thought she was crazy.
Crazy for continuing to juggle her personal life, family, and pursuit of her own business. But as she now knows, it all worked out for good.
Laura was born in Madison, Florida, and lived in the Atlanta metro area until she was fifteen. Her family then moved to Alabama, where she has lived ever since. After graduating high school, she attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and earned an accounting degree. Newly graduated and married, Laura began climbing the corporate ladder, adjusting to married life, and pursuing her career. However, a few years later, Laura and her husband discovered their family would soon be expanding, spurring a slight change of plans.
“I got pregnant with twins, and that definitely changed things. At that point, I had worked my way up to Comptroller of a company, and it was very demanding. My pregnancy was high-risk, and when I was seven months pregnant, I had to leave my job,” says Laura. “I was a stay-at-home mom for a while, but I felt like God had more in store for my career.”
Through a friend at church, Laura connected with her future business partner and learned to originate mortgages, allowing her to work from home. The two briefly partnered to form a small business. However, Laura soon felt it was time to utilize her newfound skill and venture out independently, creating Hiott Financial and gaining her desired flexibility to be with her children throughout the day while working.
For over twenty years, Laura has built Hiott Financial from the ground up, honed her craft, and formed relationships with locals. Her business survived the housing market crash of 2008, a situation so dire she nearly suspended her mortgage license. She was able to be with her twin daughters daily and is now seeing them through college.
Laura specializes in residential mortgages, though her financial services include loans and investments. She has two in-house loan officers, and her daughter plans to join the family business and incorporate services such as financial planning.
Throughout the highs and lows of starting a business and a family, Laura now sees why God called her to be a business owner yet has also allowed her to struggle. “I’m able to give my testimony through my work because starting my company was such a weird time. I was 28, I had two babies at home, my husband worked all the time, and we had rental properties. I had no family who lived near me to help with my daughters, and I was starting a company I knew nothing about. When my girls were in kindergarten, my husband got hurt and could not work full-time for years,” says Laura. “As hard as those times were, God knew what He was doing. He always knows, and I know He led me to start my own business for those reasons.”
Reflecting on years past, Laura is thankful for the opportunity to build a business that benefits her family and community. Hiott Financial is a testament to God’s faithfulness and willingness to provide strength during struggle. WL
