A native of Greenville, JD graduated from Riverside High School in 1987 and The Citadel with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration in 1991. He started his career in mortgage banking with Well Fargo Financial and worked with them in Charleston, Myrtle Beach, Winston Salem, NC as well as Reno, NV where he managed mortgage branches in Nevada and Oregon. In 2000 he co-founded First Palmetto Mortgage. He served as the Upstate Director for the SC Mortgage Brokers Association from 2003-2005. He is also the co-host of the 3 year running ‘House Plans’ Saturday morning radio show on 1330 AM WORD in Greenville and WSC 94.3 in Charleston.