Okay, let’s tackle this. So Liz Irish has a mix of skills in mortgage lending, real estate, and customer service. While her experience in mortgage lending is valuable, her location in Albany, OR, is a smaller market. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual salary for mortgage lenders in the US is around $62,000. However, this figure includes a wide range of professionals, from entry-level to senior positions. Considering Liz's skills and experience, I'd place her in the lower to mid-range of this spectrum. A more relevant benchmark might be the average salary for mortgage loan officers in the Albany, OR area, which is around $50,000 - $60,000 per year. To convert this to an hourly rate, let’s assume a 40-hour workweek and 52 weeks per year, which is a reasonable estimate for a mortgage lender. This puts her hourly rate at around $25 - $30 per hour. However, considering her customer service skills and experience in real estate economics, I'd estimate her hourly rate to be slightly higher, around $40 - $45 per hour, which is a reasonable estimate for her skills and experience in the Albany, OR market.