We all acknowledge referrals are a mainstay for you, the real estate agent. But despite your best service, you can be torpedoed by your mortgage broker and the client can walk away with a bad taste in his mouth. It happens more times than you should accept.
The mortgage experience is the end game for the client, before he gets the keys and moves into his new home. You can spend months showing properties, making offers, negotiating great deals and guiding the client seamlessly into contract, a perfect symphony of the buying cycle. Enter angels and tabernacle choirs. Ahhh! But then, the mortgage broker closes the deal. And if he turns it into a bad experience, your hard work is denigrated and the client is less inclined, maybe much less inclined, to refer his friends who want to sell a home or buy an island in the Caribbean. Wonk, wonk!
We all know mortgage underwriting is invasive. The bank needs very personal information like bank/brokerage statements, tax returns, income and expense reports etc, etc. Would you ask , “How much do you make?” or “What’s your bank balance?” The mortgage underwriter’s job is to dig up information, ask probing questions and leave no stone unturned. In their defense, they must decide whether the bank will loan a boatload of money to….basically strangers.
From my experience as a mortgage broker and many conversations with real estate agents and borrowers, I find it amazing that mortgage brokers do not give a simple heads up to clients explaining the process. Borrowers seek hundreds of thousands of dollars. Ethical banks vet borrowers hard to leverage risk, maintain healthy loan portfolios and thereby reinforce the housing industry. It’s only reasonable and benefits us all.
As a seasoned 20 year loan officer, I advocate the “three minute prep talk” to prepare the client for grueling questions from pesky underwriters. I can usually foresee those questions, but there is an occasional curve ball. In the end more often than not, the client is surprised to find it easier than anticipated.
Your competition is steep. The last thing you need is a problematic mortgage broker crushing your mojo. If your clients have ever had a bad mortgage experience, it may be time for you to vet the broker.
