The following is an excerpt from Chapter 9 of Volume I of The Mortgage Professional's Handbook:
Servicing the Listing Agent
Bliss Sawyer, Owner
Mortgage Marketing Strategies
Providing service to the listing agent is a strategy that many loan officers never employ. Taking the time to keep the listing agent informed during a transaction helps them and their sellers to feel confident, and they’ll appreciate your services. Some of my best agents started out as listing agents. Never assume they already have a strong lender relationship.
At one point in my origination career, I moved to a new area just when rates were climbing. Looking for every way I could to develop new real estate agent contacts, I tried this approach. The listing agent was a high-producer, and at the end of the transaction, I asked if we could meet for lunch to discuss doing more business together. He said he was grateful for the great service I had provided, but had a lender that had been with him for many years. I finished the conversation by letting him know I would love to work with him anytime in the future. I contacted him by email and phone for the next six months hoping to work with him again. One day, he called and explained that his current lender was not performing well and asked if I would like to be his preferred lender. This was the start of a highly profitable relationship. Note not only the technique —servicing the listing agent—but also the principle of patient persistence.
In multiple-offer situations, I offer to call the listing agent to reinforce that my buyer is a strong candidate, and ask them to pass that along to the seller when they present the offers. This has been instrumental many times in helping clients to get a home in a competitive situation. The buyer’s agents absolutely love that I am willing to help in this way.
Read the rest of this chapter in The Mortgage Professional's Handbook!