Resources

Loan Officer Sales Training

We at pitchSIMPLE are dedicated to your success.

That's why our web site will continuously provide you with new loan officer training tools, tips, and tactics aimed at helping you increase your knowledge and close more loans.

Of course, reading our advice alone will not make you a superstar. To become a mortgage champion, you must not only read but also continually practice what we're preaching.

Think of Michael Jordan, Julia Roberts, and Eddie Van Halen. For them, greatness wasn't achieved by merely reading a "How To" book on basketball, acting, or playing the guitar. They also practiced endlessly - even after reaching legendary status. You must too.

The more you practice, the more good habits you build. The more habits you build, the quicker you'll master your craft. Once a master, always a master - and success will be yours to savor the rest of your career!

STEP 1. TAKING THE APPLICATION

MOST COMMONLY MADE MISTAKES WHEN TAKING A 1003

1. Asking a barrage of questions, one after another, like an FBI interrogator.
2. Not asking enough open-ended questions aimed at building rapport and learning the true purpose.
3. Talking too much!
    

BUILD A SOLID RELATIONSHIP

The 1003 is, as you know, critical for qualifying a customer. After all, before you can offer the best loan advice, you must first learn the facts regarding your borrower's equity, income and credit. But it's easy to forget that the 1003 was originally designed as an underwriter's tool, not a salesperson's tool. And you're a salesperson, not an underwriter.

So, before we go any further, it's really important to shake off those underwriter tendencies. Go ahead get rid of them now. You can no longer sound like an FBI agent shining the proverbial bright light in your customer's eyes and interrogating them with a barrage of questions.

From now on, you must treat the application phase as a relationship building exercise rather than a fact-finding mission. You must be warm, personable and enthusiastic. Only then will you build the rapport needed to make the final sale.
 

MAKE FRIENDS WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS

When you make friends with people, do you first ask them how much money they make or what their credit score is? Of course not. Well, why jump right into those questions with your customers? After all, your customers are human beings, and your mission is to get to know them. Sure, you'll need to get income and credit information. But that can come later.

First, though, you need to learn about your customer's goals, dreams, desires, and wishes. You need to know about their children, their aspirations for the future, and their plans for retirement. You need to learn about the major financial aspects of their lives. Do they plan on staying in their house for thirty years or moving after five? Do they have any major life changes around the corner that'll affect their bottom line - like the birth of a new child, or a daughter going to college? If they want cash out, what's the first thing they hope to do with it?
 

BECOME A TRUSTED ADVISOR

By asking these open-ended questions, and expanding on the answers, you'll transform yourself from a mere salesperson loan officer, into an Expert Trusted Advisor. Trusted Advisors always focus on how to best benefit their customers - and provide them with the loan that helps them accomplish their goals. Trusted Advisors always sell more loans because a solid relationship is always built on mutual trust.

Once you've expanded on this information, and cooked up some good rapport, going back and completing the more prosaic aspects of the 1003 will be easy. Once a customer likes and trusts you, they're eager to move forward, complete the application process, and fax you the documents needed to get the loan started.
 

2 MOST IMPORTANT RULES FOR COMPLETING A 1003

1. ASK OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS RELATING TO YOUR CUSTOMERS FINANCIAL GOALS.
2. LISTEN TO THE ANSWERS!
    

Honestly, it's that simple folks. Stop interrogating, and start making friends. Ask open ended questions, then listen to the answers. Transform yourself from a loan officer to a Trusted Advisor. Do these simple tasks each and every time you take a lead. You'll be building good habits - and the rewards will follow!

Word of warning: Listening is harder than you think. Especially for chattering salespeople like us. But you must learn to listen properly because listening will earn you a million times more rapport than talking. As the saying goes: You were born with two ears and one mouth for a reason!

Check back in the future for Step 2 --Analyzing The Credit!
 

STEP 2. ANALYSING THE CREDIT

STEP 3 YOUR LOAN PROPOSAL

STEP 4 CUSTOMER SERVICE AND FOLLOW UP

Loan Officer Training