Follow-Up With a Winner: Brent Burns Wintrust Mortgage, Crystal Lake, IL |
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2008 total loan volume: $10,286,000 In Touch Today: How have events in the mortgage/housing market affected your business? Brent Burns: The effect on my business has mostly been related to my employers, not the real estate market. In early 2008, I went to work for a correspondent banker/broker in what appeared to be a good move for me. Unfortunately, as happened with many broker/bankers, they started to have trouble with their line of credit, making it difficult to fund loans on a timely basis. This adversely affected my volume. I began to search for another answer at the end of 2008. I am happy to report that I now work for Wintrust Mortgage, a division of Wintrust Financial, a 79-branch bank entity in the Chicago and Southern Wisconsin market. This move gave me the stability I needed from a funding perspective. The referrals from my bank, Crystal Lake Bank & Trust, have been great. I am now well positioned for the future. My volume for April 2009 (my first month with Wintrust) was $1.4 million, and I have originated over $2 million for May, so it is nice to be back to the volume I am used to and need for financial stability. I think many originators have been having these same issues and may have some reluctance in making a move. I equate this mindset to being the captain of a sinking ship. Just ask yourself if you want to be the last one to go down. If you do not, and you are worried about ongoing stability, start to make some inquiries and look at your options. Great companies will always have room for great people. I think the sweet spot for the mortgage originator now is working for a regional banking entity. These entities are small enough to give personalized service, but big enough to fund their own loans and not have to worry about their credit lines. If you have taken good care of your clients, they will follow you wherever you go. The key to this is make sure you have control of your database and to have your own email address that ties to a URL that you own. This way, if you change employers, your communication with your customers is not interrupted. In Touch Today: Have you been approaching marketing or other methods of business generation differently given the state of affairs? Brent: My goal is to be radically transparent will my clients and my referral partners. They all hear the media reports of problems in our industry, and if I/we just tell them everything is “great,” they tend not to believe us. I share, through my ongoing newsletters and emails, exactly what is going on in the industry and how their experience will be different going forward. I have gotten nothing but positive feedback on this approach, and many clients are appreciative of me keeping in touch, even if the news is not all positive. I have also implemented a Customer Advisory Board for my practice. Twice a year I invite twelve of my best clients to get together for a brief update on what is happening in real estate. Then I go into detail with them on what they want from me, what I could be doing better and what they see in other places in the market that they want me to explore doing. This approach has been incredible. Last month, I had five clients who were able to attend. They all gave me great ideas to implement, and more importantly, within two weeks they had all referred someone to me for a mortgage. My closing rate on those five referrals was 100%. I am trying to communicate more, but in more efficient ways. The customers are confused as to all the media hype and negativity, and they value my insights. I use email newsletters to both my clients and referral partners at least two times per month, more if the news warrants. They appreciate being kept up to date and view me as the expert. Even when I may be contrary to media reports, they tend to believe me based on our previous relationship. I have also started monthly information calls for my referral partners. I use www.nocostconference.com to get a free conference call number that my partners can dial in to at a set time each month. I typically remind them with a postcard that is timed to arrive two days before the call, and will send out an email the morning of the call reminding them again. The topics are easy to choose, as there is rarely a month that goes by that does not bring a major change in our business. May’s call was about HVCC, June’s was about the FHA 203(K) streamline program. In Touch Today: What approaches do you feel are still working for you? Brent: Basic “keep in touch” strategies are the key right now, and this is where In Touch Today and Mortgage Coach really help me out. Many of the clients who I am transacting with currently are from the last refinance craze in 2003-2004 because they tend to have maintained enough of their equity to be able to transact again. I have been faithful in keeping in touch with these folks through a mailed newsletter (from In Touch Today), email newsletters, Rate Watch reports (from Mortgage Coach) and birthday and holiday cards. Most of my messages are non-selling in nature, and my customers tend to pay more attention to them than when there is a selling message involved. I think many originators only market to get a deal right now. I market to make sure I get the deal when the time comes. It is an important distinction. In Touch Today: What advice would you give other loan officers who may be struggling to keep/find clients? Brent: It is all about customer retention at this point. Keeping your current customers (and referral partners) engaged and continuing to add value to your relationship with them is the most important thing we, as originators, can do now. For those who don’t have a huge book of past clients, see if you can go to your company’s database and look for opportunities there for “orphan” customers, those customers whose loan officer may no longer work for the company. These customers will genuinely appreciate someone “adopting” them, as long as the approach is that of continuing to add value to the relationship, not just trolling for refinances. Networking is a big key for me right now as well. There may be fewer homes selling, but there are also far fewer loan originators than there used to be. I do not approach potential referral partners asking for business. I share my network with them, I share my knowledge and I share my compassion. They appreciate the different, softer approach. It is paying off for me in the long run. I may not get a referral today, but a year from now when I get five, it will be great. Most of all, I highly recommend the book, “Book Yourself Solid,” by Michael Port. The Book Yourself Solid system is the easiest, most efficient way to build your customer base. This system changed my life, and how I view sales, in a significant way. It has made such a meaningful difference in my life that I became certified to coach others on the system. It is that powerful. In Touch Today: What personally keeps your spirits up in a difficult market? Why do you stay in the business? Brent: I feel my purpose is to help people make smart financial decisions. I cannot do that selling cars or flat screen TV’s. I take great satisfaction in helping my clients achieve the American dream of home ownership. Unlike many sales situations, the product I am selling has a true, tangible benefit. The vehicle makes home ownership possible. More importantly, few people pay cash for their home, so the mortgage is a true need for 99.9% of the homebuyers out there. In regards to my spirits, believe me, there have been days (maybe weeks or months in 2008!) where I questioned being in this business for the long term. If I have a day like that and I am feeling down, I will spend some time with my 7-year-old boy and my 15-month-old daughter and they remind me that they are part of my purpose and I take energy from them. Remember, if you are still in the business, you and I will be the survivors and we will all be rewarded handsomely as things continue to turn around. In Touch Today: Do you have a daily affirmation or inspirational quote that you would like to share? Brent: Clarity > Confidence > Action > Results I spend a lot of time getting very clear on what I want to achieve and it helps makes the execution easier. In Touch Today: Who are your favorite lenders? Brent: As a correspondent lender, I do not have a favorite end lender. Wherever I can get the best rate for my client is okay with me, as they all tend to retain the servicing, have online access, etc. They are all following Fannie or Freddie’s rules anyway, so they all look alike to me. In Touch Today: What programs are you currently offering that seem to be working well for you? Brent: It is an FHA world right now for most buyers. Much of the new purchase activity is first time buyers, and they are starting to get good at saving for the down payment. Many of them have low credit scores simply because they do not have much credit, not because they have done anything wrong. In many cases, I can work with them to build their credit profile while they are saving for their down payment. My referral partners are experts at negotiating seller concessions for my buyers, so they are getting amazing deals on homes with amazing rates on their mortgages. Additionally, many of my move-up buyers have lost equity and are having to bring money to the closing of their current homes, so being able to use FHA for their new purchase minimizes their down payment and allows them to get the home they want. Many of my refinances are what I call “term” refinances where the client gets a lower rate and shortens the term of their loan. For instance, for those clients who have had their 30-year mortgage for five to six years, they may refinance into a 15 or 20-year mortgage, reducing their rate, but keeping their payments about the same. They save big money on interest over the term of the loan. I see a fundamental change in the market to a more conservative approach to mortgage financing, which is a good thing. |
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