With interest rates rising rapidly, it is more important than ever to make the most of every loan. As refinances begin to dry up and you begin to deal more with purchases, you will undoubtedly encounter new roadblocks and hurdles on the way to the closing table. It’s a fact–purchase loans are far more time consuming and stressful than their refinance counterparts.

Borrowers are emotional, erratic, demanding, panicky, unsure, deliriously happy or sad and a whole host of many other emotions. In their minds, they’ve picked out the carpeting and wallpaper and have mentally already moved in! Geesh! Try dealing with a person who thinks they’re the landlord and they don’t even have the keys yet!!!

Keeping this in mind, here are some tips when dealing with purchase loans. These come from my years of experience and many number of loans (I’ve lost count.)…

1. Don’t show your hand too early (meaning the interest rate you can offer). Explain to the borrower that it is up to them when they decide to actually “lock-in” the interest rate. If they press you for an actual rate, tell them what today’s rate is you can offer, and that you will watch the interest rates for them. If they drop, you will call them at the first moment. What you really want to do here is knock the borrower off their “rate” short-sightedness. Say something like, “Well, as you know, the interest rates change every day. With purchase loans, time is critical. What we can do is get the process started, so that you don’t lose the house, and when the interest rates get to a point you feel comfortable with, we can lock it in for you. We will be working hand-in-hand through the entire process. Now, how do you spell your last name?”.

2. Explain the difference between a pre-qualification and a commitment letter. Borrowers think just because they have been pre-qualified somewhere, that it guarantees them the loan. This isn’t the case. As you know, the underwriter has the final say. If the property does not appraise for the correct value, the borrowers’ situation changes, or the seller pulls out, the deal is dead. These are things entirely out of your control. What I tell borrowers, is that we are going to go one step further than a simple pre-qual letter. We want to give them an advantage with their loan, and get them a full commitment letter from a lender as soon as possible. This lessons the chance of them getting their expectations set too high and not getting the loan in the end.

3. Phone the real estate agents early on and explain you are in control of the process. Call them BEFORE they call you. You want to show that YOU are in control—NOT them. Doing this, puts you at a higher level and they will respect you for it. Believe me.

4. Set expectations with the borrower upfront. Explain the entire loan process from start to end. First-time homebuyers just simply don’t know. Emphasize to them, if they have any questions, to call you first—NOT the realtor.

5. Make it known that you are the point of contact for all parties involved in the transaction. This includes the seller and buyer agent, appraiser, lawyer, title companies, etc. Usually, the realtor thinks they are in control for the whole process, but remember the sale is mostly out of their hands after the purchase and sales contract is signed. Then it is entirely up to you—the loan officer—to succeed! By being the “driver” in the process, you can minimize any confusion or crossed signals that may arise.
6. If you get a sales call from a borrower looking to purchase a home, ask if they have already been pre-qualified elsewhere. Most of the time they have been and are simply shopping around for the lowest rate. (In other words, go back to rule number one above… don’t show your hand too early). If the borrower shops behind the other loan officer, they will certainly do it to you too.

7. Explain to the borrower whether you are acting as a direct lender or broker. Each has pluses and minuses. Explain what you are and the role you play. Sell yourself. For example, you can say “As a lender, we have direct control of the process, we make the final decision and can tell you upfront whether you qualify.” or “As a broker, if you get denied by a lender, we can easily shop you to another lender, saving you time and effort. This will help you ensure you get the house you want and not jeopardize the process”. Sell your advantages…don’t mention your weaknesses.

8. Factor in all payments for the borrower, including the full principal, interest, taxes and insurance and be certain that the borrower is well aware of these entire costs upfront. If they can’t afford the house, you want to know as soon as possible. Or you’ll be left with nothing!!! I always say, it’s best early on to kill ‘em or keep ‘em. Don’t let timewasters run away with your income.

9. Watch critical dates, especially rate lock expirations and underwriting turn-times. Be well aware of the “commitment letter” date as stated in the purchase and sales contract on the property. Oftentimes, borrowers wait until far too late in the process before deciding to move ahead and these contract deadlines can be impossible to meet. Get an extension on this ASAP with the seller’s agent on the property.

10. Finesse your way through the process. Don’t lie. Only tell each individual party involved in the process what they need to know. Don’t share too much information…it creates confusion. And don’t tell someone something unless you are absolutely certain. It always comes back to bite you in the rear!

11. Stop the shopping. Make the borrower understand that once they decide to move ahead with the process, they risk losing the home, if they decide to leave you. Another broker/lender will be unable to meet the tight deadlines in the contract. They have to make a decision and stick to it.

12. Stop the shopping—part two. If the borrower is qualifying for a home based on a special program that your company is offering, tell them the criteria upfront. Not every loan officer has what you can offer. In other words, you have a specialized program and are making an “exception” just for them. Not all rates are created equal. The other “competitors” for the loan may not have all the correct information upfront, to be able to properly quote them an accurate interest rate. Let me emphasize that again—an ACCURATE INTEREST RATE. Educate the borrower on this, show them you’ve done your homework, and are quoting accurately. Ask qualifying questions that others don’t.

By keeping these tips in mind, it should make your next purchase loan go a lot smoother.

If you are looking for a firm step-by-step process to help you get your purchase loans to the table faster, please…please…please…take a minute to read about my Sink or Swim Loan Closing System at http://www.loanclosingsystem.com

And, as always, best of luck in your business. This is STILL a wonderful industry to be in! Stop being discouraged and go get ‘em!!! I know it’s tougher out there, but you can do it!



Passive Income

The condominium concept emerged in the 1970s as a unique alternative to traditional apartment leasing and single family home ownership. At first the idea – which involves partial ownership in a larger collective or association of similar properties – gained traction in vacation destinations. Instead of forking over excessive amounts of money to buy pricey beach property, for example, a buyer could buy one slice of a larger pie at a more affordable price. And as an alternative to perpetual rental – which offers no tax benefits or equity accumulation – owners could purchase their apartments or holiday retreats, without having to buy an entire apartment building.
Now the same idea is spreading within the market for traditional office space, where a condo office is defined as an office building with two or more individually owned units. The rest of the property – for example the parking lot, landscape and lobby – is owned in common and equally shared by all of the condo owners. In other words, condo ownership of an office works the same way it works in a residential condominium setting, and the terms of ownership are outlined in office condo association by-laws.

During the 1990s developers in many cities around the country overbuilt office space to keep pace with the exploding high-tech industry. But then the industry shrank as many of the start-up “dot-com” companies that the offices were meant to house went out of business. Many of those costly projects were hard to sell, because the need for huge office property evaporated, leaving developers saddled with inventory and financial liability. They offered to sell off offices piecemeal, rather than waiting to lure well-heeled buyers who could afford the whole building.

Suddenly the condo office frontier was discovered, as innovative commercial brokers began to divide up skyscrapers and sell single office units or floors of office space, rather than trying to market the whole enchilada. The concept caught on, and continues to be a popular and less investment-intensive alternative for those businesses or professionals who would like to own their own office but don’t want to build or purchase an entire building in order to do so.

Occupancy costs combined with the loss of potential financial incentives usually weigh heavily into the choices of those who opt for the office condo alternative. Most office condo owners cite control of their property as the most compelling reason for the purchase, and they list tax perks and financial advantages as other contributing influences affecting their decision. If you rent or lease, your ability to redesign and remodel may be limited by the flexibility of the landlord. And if you decide to move, you may have to forfeit penalties for short-circuiting your lease. Even if you time the relocation to coincide with the expiration of your contract, you never get to enjoy equity appreciation like you do with owned property.

Availability is another powerful issue, because someone needing a relatively small can find office condos in a variety of sizes and configurations, even in the most popular parts of town. Office condos are especially popular with those who want to establish themselves in a specific location where buying a building or constructing their own is not practical. Small professional firms can buy condos that range from 1,200 to 50,000 square feet, inside large buildings in competitive markets like New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, or Washington DC. Office condo development is also becoming more common in mixed-use properties where office and retail condos are designed into the first floor of a residential condo project. You can buy your home upstairs, open your wine bar downstairs, and visit your corporate accountant or attorney in their office condo next door.

As condo owners outgrow their original offices, they often acquire another condo in the same building or purchase strategically located satellite office condos. Thanks to the potential to profit from market appreciation, many office condo owners finance their expansion and relocation through sales of existing sites, just as first-time homeowners trade up to larger homes.

Right now the market for office condos is relatively new and somewhat untested. But as companies increasingly shift to a virtual online presence versus a brick and mortar headquarters, the demands for gigantic offices may fade, in favor of agile and adaptable office condos.

Flipping office condos may become the next bull market opportunity, and those who already own them may be well positioned for the future. Residential condos were considered an inferior investment vehicle when compared to single family homes, until about a decade ago. But then they caught up with and surpassed traditional homes in popularity and investment performance.

Regardless of what investment yields they offer, office condos are already convenient and economical, and those are the most important reasons why many experts believe they are the way of the future.



Quick House Sale

Chairs in an office must be chosen judiciously. The employees are to sit on them for the long hours they remain in the office. So, first priority should be given to the choice of the employees. Then importance should be given to the design and look of the chairs. One more thing to be taken care of is the demand of various rooms. All the office chairs should not be same; different room needs different types of chairs.

The chairs meant for the employees should be different from the chairs to be kept in the conference. In the same way, the reception area needs a unique type of chairs. It may appear to anybody that buying office chairs will be difficult as only one type of chair will not be sufficient. However, it will be quite easy and even fun if one knows how and from where to buy chairs for office.
The Internet is the obviously the best place. Almost all the manufacturers of office furniture and their dealers have website through which they sell chairs and other things. All the products of various companies are displayed along with their specifications. One can log on to these sites and check out the products. Since there will be a whole lot of variety in each type of product, it will not be difficult to find out suitable office chairs.

Like any other furniture, one can shop for office desks via the Internet. Whether the wooden or the glass desks is ones choice, he will have unlimited options in the online shops, just like the office chairs. Nowadays, glass desks are more in fashion than the wooden ones. This kind of desks is transparent and gives the place a roomy look. These are also easy to maintain. Though not recommendable for the work place, they will be perfect choice for reception and conference room.



Real Estate Professionals

Are you a business owner who is looking to purchase new chairs for your office? If you are, you are advised to think contemporary. Contemporary office furniture is a great way to not only improve your business’s professional appearance, but it can also help to increase the productivity of your office. When looking to purchase new office chairs, you are urged to examine leather office chairs. Not only do they have an unlimited number of benefits, but they also come in a number of different sizes, shapes, and styles.

When it comes to examining leather office chairs and the styles that they come in, it is important that you remember variance. This variance is most commonly seen with the style name being used. In the United States, there are an unlimited number of office supply stores; office supply stores that carry leather office chairs. It is not uncommon for these stores to create their own unique names for the chairs that they sell. While many of these names have become quite common throughout the office supply industry, you shouldn’t necessarily be surprised if you see some variations. Some of those common leather office chair styles or types are outlined below. They are leather office chairs that you may want to think about purchasing for your office.

One of the most common types of leather office chairs available for sale are executive leather office chairs. While the word “executive,” might lead you to believe that these types of chairs are only for high ranking business executives, they are not. One of the reasons why they are often referred to as leather executive chairs is because of their size. Many executive leather office chairs are larger in size and their backs are higher. For that reason, they tend to tower over all other types of leather office chairs.

Similar to the above mentioned executive leather office chairs is manager’s leather office chairs. Manager’s leather office chairs are similar to executive chairs; however, they are a little bit smaller in size. There is sometimes less cushioning and the chair backs are high, but they are not as large in size. Due to their smaller size, you will often find that manager’s leather office chairs are more affordable than executive ones.

If you are looking for the utmost level of comfort for yourself or your employees, which can also help to increase productivity, you are urged to examine chairs that are commonly referred to as twenty-four hour leather office chairs. Twenty-four leather office chairs are chairs that are designed for long-term use. These chairs are almost like a combination of all different leather office chairs. For instance, at first glance, a twenty-four hour office chair looks like it is an executive leather office chair, but it is much more than that. Many twenty-four hour leather office chairs have adjustable arm rests, adjustable head rests and much more.

Whether you are interested in purchasing a standard leather office chair, an executive leather office chair, a manager’s leather office chair, or a twenty-four hour chair, you should also have the option of buying a style that is referred to as big and tall. Big and tall leather office chairs are designed for those that are large in size, height wise and weight wise. Most big and tall chairs are designed to hold individuals who weigh up to three hundred and fifty pounds, but some can hold weight as high as four hundred fifty pounds. Even if you don’t have any employees who fit this profile, it may be a good idea to have one or two big and tall leather office chairs on hand, just in case.

As you can see, you have a number of different options when it comes to buying leather office chairs. Whether you are looking to supply leather office chairs for five employees or five hundred employees, it is advised that you look beyond the cost. For a large selection of contemporary leather office chairs, at an affordable price, you are urged to examine OfficeDr.com.



Sell and Rent Back

tional business office has many needs. One of the greatest needs are the supplies that keep the office stocked. These supplies are important because they aid employees in getting their work done. There are perhaps just as many different types of supplies as there are businesses. It is essential, however, to ensure that such supplies do not run out as when this happens, a business can come to a screeching halt in terms of production. There are a variety of different ways to purchase office supplies. One of the easiest and most convenient ways to purchase office supplies is to order them online. Ordering office supplies online eliminates the trip to the store, which saves gas. Ordering online also saves time since you can go to the web site where you want to purchase your office supplies and order them right from the office. Most web sites that sell office supplies also have the choice to enter a joann fabrics coupon when you place your order. This code is usually treated similar to a coupon and gives a percentage of discount on the order being placed. Promotional codes, unlike coupons, are usually shorter lasting and often will expire sooner than coupons. Choosing to order office supplies online is the best way to ensure that your supplies do not run out. The way that this is possible is because you can set up recurring orders for certain supplies that your office uses on a regular basis. These recurring orders can be shipped to your office without any action necessary on your part other than to sign for the delivery when it arrives. Many retailers who offer office supplies, such as overstock coupon codes make it possible not only to conveniently order your office supplies but to enjoy retailer appreciation by using coupons and promotional codes to create additional savings on orders that you place through their web sites. Most basic office supplies help to make an office run smoothly and efficiently. Items such as pens, pencils, note pads, copy paper and markers are some of the most common items that virtually every business office uses in quantity. Even a home-based business has need for these types of supplies on a regular basis. Although they are a small part of what makes the office run, if your office runs out of these items, it makes it virtually impossible to get things done. Whether your business uses a great deal of office supplies or just a few, it is important to keep those supplies on hand to ensure that your office runs smoothly. With such a pressing financial scenario facing many businesses, discovering ways to cut corners and save money can be the difference between an efficiently running office and one that has to close its doors because it simply can’t afford to operate anymore. When it comes to office supplies, don’t be afraid to shop around for the best prices whether it is with a retailer you have patronized in the past or a different retailer or manufacturer that you’ve heard of but haven’t tried. Consider store brands as your first choice for basic office supplies as many of these brands are just as good as the brand name products but cost a fraction as much.

Sell and Rent Back

When you place brochures from every mortgage company side by side, you can’t help but notice the similarities. Each piece mentions that they have every possible loan program available, proven & experienced professionals, fast & friendly service, a list of documents needed to process the loan, a promise of individualized attention and a commitment to professionally serve the client.

This is fine and dandy for consumers, but what about your brochure for real estate agents? If you’re giving to agents the same brochure you give to clients, does it help you stand out? Probably not - and even if you do have a separate brochure for agents, does it avoid the 3 most common mistakes?

Loan Officer Marketing: Brochure Mistake #1 - Feature-Driven Messages

This is the colossal mistake with most brochures. Here’s a quick list of features often mentioned in mortgage brochures; loan rates, APR, quality service, mortgage insurance, points, refinance, payments, purchase, full service, originate, retail, interest-only, option-only, ARMS, free quote, to name a few.

Features don’t tell the reader anything. Sometimes it only confuses them more about your service. When an agent reads your brochure, they’re reading it for one reason. They want to know, “What’s in it for them.” If you’ve been in sales for a length of time and have been a good student of it, you know that people are interested in hearing benefits, not features. But wait, there’s a twist.

If you sell widgets, your brochure follows an old school formula. It describes what the widget is (feature) and than tells the customer what the widget will do for them (benefits). Pretty simple, isn’t it?

But you’re in the mortgage business. Or better said, you’re in the service business. Wherein lies the caveat, when you sell a service, it’s invisible. You can’t touch, smell or see it. Even though describing the benefits an agent receives from using your services is helpful, it’s not enough.

If you want your brochure to make a difference, the kind of difference that gets noticed by agents, than describe the problems they have that you can solve for them.

It’s a strange phenomenon, but dreadfully true. Agents are more interested in reading about their problems than reading about the benefits of your services, or features for that matter.

Loan Officer Marketing: Brochure Mistake #2 - Use of Jargon

Jargon is like, “Swahili,” a confused, unintelligible language. It’s words that you understand, but leaves an agent clueless. Jargon comes across as obscure and pretentious. Instead, keep things in simpleton terms. Your brochure should focus on expression, not impression. Using buzzwords, stylish words or phrases can come off as pompous.

Jargon slows down or stops the reading process. Avoid it by writing your brochure in a casual voice, as if you’re having a conversation with the reader. In English class you were taught to write very formal, remember, your brochure isn’t a term paper, it’s an opportunity to persuade and shape one’s perception.

Make use of pictures to communicate, they’re only worth a thousand words. Agents understand with their eyes. Graphs, charts, photos, and pull quotes are examples of conveying or supporting key points.

Everyone’s brochure mentions good customer service. As an alternative, use a flow chart to demonstrate your service, and than support it with satisfied client testimonials.

Loan Officer Marketing: Brochure Mistake #3 - Me-tooism Disease

Don’t take offense - most of us have this disease. You see what might be working for someone, so you copy it for yourself. It’s easy to grab the leading competitor’s brochure and copy some or all of it. Years ago for instance, rate sheets were a hot marketable brochure. You could distribute a few hundred and get a respectable response. Well, when you have hundreds of loan officers copying it, guess what happens? It wears out, but we keep using it.

Me-tooism isn’t worthwhile. Look at how much mail you’re still getting from other mortgage companies trying to get you to refinance. And they use the same formatted letter as everyone else. The letter specifically states, in bold print, how much you could be saving, and includes an advertised low rate. Sometimes it’s printed in the form of a fictitious check ready to be cashed.

Don’t be afraid to be different. It’s easy to use what others have and challenging to come up with originality. But it’s originality that can earn the biggest reward.

The Power of a Well-Crafted Brochure

Like a good movie plot, a well-crafted brochure sets the storyline in motion. It shapes an agent’s perception before you sit down with them - curtailing rejection and lessening resistance. It provokes thought in their mind, making you more memorable. And it helps you stand out and be noticed among a huge crowd.



Quick House Sale

When you have made the decision that you want to pursue a career as a loan officer you next need to decide how you can best be trained in that field. There are many different kinds of loan officer training available such as seminars, books, and even schools that you can attend. But each person is different and the kind of loan officer training that is needed can vary a great deal from person to person.

A lot of people think that if you are going to get any type of loan officer training that it has to be through a specific school. But to become a loan officer, schooling isn’t actually necessary. As with most any job, a high school diploma or GED will be needed but a college degree isn’t something that you will have to have.

Schooling to become a loan officer is costly and if you just want to become a basic loan officer there is no need for expensive college degrees. The only time that I would think any type of schooling would be really necessary is if you wanted to move higher up in the different types of loan officers that there are.

There are several types of seminars that have their main focus on loan officer training. These seminars are full of loads of information that you can use to your benefit. Seminars usually have the drawback of an admittance fee and can require travel to and from them, at times requiring overnight stays in a hotel. But to some, seminars are a way to boost moral and give some people the push they need to excel in the loan market. To be a loan officer you have to really like to sell and at times push people in one direction or another if you want the top seller positions. A lot of people just don’t have that drive, the drive needed to push people, and these seminars are sometimes able to give them the drive they need.

The best type of loan officer training can come from a book. There are so many books now available that can help you to become just as good at being a loan officer as those who have attended seminars or schools. Books for loan officer training will give you the insight that you need to maybe close the deal a little quicker or have a couple settled in the loan that is perfect for them. And the great thing about books or manuals is that once you buy them they’re yours to use over and over again. You can highlight pages that you really found to be helpful or even dog ear the corners with no one there to care. Some even find it helpful to have the books with them at all times as a simple way to answer a quick question that they might have had.



Quick Property Sale

When it comes to office furniture it will either be used for looks and/or for comfort. There are many different varieties of office furniture to contemporary to no contemporary.

If you are looking to decorate you office you may want to shop around a bit before you decide on the style that you are looking for. Office furniture includes desks, sofas, chairs, computer chairs, and whatever else will fit into your comfortable decorated work area. You can find office in many different types of materials such as velvet, leather, cloth or even wood. Wood is usually if you are just going for decoration, or maybe you don’t want customers to fall asleep in your office.

Leather office furniture would be the best for an office because in offices accidents such as spills tend to happen on the furniture, leather is the easiest to clean immediately. But if you have cloth furniture in your office when a spill happens it could take hours in order for it to dry.

Office furniture is always fun to go out and buy if you are into decorating. But you should always have a budget that you are sticking by because if you just go out and spend blindly you could end up over spending. When you are shopping for office furniture you should always be sure to shop around first, if you find a couch that you like in one store, but you are looking for a chair as well, you can buy the couch in that store then find a chair in the second or third store. You don’t have to limit yourself to just one store because there are tons of stores that sell office furniture around. All in all you will have a great time, not just buying the office furniture but when you are sitting in it as well.



Quick Property Sale

Many analysts are predicting a very gloomy forecast for loan officers and real estate agents for 2006.

So what are you going to when interest rates rise and the real estate market falls?

If you follow my seven strategies, you will have a fantastic 2006!

1. Goals and planning. This seems obvious, but I would say that 95% of loan originators don’t have written goals and plans to attain those goals. This one step is THE most critical step in this area. How do you expect to succeed if you don’t know where to go and how you will get there?

Take a sheet of paper, and at the top of it write “In the next 12 months, I want to earn $XXX,XXX in commissions.”

Next, break down that number into months. Then you divide the desired monthly commission amount by the average you make per transaction. This will tell you how many transactions a month you need to aim for.

The next part is to list at least 10 actions that will help you reach that number, and you do this for every month. Taking this one step of goal setting and action planning will put you ahead of 95% of the other loan officers out there, so go do it.

2. Use technology effectively. The true power of technology is its ability to automate your business, thus allowing you to focus on other business building activities.

Do you know what an autoresponder is? It is a simple email program managed by a third party company like GetResponse (www.Get-Response.com) that will automatically respond with a message of your choice whenever an email is sent to it.

Here is one way you can use it to get more leads automatically. You place a classified ad in the newspaper promoting a free report called “7 Mistakes First Time Home Buyers Make When Choosing a Lender.” All you ask is that the prospect sends a blank email to freereport@abcmortgage.com.

Here is where the magic happens. When the prospect sends them email, the autoresponder automatically sends them the report. You can then set up the autoresponder to send them a series of follow up emails a day later, 5 days later, 2 weeks later, heck, even a year later.

And this is all done automatically, whether you received two responses or two thousand responses.

With an autoresponder, it will automatically contact them, and keep you fresh in their mind. With the low cost of autoresponder services, it is a true wonder to me why more loan officers don’t use them.

Along with autoresponders, there are websites, automatic greeting card mailings, 1-800 hotlines, virtual tours, business card CD-Roms, etc.

3. Maximizing the potential of your database. It is amazing to me to see how much time the average loan officer spends in getting new business, and how little attention he gives his database of past customers.

What most of them fail to realize is that their database of past customers is their goose that lays golden eggs. It has been proven over and over again that it takes more time, effort and money to get business from a new prospect than it does to get business from a previous customer.

Successful loan officers see their databases as an asset. Sure, they too are actively marketing to find new prospects, but they spend a much greater time tending to their databases then the average loan officer.

Using a quality contact management software like Act! (www.Act.com) can make caring for your database a breeze.

4. Develop two new referral sources each month. Loan officers have enjoyed the amount of refinance business in recent years. However, the steady rise in rates has shifted the focus back to finding purchase and new construction business.

All you need to do is find two quality referral sources a month. At the end of twelve months, you will have 24 referral sources, and that should provide you with a decent amount of new business leads.

The best referral sources I have found for originators are: real estate agents, builders and contractors, attorneys, financial planners, insurance agents, and human resource managers.

Each month, research and pick out 10 potential referral sources. Send each one a letter of introduction, and let them know that you will give them a call to follow up. Whatever you do, DON’T ASK FOR REFERRALS. Not yet.

Tell them you are looking for professionals to send YOUR referrals to.

If you do all of this, out of your original ten potential referral sources, you should end up with 2-4 to choose from. Repeat this process each month and you will have a steady stream of business coming from these referral sources.

5. Perform three direct mail marketing campaigns. With the advent of email and websites, fewer and fewer mortgage professionals are doing any sort of mail campaigns. I recommend doing 3 campaigns, two focused at your previous customers and one at farming for new prospects.

You should be connecting with your database throughout the year, but these two mail campaigns should be directly focused at asking for new business from them.

The previous customer campaigns usually consist of a letter thanking them for their past support and asking them to help grow my business with referrals.

Sometimes I include a survey or referral form and self-address prepaid return envelope. Usually as an incentive, I offer a gift certificate as my way of saying thank you.

The response rate is higher than normal, and results in leads and immediate business.

I referred to the third letter as “farming for new prospects.” I don’t mean a geographical farm which most salespeople direct their marketing campaigns at.

You can purchase a mailing list for any type of potential customer that you want. Let say that you want your ideal customer to be between the ages of 35-50 years old, have a household annual income above $100,000, have a loan-to-value on their current residence less than 70% and have a credit score over 675.

Did you know that there are mailing companies that can get you a list of names and addresses that fit the criteria of your ideal customer? It’s unbelievable.

This allows you to tailor your mail piece to that exact prospect. So much so that you would be able to relate to him at a deeper level them the average business letter getting to him.

6. Start or join a business network. A business network is a group of professionals in related but non-competing industries that meet regularly to exchange ideas and referrals. The most famous business network organization in the world is Business Network International (www.BNI.com).

So I recommend that you either find a local chapter of BNI in your city, or start a business network group yourself.

Most groups contain a real estate agent, an insurance agent, a loan officer, a financial planner, an attorney, a home inspector, an appraiser, etc.

This group is a perfect environment to share ideas and leads because of the crossover of needs and services.

For example, a couple comes in to talk to their financial planner. Their youngest child just moved out of the home, and they are looking to sell their house and move into a smaller condominium.

At the next business network meeting, the financial planner brings up his customers’ situation. This results in a lead for the real estate agent (to sell their home and help purchase the condo), the loan officer (who can help with the financial of their condo purchase), the home inspector and the appraiser.

All these leads from this one couple. Do you now see the power of being involved with business network groups?

7. Create publicity once a year. Local newspapers, radio and television stations love reporting about what I call “feel-good” news stories.

As a loan officer, you have the fortune of helping people who need it on a daily basis. And if you do happen to get some media exposure, you will get instant but temporary fame that will give you an immediate increase in business.

Finding a way to help and getting the local media to notice it and report it is challenge, but the possible upside would be remarkable. Some things you can do: help poor credit customers, volunteer at Habitat for Humanity, help those who don’t speak English, give out free pumpkins at Halloween, give out free turkeys at Thanksgiving, hold a fundraiser dinner to benefit the homeless, etc.

Before the event, be sure to tell every media outlet in your area so that they can plan to attend.

No matter what happens to the market, you can confidently predict your success by following the seven strategies that I have presented.

Ultimately, you have total control over the amount of business you can generate, even if the gloom and doom industry analysts are correct with their predictions.



Sell House Quick

The doors were opened to one of the country’s top ‘green’ offices at a special event to show how a typical 1960s London block has been turned into a sustainable workplace of the future.

Over two days, 160 facilities and property professionals - as well as business leaders - toured Morgan Lovell’s headquarters in a series of seminars to see how they can build sustainability into their interior office design projects.

Morgan Lovell’s pioneering transformation of its Soho site has seen the company ranked in the 2008 Sunday Times Green List - a record of the 50 top sustainable organisations in the UK.

Work at the Noel Street site has also achieved the highest BREEAM environmental assessment score in the UK to date. The project is one of just two of its kind in the country to achieve an “Excellent” rating from assessors.

Paul Kelly, head of marketing at Morgan Lovell, said: “Both days were a sell- out.

“People attending wanted to know how they can make their workplaces more sustainable and reap the associated social, economic and environmental benefits.

“By using our own headquarters as a real-life case study, visitors could see first-hand what can be achieved.”

Delegates at the seminar were able to investigate the effectiveness of the environmentally-friendly products used in the refurbishment and explore the costs and the payback times.

They also explored how to build sustainability into office design, significantly reduce future energy bills through sustainability; meet Government targets and get a high BREEAM rating as well as making the project carbon neutral.

Morgan Lovell has a step-by-step guide to creating a ‘green’ office interior

available free at http://www.morganlovell.com/sustainability.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

The seminars were held on May 14th and 16th.

Located in London, Birmingham and the Thames Valley, Morgan Lovell is the UK’s leading office interior design, fit out and refurbishment specialist. With its own teams of designers, surveyors and project managers, the company can design and deliver entire projects, with the benefit of just one point of contact. http://www.morganlovell.com

It is part of top five UK construction and regeneration group Morgan Sindall plc which operates through five specialist divisions of fit out, construction, infrastructure services, affordable housing and urban regeneration.

Morgan Lovell is a licensed BREEAM Offices Assessment Organisation. This means it is now licensed to measure the sustainability score of an office in order to identify ways companies can reduce high energy usage and waste, whilst increasing comfort and satisfaction for users of the building.

Press release written by Jane Shepherd, Shepherd PR Limited. Tel 01538 308685. Mobile 07985 129315

jane@shepherd-pr.com



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