Courtesy of Sue Haviland | ReverseMortgageSuccess.com
Our industry is going thru some major changes. Just when you thought you had seen it all we are now faced with some additional changes related to Loan Officer Compensation. To me it feels as if we have been kicked, beaten up and are now being spit on while we are lying on the ground.
But this article is NOT about all of that. See we are still here trying to earn a living. We are honest and hard working originators who simply want to do the best for our clients and be compensated for our expertise. Right?
I recently spoke with some originators and if I hadn’t known better I would have thought I was at a funeral. They were so depressed. One was simply unable to function.??DON’T MAKE THAT SAME MISTAKE!
You must never allow yourself to become so upset that you become Mentally Paralyzed. Think about this for a second. What you do right now will determine your income 3-6 months from now. Do nothing and you will earn ZERO 3-6 months from now.
Here’s what I suggest:
FOCUS– Keep originating. Keep cultivating new business. Nothing you do will change what is going to happen in our industry.
MAKE A DECISION. This may sound harsh but you must make a firm decision to stay or not. But once you have made that decision stick to it and act on it!
Kick Up Your Marketing Efforts– There will be some casualties. There is no getting away from it. This may truly be a case of the survival of the fittest. But what that also means is that many will stop marketing so you now have a rare chance to gain in your market share…. And keep it!
Stay Positive-Sure I realize that is easier to say than do. Read Think and Grow Rich, read Psycho-Cybernetics and any other book or program that will keep you focused on your goals.
Stay Away- from bad news and bad news people. You DON”T have to listen to others around you whining and complaining!
Now get back to the task at hand and start originating! If you need a consistent flow of good ideas that are field tested and proven I would encourage you to check out our blog at www.reversemortgagesuccess.com/free .
Brian Sacks and Sue Haviland are the co-founders of Reverse Mortgage Success. They have been in the industry for over 25 years and have closed over 5000 transactions. Sue and Brian originate Reverse mortgages each and every day and share their real world experiences with you .
2 Comments
While the article has some pearls of wisdom, it lacks balance and, therefore, badly needs adjustment.
To see the nonsensical view of one who has been overcome with gloom and doom all one has to do is read an article this month in another reverse mortgage publication. In that article the author discusses his perceived notion of why the reverse mortgage operations of Bank of America occurred. It was startling that the publisher allowed such irrational utterance in its publication as an article.
It seems the author knew by his subjective intuition that in fact B of A senior management had lost confidence in the HECM program and all but said that the restructuring of over 50,000 employees in the mortgage division provided the cover needed to shut down a unit of 600 employees. The story was ridiculous and it added no prestige or esteem for the publication that provided it.
Just as bad as the article, was the prediction that the industry would see over 100,000 endorsements in this fiscal year at the November 2010 NRMLA Convention. This flew right in the face of a prediction of 75,000 endorsements by HUD in both its official statement to Congress and its Single Family Outlook the month before. People in the industry look up to this industry leader for guidance and direction and no doubt some based their marketing budget based on this groundless and baseless estimate. In less than three months HUD was predicting in their budget numbers that the following fiscal year will only have about 75,000 endorsements as well.
What was most disappointing about the article above was the admonition to come to their blog to get the right perspective. No one is that good. But nonetheless despite the self adulation the article has some pearls of wisdom.
When going to the other website, immediately a pop up came in view advertising a mini course (whatever that means). The second bullet describing it said: “How To Have REALTORS Practically Begging to Send You Their Reverse Mortgage Business.”
Let’s get real. While there is a demonstrative downturn in overall endorsements so far this fiscal year, the downturn on HECMs for Purchase is worse, far worse.
Maybe the authors have a strategy for Realtors (not exactly the best term to describe real estate licensees of which I am one) to bring refinances to HECM originators but that seems highly unlikely based on history. There are over 450,000 active real estate licensees alone in California. If each one brought in just one refinance or HECM for Purchase per year, imagine the business we would have. Yawn! Daydreaming is pleasant but not profitable.
I find a lot of Pollyannaism just as harmful as a lot of pessimism. Too much of either is bad for your health.