On the Jan. 25 episode of my Lykken on Lending radio show, we briefly discussed the communications struggle between real estate agents and mortgage professionals. On one of the news sites that we follow, an agent had made the claim that lenders are notoriously bad for maintaining good communication with realtors throughout the loan process. And, with the implementation of TRID, this tension has only exacerbated.
Upon reading this comment, my gut reaction was to jump to the defense of the mortgage industry. Sometimes, there are legal constraints and consumer privacy concerns that make open communication difficult. Besides, communication is a two-way street. What about how well real estate agents are communicating with lenders?
But, after thinking about it, I realized that we can take such a criticism in one of two ways:
1. We can become defensive and point our fingers back in the other direction, or
2. We can use it as an opportunity to improve and strengthen relationships.
Because, you see, whose fault it is doesn't really matter in the end. What matters is who has the power to fix the problem …
When real estate agents complain to us about the lack of communication, we need to take their concerns seriously. Perhaps we simply need to take the time to explain to them why we aren't communicating—and that would be enough. Like so many others in similar situations, they most likely just want to know their concerns are being heard.
David Lykken, a 43-year veteran of the mortgage industry, is president of Transformational Mortgage Solutions (TMS), a management consulting firm that provides transformative business strategies to owners and “C-Level” executives via consulting, executive coaching and various communications strategies. He is a frequent guest on FOX Business News and hosts his own weekly podcast called “Lykken On Lending” heard Monday’s at 1:00 p.m. ET at LykkenOnLending.com. David’s phone number is (512) 759-0999 and his e-mail is [email protected].
