The evolving mortgage broker: Dissolution, revolution or evolution ... you choose!Kellene Bishopevolution of the mortgage industry
Where do you see yourself in five years? That's the question I
heard the employment recruiter ask during a radio program the other
day. Isn't that the question many of us have been asked during a
job interview? Most analytic financial brains like ours might roll
our eyes at such a philosophical question about where our personal
and professional lives might evolve to in the next five years, but
it is indeed a valid train of thought. More importantly though, my
question for you to ponder would be: With the recent downturn in
the residential mortgage industry, will you soon be the one sitting
across from a new potential employer's desk, praying you give the
right answers as you're being asked, "Where do you see yourself in
five years?" Or will you be one of the go-getters who refuses to
let the rise and fall of the economy dictate the rise and fall of
your career, and instead seek to capitalize on the impending boom
in the commercial lending industry?
Did that train of thought hurt your brain? Because frankly, the
idea of tackling a new set of rules, a new market and educating
myself on the dos and don'ts of what is seemingly a new career
field seemed a daunting task to me at one time as well. But I am
here to tell you folks that it's not daunting, nor is it an
unrealistic stretch to educate yourself within the evolving lending
market and get a grasp on just what the changes mean to your
career. To sit and think that we can simply sit by in any career
field and believe that it will not change as our economy and our
culture changes is naïve, to say the least. Without
forethought of projected economic indicators and analyzing the
current market, dissolution, rather than evolution, of your career
and business could likely happen.
Yikes, dissolution? Yep - just take a look around at how many
residential mortgage brokers who are seeking other jobs or changing
careers. Will that be you? It doesn't have to be, because you can
indeed make choices and positive changes that will place you in an
even better position as a broker than you ever imagined.
Let's look at the reality of today's residential mortgage
business. If you're planning on staying in business and hoping to
make anywhere near your current annual salary, then you have to get
real about the residential mortgage industry as it stands today.
With the extreme drop in applications, approval and purchasing in
the residential world, continuing to base your income solely on
this niche will not allow you to bring in the salary you are likely
used to, nor will you continue to look like a quality, credible
source in the lending community by consistently having to refer the
new customers who come to you to someone who is handling commercial
loans. Like most professionals in the lending world, your choices
as a broker and lending professional in the past few years have
likely been dictated by the market. Most brokers have thusly been
forced to focus purely on rates and specialty products in order to
keep business going. Unless we expect some massive political and
financial changes to suddenly thrust the industry into a
revolution, causing a mad dash boom again, we must allow our
careers to evolve beyond the parameters of the basic residential
market. Not only can we allow them to evolve, but we can enjoy the
challenge and excitement of delving into a whole new area of our
career.
If you want to make a wise forward-thinking decision about your
professional future, you basically have a few options.
- Option #1: Due to current market conditions, you can choose to
do what many brokers are doing now and focus purely on reverse
mortgages and sub-prime loans as your niche.
- Option #2: You could choose to make your specialty revolve around
foreclosure bailouts and bankruptcy conversions; or
- Option #3 (hint, hint - the wiser choice): Position yourself as a
commercial lender in the midst of the pending commercial loan boom
that inevitably happens following a residential boom such as we
have recently seen in our country.
Let me caution you as you plan to forge ahead, because in order
to become a credible, desired source for commercial lending, I must
state that you will need quality training in order to do so. Yes,
you are already a lending professional - smart, savvy, saturated by
your market - and what you will be training yourself to do is not
that big of a stretch for some of you, but it will be a
challenge.
As someone evolves in any career, they need to keep up with
current information, regulations and products. I mean, lets face it
folks - we don't want someone to stick a shingle out their front
door claiming they're a dentist when the only thing they have ever
done is pull out their own teeth! You want them to know about
cavities, fillings and bridgework, right? You surely want them to
know about anesthesia! And if you want to be the one who commercial
clients long to come to, you've got to be the one who does more
than stick a shingle out stating that's what you plan to do. After
all, you don't want a client to come to you and have an experience
that makes them wish they had been under anesthesia the entire
time.
If you're a residential mortgage broker, you're almost ready to
roll, but you can't just label yourself a commercial lending
professional without some knowledge and education. Again, speaking
of the dentist - you wouldn't go to a dentist to get a massage
because that's not his or her specialty (OK, let's assume everyone
reading this wouldn't go to the dentist for such a thing but, I
have been all over this world and seen lots of things, so cancel
that assumption).
So, where do you see yourself in five years? I don't have a
crystal ball but I can see many of you ready to be educated in the
commercial lending industry within the next five weeks or perhaps
the next five months. I believe some of you will be on your way to
becoming tops in the field within the next five years. Me? Thank
you for asking...In five years I see myself surrounded with my
children and husband, not worrying about my career because I will
have the comfort and knowledge of knowing that whatever choices I
have made, I always make the very best effort to stay educated and
professional while doing so. I will have the peace of mind in
knowing that I didnt just pull my own tooth and declare myself a
dentist. I plan to evolve and grow personally and professionally
over the next five years.
Did you know that according to American Heritage Dictionary, the
term "evolution" is simply defined as "a gradual process in which
something changes"? You have a choice to stay as you are or, as the
market evolves, choose to allow your career to evolve as well. No
matter how long you've been in the residential arena, you can still
educate and reposition yourself successfully in the commercial
lending field. There are numerous products and types of loans to be
had wherein you can then find your niche and specialize. With the
vast increases in locally owned businesses and small-business tax
credits, the possibilities for lending in the commercial arena go
far beyond that of equipment and specialty leasing, land
development, multi-family dwellings and restaurants. With so many
options and so many products out there, you can easily find a place
to hang your shingle. But as an intelligent professional, you still
do have a choice ... dissolution, fictitious revolution or
evolution.
Kellene Bishop serves as president of Beehive Commercial
Lending, as well as director of training for Commercial Career, which
specializes in training residential loan officers in all aspects of
commercial lending with an additional emphasis on successful
marketing tactics. She can be contacted via e-mail at
[email protected].
