The Smooth Loan Process #2010-29

Lots of People Go To School for Ten Years--They're Called Doctors.

Today is my ten year anniversary with The Mortgage Advantage! Ten years ago, I was a young, idealistic loan officer with aspirations of changing the world. Today, I'm not so young and I've found that it's going to be harder than I thought to change the world. Hopefully, Diane Gerdes was joking when she told me it seems like it's been 20 years.

The year was 2000. We all just narrowly escaped the clutches of the Y2K bug. My oldest son was my only son. He was three and still at the peak of cuteness. It never occurred to me that he would be a teenager one day. I had just purchased my first home for the mind boggling price of $50,000. I wondered how I would ever be able to afford the $421 per month payment (that included escrows, by the way). That payment would be sweet now. It was also the year I got my first cell phone (my number is still the same) and it was the year I discovered email.

My journey that brought me to The Mortgage Advantage is filled with fate and destiny. I had been with another company for the first two years of my mortgage career. Something always seemed off to me about the other company. The day I finally realized it, I called a realtor friend of mine while I was driving to an appointment. I asked her what company I should talk to because I was thinking of a change. She told me to talk to The Mortgage Advantage. At the exact same time, an escrow officer in the area took it upon herself to call The Mortgage Advantage to tell them that they needed me. I made the call and the rest is history.

My trip down memory lane is not just for the nostalgia. What I realize is that any level of success that I have achieved is partially due to the longevity of my company and my longevity with my company. How many loan officers do you know that can say that they have been with the same company for 10 years? How many loan officers do you know that can say they have been in the business for 12 years? I know loan officers that changed companies more times than I change the oil in my car. What I always wonder is how their clients find them five years or even one year or even six months down the road.

Mortgage Originating is not a one shot deal. Often times, I will get calls with questions years after the loan has closed. I imagine that it is comforting for my clients to know that they can call me with a question years later and I will still be there to answer the phone. Remember, my number is still the same.

A couple of weeks ago, I was donating blood and the tech that was sticking me looked familiar. After staring at her for a few minutes, she finally broke the ice by reminding me that the reason I knew her was because I refinanced her house ten years ago. I'm not making this up. She said, "you're Harold Perkins with The Mortgage Advantage. I know you." As soon as she told me her name, I remembered exactly who she was. And, it didn't hurt when she stuck me with the needle so I'm guessing I did a good job on her loan. How many loan officers can say that they can walk into any place of business and have their client remember them from ten years earlier? Not only that, but then be able to tell the client that everything is still the same.

As I reflect, the one thing I realize is that I'm glad I'm not new in the business today. We all know how much more difficult it is to close a mortgage these days. I cannot imagine how difficult things are for the new people today. The level of expertise required to be efficient today is exponentially greater than it was ten years ago. There is nothing wrong with being new. Everybody is new at the beginning of their career. I'm just glad that's not me...and I'm glad I did not pick truck driving school.

The Smooth Loan Process lesson for today: Pick a loan officer who has experience or has the support of very experienced people. Those loan officers are still in the business for a reason.

Harold Perkins
Galaxy Lending Group, LLC
602-595-1233
Harold@HaroldPerkins.com

Share