The Millionaire Loan Officer Blog

Manhattan, New York City

2007-11-23T12:42:00.000-08:00

Due to what I consider a miracle we got a nice decent size studio on E 30 St, in the heart of Manhattan.

In the three months that we were there, we tried to live the Manhattan life and do everything there is to do in New York City. We didn't even get close. There is enough to do to keep you busy for years. Infact, if you tried to eat at every restuarant in the city you couldn't do it because they come and go so fast.

The one thing we noticed right away was how everyone was so thin. Since you have to walk everywhere, everyone is thin. Not like Houston, were you walk no more than a quater mile a day, New Yorkers walk on average 3 miles a day. So how we both ended up gaining weight while we were there was a mystery. My money is on all the pizza we ate. New York pizza is the best. Simply awesome. We couldn't resist. :)

The Empire State Building

Central Park

Rockefeller Center

Walking the Brooklyn Bridge

Our visit to the "Secret Underground" of Chinatown where they have all the counterfeit goods.

Times Square

The World Trade Center

New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street

On the Staten Island Ferry

Wsshington D.C.

2007-11-23T12:24:00.000-08:00

From Tennessee we went into D.C.

Just by driving around you can feel that this city is different. You can feel the power. Not too many people live in D.C., it's too expensive. Most people live in Baltimore or the surrounding areas. Thanks to Faheem, a friend from Miami, who took us around, we saw a lot more of D.C. than we would have been able to see on our own.

In D.C. we visited all the monuments, the Smithsonian where we saw the dinosaurs and the Hope Diamond (see pictures below). What was amazing, was that everything was free. All the monuments and museums were all free. The Smithsonian is so large it takes over a dozen huge buildings. It would take a week at least to see them all.

We also saw the pro-immigration rally which was democracy in action. It was mainly a Hispanic rally and hundreds of people had come from all around the country to make their voices heard. Very cool.

We also visited the White House. The street in front of the White House, Pennsylvania Ave used to be open to traffic until 9/11. As we traveled the country we saw a lot of changes and this was just one more. Now it takes a half mile walk just to get to the place. They still offer tours, but you have to ask your congressman 6 MONTHS in advance. Needless to say, they do a lot fewer tours than before.

Ruby Falls

2007-11-23T11:29:00.000-08:00

A great place to visit in Chattanooga is Ruby Falls. They say it is the largest underground waterfall. And since I love waterfalls, this was a place not to miss.

As you go inside you are taken underground via elevator until they let you out inside a cave. The tour guide explained all the parts of the cave, the formations, and then at last, the falls.

Since it's pitch black dark down there they use lights all over. Around the falls there is a opening where your tour group waits and hears the waterfall, but you can't see anything. After some suspense, the guide turns on the lights and the music and you get to wow at the falls, which are much higher than you would imagine.

You get walk around the falls and then return to the elevator for the trip back up. I wanted to add the pictures we took underground but they didn't come out right. So I will have to use one from their website.

The amazing thing about the falls is that they don't know where the water comes from or where it goes. They have tried several time to throw dye into the water to try to determine where it ends up, but they never find it. So I guess that mystery will remain. Sometimes it's better to not know everything.

A short distance from the actual Falls is Rock City. From the top of the mountain you are supposed to be able to see 7 different states. Check out the picture before. It truly is a beautful lookout. Whoever is in charge of the place has made it into a great trourist attraction. They have turned a simple mountain into a great experience. You don't simply walk up to the lookout. You take one of several paths that have gardens, rope bridges, displays of famous fairytales, rock formations, and its own 100 foot waterfall.

Chattanooga

2007-11-23T11:19:00.000-08:00

This tiny little town has a railroad running through it. OK, so most towns have railroads but this one was built around the railroad station. That station has now been converted into a hotel, and the one where we were lucky enough to stay.

They still have the tracks around the hotel and they take visitors on a short ride around the hotel. We didn't find much else to do here. Actually we didn't really look. We stayed here for a couple days and basically just relaxed.

Time Shares

2007-11-22T15:23:00.000-08:00

Time Shares are still a booming business and several companies have resorts in the Smoky Mountain area. While you are walking around on the streets of Pigeon Forge you get approached by salesmen that offer you free tickets to shows and attractions. In order to get the tickets you have to sit through a time share presentation. What we found out was if you don't want the tickets they offer cash. Either $100 or $125 for each tour. There are 5 companies willing to pay so you can make some cash if you are in the area for a while.

And that is exactly what we did. We went to three tours. It paid for our hotel and expenses while in the area. And we learned a lot about high pressure sales.

One thing to remember, never buy a timeshare directly from the resort. You can buy it resale for 50% off or more.

Smoky Mountains

2007-11-22T14:55:00.000-08:00

Pigeon's Forge is the place to stay if you want to go to Smoky Mountains. It's a white, blue collar paradise. This is the place to go to hear country music, southern drawls, ride go carts, and have tail gate parties in pickup trucks.

The park itself is nice. But after all the amazing mountains we had seen in Alaska, Canada, and California these were nice hills. The fog rolls in and covers the mountains that makes it look like smoke.

We didn't see any animals in the park though. They are supposed to be everywhere but we didn't see any. Maybe all the people scared them away. We were there over a holiday weekend and all the crappy motels were all full.

On the border of the park is an American Indian reservation. Unfortunately it's like they have no pride left. We saw sitting around doing nothing but drinking all day. There are two sides to the park. All the motels and tourist hot spots are on the side that is not the reservation. There is nothing on the reservation side except a casino. This small casino hardly attracts any visitors. With all the land and people that flock to this park, these guys are sitting on a gold mine. They can attract big money to their side if they want to. But they don't. I asked around and the consensus was that they are content getting their monthly checks from the government.

One of the saddest things I have seen in regards to animals was witnessed in Pigeon Forge. There was a souvenir shop that advertised that they had live bears. I love bears so we went to check it out. For $5 bucks you can see and feed some apples to 2 black bears.

These poor animals were much fatter than they should be and maybe that was because they stuck in a tiny cage no bigger than most people's family rooms. Every visitor got a cup full of apples that they basically threw at the bears. There were apple pieces all over the floor of the cage along with bear poop. The bears just sat there. They looked mentally sick. We felt so sad for the bears that we left right away. I almost threw up. It was disgusting how they treated those poor animals.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

2007-11-22T14:45:00.000-08:00

Myrtle was a nice place. The beach is beautiful and is cheaper than most popular beach towns. Maybe because it's falling apart. The beach that people remember is no longer. The amusement park that was on the boardwalk has since closed.

The new places that have opened up are nice though. There are a couple places which are malls that serve as tourist attractions and Ripley's has opened an Aquarium, which they have opened in other East Coast tourist towns as well.

Atlanta

2007-11-22T14:39:00.000-08:00

From Orlando, we stopped for a bite to eat in Gainesville with some friends, and then went on to Atlanta. There we hung with and stayed with Hina's cousin and his wife. We had so much fun with them, we stayed longer than we originally planned.

Atlanta is a great place to live, except that everything is so far away. It took us at least 30 minutes to get anywhere.

One day we won't forget is the first day we were there, another friends dropped by and one thing lead to another and we ended up driving 8 hours to Tunica Mississippli to go to a casino. It was the first time we both played poker with live people and we both ended up making money. I think it was mostly in part because we got there late, around 11 at night, and the players were drunk. We got a free room and drove back the next day.There are some nice places to visit in Atlanta. The most popular is probably Stone Mountain.

After Atlanta it was time to go to New York City where we would spend 3 months. But before we got there, there were plenty of places to see along the way. Some of the places we stopped were Myrtle Beach, Smokey Mountains National Park, Chattanooga, and Washington D.C.

Miami and Orlando

2007-10-18T15:15:00.001-07:00

From Houston we went straight to Miami for a wedding. Normally this is a two day trip since it's about a 20 hour drive. But we needed to get there so we drove all night. This is a trip both Hina and I have done several times since we both grew up in Miami and have driven to Houston from there a few times. The last time we drove there was to Orlando and then to Miami for a short stay. Before that we drove from Miami to Houston after our wedding.

After a couple days in Miami we set off again. Visited Orlando again for the 100th time. But this time we went to Disney's Animal Kingdom. It was supposed to be a great park. But it wasn't even better than some of the zoos we've been to. They had just opened their newest ride, a roller coaster called Yeti or something. 2 hour wait for a 2 minute ride. Didn't do much more than give me a headache. The best attraction of the park is supposed to be a safari type trip through acres of land modeled to look like Africa with live animals. While the ride was pretty long, that was the worst part. I couldn't wait to get off. Instead of seeing hundreds of animals what you see are about 3-4 animals in each area and like 10 other tour busses driving around. We saw more people on this ride than animals. Overall, this park sucked. Hina wanted to skip it but I had to go. "Who knows when we will come back to Orlando", I said. Hard to admit, but she was right, as usual.

Back to Houston

2007-10-18T15:14:00.001-07:00

From Rushmore we had to take a detour back to Houston. Not much to report about this part of the trip. Dry land, nothing very pretty to look at.

Mount Rushmore

2007-10-18T15:13:00.001-07:00

It took a day to get to South Dakota and the Mount Rushmore area. And it was hot here too! But the enterprising people that live in these parts really know how to entertain tourists. There are dozens of tourist attraction all around the area. And a short distance away is Sturgis, where they hold the big motorcycle rally every year.

A short distance from Mount Rushmore is a new monument they are building for Crazy Horse the Native American chief. That sculpture, if they ever finish it, will be even more amazing than Rushmore. Right now they are still raising money for it.

YellowStone National Park

2007-10-18T15:12:00.002-07:00

After making some adjustments to our travel schedule because of skipping Glacier National Park we made it to Yellowstone.

Man, was it hot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are talking about end of July, beginning of August. It was over 100 degrees everyday we were there. Tour guides kept trying to comfort us by saying, it had never been that hot before. Not much consolation since that is the same thing they said in Palo Alto, Vancouver, Banff, and now here.

After hearing about Yellowstone since I was little, I guess I was expecting too much. I am not much an outdoors kind of guy. But the collection of never before seen natural oddities made it a worthwhile trip. The hot springs were something else. Old Faithful and the other geysers were nice. But after the dancing fountains of the Bellagio, it wasn't as entertaining. Everyone sits around the geyser, and it starts to erupt. Kind of like a small volcano of water. After 2-3 minutes it stops. And then it repeats about every 45 minutes or so. You can watch it maybe once or twice and then you find it loses its charm.

The amazing part to me was the hundreds of buffalo or bison as they are properly called, roaming around the park. We drove all around the main roads of the park two or three times. One time at night, on the way back to our lodge, we got stuck in a bison jam. Hundreds of buffalo were crossing the only road. They were literally three feet away from our car. I wanted to take a picture, but opening the windows or sunroof meant exposing yourself to the huge mosquitoes and other swarming bugs.

On our way out of the park, we happened to get lucky and see a couple cars on the side of the road. We stopped to see what it was and there in plain site were a couple of brown bears: a mama and her cub. Soon there were dozens of cars and about a hundred people gawking and taking pictures. Luckily the park rangers were there to keep order. Those guys and gals do a great job!

The route we took to leave the park was the NorthEast exit. This road is only for the brave of heart and firm hands on the wheel. DO NOT take this road with any snow or rain. We actually climbed up and down the sides of mountains with no guard rails, barely enough room for one car much less two, (it was a two way road), and more twists and turns then in California.

The park is so huge that it even has its own canyon. It's called The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. Not as big as the real Grand Canyon but it was still very impressive.

Yellowstone is a great place to take the kids. There is so much to learn, see and do that they will remember it for the rest of their lives. But if you can come in any season besides summer, do it. The park is open everyday of the year and gets covered with snow in winter. That is when visitors get full access to the entire park by snow mobile.

Here you see some of the sulphur pits that the park is famous for.

On To Yellowstone

2007-10-18T15:12:00.001-07:00

As we left Banff, we headed to Calgary, took a right and went straight down to the border. Had to drive through Montana before we stopped for the night. Now I know why it's called the Big Sky state. There is nothing around for miles and miles. All you see is prairie and sky. Lots and lots of sky. There is nothing to block your gaze. It's funny, but I felt as though I could feel the spirits of the Native Americans watching us as we drove through, as if they were still protecting their territory.

We were supposed to stay at the lodge at Glacier National Park. But the lodge was overbooked and the only other places to stay were little run down motels run by Native Americans. It's sad to see the state of what was once such a proud people. After checking out there was to do in the park, we decided to keep driving and skip the park altogether.

Columbia Ice Field

2007-10-18T15:11:00.001-07:00

A short drive from Banff National Park is another national park, that holds the Columbia Ice Fields. These are a series of interconnected glaciers. The major attraction is the ability to actually take a large bus onto the glacier itself and walk around on it!

Ever been on a glacier before? It's awesome. I am running out of adjectives to describe how beautiful and extraordinary this part of Canada is. The buses actually have 8 feet tall wheels. You have heard of Monster Trucks? These were Monster Buses.

Some smart visitors brought empty water bottles with them, which they filled up with melting water at the top of the glacier when we got off the bus. I have never tasted water so pure and refreshing. Better than any bottled water in the market. If someone could find a way to bottle glacier water, they would make a fortune. Maybe they already have.

Banff

2007-10-18T15:10:00.000-07:00

Out of the whole trip, we loved Banff the most. Simply breathtaking natural beauty. Banff is actually a Canadian national park. But it is also a city inside the park. The city was first built on the outskirts of the park, but the government decided to make the park larger and so now the town is inside the park. But no one can build anything new there.

If you want to live near Banff, the best place is a booming little city called Canmore, just out side the park. Homes and condos are going up like crazy here and the prices are going through the roof. It's as close to living in heaven as you can get. I love the beach and oceans too, but living at the foot of mountains and rivers is a whole other ball game.

I wish we had spent more time here. The lakes are a sky blue color. The animals are wild, and the mountains have glaciers on them, even in summer. But the glaciers are receding every year. In a few years, they won't be there anymore.

The most famous part of Banff is Lake Louis. The lake is gorgeous and the hotel on the bank is amazing as well. Look out your window and see the lake in front of you with mountains to the left, right, and behind the lake.

The water of the lake is an aqua blue. Not regular blue like rivers or the ocean. It's something you have to see with your own eyes.

Grouse Mountain

2007-05-08T17:18:00.004-07:00

Grouse Mountain is a great example of out of the box business thinking to take a liability and turn it into a goldmine.

One of the best parts of Vancouver is that they have a mountain about 30 minutes from downtown. In the winter, everyone can make the short drive to go skiing whenever they feel like it. And for years, the best time to go to Grouse Mountain was the winter. But the people who won/run the mountain have put together a great plan to get people to come to the mountain in other seasons as well. In the past, tourists would take the tram to the top just for the views. And since there was nothing to do at the top they would just come back down. But now there is plenty to do and they keep adding more. By adding other attractions, they have been able to raise the rates to visit. They also have become a legit tourist attraction complete with activities. This causes people to spend the whole day there, eating, drinking, and buying souvenirs.

They have added a nature preserve for a couple of brown bears found in the wild, a small movie theater showing movies about Vancouver, a fascinating Birds of Prey show, a live lumberjack show, and they keep the lift chairs running so people can go even further up the mountain for even better views of the city down below.

Here's a picture of a tip jar we saw on the mountain. I thought the label was kinda ingenious. It makes people more inclined to "tip".

Vancouver

2007-05-08T17:18:00.003-07:00

Vancouver in a word was AWESOME! It rivals San Francisco in beauty, has the big city feel, yet has plenty of small surrounding towns to make it feel cozy as well.

And the growth of Vancouver is awesome as well. Condo complexes are going up left and right in downtown and the Stanley Park area. Most sell out before construction even begins. Hundreds of people have gotten rich buying condos before construction and then selling them once the building is finished.

From what I was told, Vancouver is as hot now as Toronto was a few years ago. And Calgary is starting its own boom. Thanks to high oil prices, the citizens of Calgary do not have to pay taxes. They actually get money from the government. In addition, the area I so hot they cannot find enough people to fill all the vacant jobs. Working at McDonalds will get you $18 Canadian dollars an hour!

If you are looking to invest in real estate, take a look at Calgary and Vancouver. They both will continue to grow with no slowing down until well after the Olympics come to Vancouver.

Seattle

2007-05-08T17:18:00.001-07:00

After Portland we made our way to Seattle where we stayed a few days to see all the sites. I gotta say, Seattle did not blow me away as much as I had expected. Of course we visited the Space Needle, the wharf, and all the other touristy places. Here we did the hop on-hop off bus tour which took up all around the city. One full day was all it took to see all the sights.

After Seattle we decided to get in some international driving. We headed still further north until we crossed the border and headed in Vancouver. It was here that our GPS navigation system which had been so helpful throughout the whole trip let us down. Since we only had the US road computer chip as soon as we got into Canada the thing went black. Luckily we had some friends and relatives who were able to give us directions.

Portland Part II

2007-05-08T17:17:00.001-07:00

After our three months plus in Palo Alto were up, it was time to drive on over to New York where our next assignment was waiting. But instead of going straight there we decided to take the scenic route. A straight line might have been the most gas efficient way to get there but it definitely would not have been the most fun.

From Palo Alto we headed north to Portland. Stayed a couple days there again and revisited the rose garden. The month before was the famous Portland Rose Festival and the roses were still blooming. Thank goodness, this time the city had cleaned up all the dog poop. I guess they wanted to look good for all the thousands of people who visit Portland for the festival.

In my earlier post about our first visit to the Rose Garden there is a picture of me sitting on a bench underneath a huge tree full of flowers. Here is a picture of me sitting under the same tree only 2 months later. Not a single flower!

Lake Tahoe

2006-06-22T16:56:00.000-07:00

For Memorial Day we took a trip to Lake Tahoe. We actually went there on Monday and got to see everyone leaving. This meant super cheap rates, no lines, and we had the whole place to ourselves, (almost).

This is a shot of Emerald Bay - the jewel of Lake Tahoe.

When we went there was no more snow, so we missed that, but there was plenty to see and do. This place is so beautiful that even without snow it is still worth a visit.

If you are looking for a place to buy a second home, Lake Tahoe should be on your list. Prices have gone up recently but not as much as in other tourist cities like Vail or Aspen. And now that prices there are too high, people are starting to buy in Tahoe. So if you want to buy here, now is the time.

This here is Eagle Falls. A short 1 mile hike from the main highway gets you up close and personal.

Portland Oregon

2006-06-22T16:34:00.000-07:00

About 12 hours away (driving) from San Francisco is Portland, Oregon. 2/3 of the state's population lives in Portland. And many California residents are moving. Portland has experienced double digit property appreceiation as well as California. In fact, many people who work in Portland, live in the state of Washington across the river. The commute is 1-2 hours each way.

Why they live in Portland is beyond me. It rains there 9 months out of the year. Not severe rain. But drizzles on and off all day long. I guess you get used to it after a while. But I find it miserable.

Other then Portland and a couple other cities, Oregon is one big forest. Tress, trees, and more trees. But it is very beautiful. Especially the area around the Columbia River. Mt Hood is also a great ski spot!

Portland itself is right on the river, and the city government has done a great job at making it a pleasant place to live.

There is plenty of housing, walking paths, beatuiful scenary and things to do.

Here is the marina. Part of the charm of Portland is the many bridges that lead into and out of the city. There are 8 unique bridges in all.

In July, the city hosts a month long Festival of Roses. The city is know as the City of Roses and every year they celebrate. In the center of the city is the International Rose Test Garden.

With dozens of rose varieties and hundreds of other flowers this is a must stop if you are even in Portland.

Just check out this cool picture.

Another aspect of Portland that we loved was the abundance of waterfalls. The snowfall that they get every year has to find its way down to the river and this results in several small waterfalls all over the place.

One of the most famous ones is Multnomah Falls. Pictured above.

It's a Bird, It's a Plane, Nope. It's Ameen!

2006-06-20T15:52:00.000-07:00

We had so much flying planes in San Diego that we decided to go flying without all the metal. We decided to go hand gliding! And in San Francisco there are several great places to catch some air.
To go hand gliding you have to go off a cliff or a mountain. As air comes in from the ocean, it continues across the land until it hits the cliff. The cliff then forces the air to go up and over the cliff. This updraft is what keep the hand gliders up in the air. Without an updraft the glider would come down rather quickly.

The bad part is the glider has to stay near the cliff to stay airborne. You can;t really use it as a mode of transportation. But when you are in the air, it is so peaceful. You are flying along like a bird. It just might be the closest thing to being a bird there is. And it's safe too. The company we went with has never had a problem in over 8 years!

Here's Hina getting all her gear on and strapping herself to the glider.

But here is a tip. If you want to save money, do not contact a company. Find out where the gliders take off from. We took off from a place called Fort Funston. Go there and you will usually find the instructors that work for the companies and you can get a much better rate dealing directly with these people.

And here she is jumping off the cliff! Yes you really do have to run and jump off the cliff, but it's not as scary as it sounds.
Being scared of heights, I did go but I don't think I will do it again. But it was definitely a memory that will last a lifetime. If you get the chance, go. You won't regret it.

Vegas Baby!

2006-06-20T15:33:00.000-07:00

We didn't get a chance to go to Vegas when we were in Long Beach, so we decided to go from Palo Alto. Even though it was a ten hour drive, it was a lot of fun, and tax deductible because I met some of my coaching clients.

The Vegas market does seem to be cooling. New condo projects are still going up. Including one from Trump and another one from Ivanka Trump. But overall several projects are stuck at the drawing board because they cannot generate sales as fast as they used to. Ad to the fact that water is becoming a scarce commodity and you can see why things might be slowing down. But people are still moving there, and Nevada overall is growing.

In Case you've never seen it before here's what 1 Million Dollars in cash looks like!

Las Vegas is a marketer's dream. There are so many lesson here that I cannot cover even 1 percent of them. The things that I can't get over is that people come here knowing they are going to lose, yet they play anyway. I had a guy in the hotel ask me, "Did you win anything?" I said no cause I didn't gamble anything. He then says, "I found this one machine, where I was able to pay for 3 hours for $20. I still lost but at least not as much as I could have." He was actually proud that he only lost a little money.

Once you get someone in the proper mindset you can get them to do anything. Even things that they know they shouldn't be doing.

Touring Around San Francisco

2006-06-20T15:26:00.000-07:00

There are so many great places to visit here that we had no trouble finding things to do.

One of the places we visited was Point St. Reyes which is a totally commercial development free zone. Nature all round.

Check out the scenery:

That house down there is actually a lighthouse. In the other picture you can see the miles and miles of beaches that are just the way nature made them.

Northern California is also famous for the amazing Redwood Tree. Redwoods only grow in California/Oregon and China. They are so unique because they grow to be hundreds of feet tall and they live for hundreds of years. They survive by drinking in the fog The leaves on the trees drink up the moisture in the fog and provide it to the rest of the tree. That's why they are so tall.
The major cause of death of redwoods, besides man, is lightning. Even fire has a hard time killing a redwood. The fire can burn the bark on the outside, but inside there is a substance that acts like the foam in a fire extinguisher to put out the flame. And in a few years, the tree will regrow the bark and be whole again. Simple amazing.

Look at this monster tree! It just keeps going and going.

San Francisco

2006-06-20T15:24:00.000-07:00

The two best things I like about San Francisco are the views and the weather. I myself, am not very found of tropical weather. Having lived in only in Miami and Houston you might not blame me. But cooler temps suit me just fine.

It's a small city, not very much land but it leaves its mark on you. It's unique and definitely worth a visit. There is enormous wealth and poverty on the same streets.

Want to buy a house near the marina with a view of both the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges? It'll cost you over $3.5 million. And that price is not coming down. There is too much money here. And if you need a mortgage, I can recommend a few names. :)

Here are some of my favorite pictures of the city.

This is the view of the city from the bay. We took this picture on the ferry from Saulsilito.

You get a very similar view from the Golden Gate Bridge, except you are looking down and to the right at the city.

Too bad we won't get to spend the 4th of July here. Fireworks over the Bay sounds like a great idea.

This is the world famous Golden Gate Bridge on a clear day. Normally there is a ton of fog and you cannot even see the top of the bridge. But this day, the fog is gone and it looks great!

This is San Francisco's other famous bridge: The Bay Bridge. It connects Frisco to Oakland and is one of the reasons they have 2 hour commutes.

I don't understand how anyone can stand driving two hours a day to work and two hours back home. I hope that those people at least listen to something educational in the car while they sit in traffic.

This is the bridge that partly crumbled in the last major earthquake in the 1990's sending many cars into the bay. According to our tour guide, it is still not fixed so if they have another earthquake the whole thing might come down.

Here's Alcatraz up close and personal.
They say no one every escaped from this prison. And now according to the Nation Parks Service it is the most visited national park, with more visitors than the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, or Yellowstone.

All those people going to see an old jail. Who says there's no opportunity anymore? You just have to look for it. And never underestimate what people will pay for.

Palo Alto

2006-05-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

Palo Alto is an interesting place. Not too much to do in the city. And that is strange since it's a college town, home to Stanford University. Everything around here closes at 9 p.m.

But since we've been here we have seen all the neighboring cities. We've been to San Francisco three or four times. We've been to the Santa Cruz boardwalk, Half-Moon Bay, Santa Clara, San Jose, Oakland, and Saulsilito.

What really was noticeable to me was the availability of land here in northern California. There is still a ton of space in which to grow. But people, still drive in traffic for two hours to and from work in San Francisco. That really blows me away.

As loan officers, we at least get to work at home most of the time. Unless you work at a bank, then you have to go to the office everyday. Sucks for you bankers.

They both have their own charm. Working at home, you get to avoid traffic. But working at the office brings more professionalism to your work. Both have their distractions. At home it's the TV and the kids. At work it's your co-workers.

I prefer a mixture of the two. You can't work from home everyday. You get lazy. Three days at the office and two at home make a good mix. If you can talk your manager into let you telecommunte, you should at least try. There's nothing better then answering emails in your pajamas. :)

Would You Drink From A toilet?

2006-04-19T17:11:00.000-07:00

If you were very thirsty and the only water in the house was the water in the toilet would you drink it?

What if the water was clean and the toilet was brand new, never been used. Would you drink it then? Why not?

Don't worry you are not alone. Most people wouldn't. But it is all a matter of perception. What we see is not always what is real yet we refuse to believe it or change our minds even though we know better.

Here's me drinking from the toilet at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. It was put there to make this same point. The fountain is fine and the toilet has never been used but everyone was grossed out by just thinking about drinking from it.

On The Way To Palo Alto

2006-04-19T16:41:00.000-07:00

Well, our stay in sunny Southern California is over. And we are on our way to Palo Alto where we will be for another three months. Palo Alto is about 20 minutes south of San Francisco. Should be a lot of fun.

To get there we took the scenic Highway 1, also known as Pacific Coast Highway. It winds along the mountains with the ocean beneath. It is some of the most beautiful scenery you can see anywhere. And you probably have seen it in movies and postcards.

Here's what I mean:

Awesome isn't it? Now imagine 4-5 hours of this. But the road is a curvy mountain 2 lane road. One wrong turn and you get to go swimming. But it was very very beautiful.

On our way there, we stopped at the quaint city of Monterey. This little beach town is home to John Steinbeck's famous Cannery Row. Which by the way has now been turned into a tourist attraction. See? Anything can be turned into a tourist attraction. Even a bunch of old empty buildings .

Also in Monterey is a place all you golfers will recognize: Pebble Beach. Here's me pretending to be playing a hole.

We took this picture on Pebble Beach's 17 Mile Scenic Drive. Which by the way wasn't all the scenic except for about 3 miles or so by the water. After the drive up the coast this was no big deal especially since we had to pay $9 for the privilege of driving it. Here's Hina and the MortgageBrokerTraining.com Mobile at one of the lookouts.

We're going flying!

2006-03-08T23:27:00.000-08:00

Boy are you going to be jealous when you read what we did!

We actually flew airplanes. Yes, real airplanes and we flew them ourselves.

This is the plane Hina flew. We had pilots with us to do the take offs and landings, but we fly the whole time we were in the air.

And we took off at the same time, so we could take pictures of each other in the air. The ones I tool of Hina are still in the disposable.

These are the pictures Hina took of me in my plane, a restored World War II Warbird. This plane actually flew in the war. In the picture on the right, you can actually see me looking towards the camera. Look for my yellow shirt.

I opted for the more adventurous flight. Once we got off the coast, we took it up to 200 mph and started doing aerial aerobatics!

I flew the plane and did rolls, loops, turns, and some other stuff of which I don't remember the name.

A roll, is where the plane stays straight but revolves 360 degrees. Imagine sticking a stick through the plane from the front to the tail, and spinning the wings.

A loop is when you pull back on the stick and make the plane do a full loop in the air. We hit 3G's while doing this maneuver and I could only do it 3 times, before I started feeling sick. The rolls were much easier on the stomach :)

More of L.A.

2006-03-08T23:26:00.000-08:00

I haven't been too much updating lately.

But here are some more pictures.

You can barely see it, but that is the Hollywood sign on the hill in the background

The sign actually has a real estate connection. The sign used to say HollywoodLand, and was a marketing gimmick for a real estate development that was being built at the time.

The sign worked, and after the development was sold out, the city kept the sign, and now it is world famous.

These two beautiful pictures are from fabulous Laguna Beach. Great views, cliffs, flowers, and secluded beaches. What else could you ask for?

No trip to L.A. can be complete without a tour of one of the many studios. We decided to take a tour of the WB studios. Here we are sitting on the famous couch from the show Friends. This is the actual set that they used in the show. They are keeping it here until the make room for it at the Smithsonian museum which is going to be its permanent home for all time.

The main reason we took the tour was to see some movie stars and maybe even a movie being shot.

Well, that didn't happen. They don't let tourists around when they are filming. But we did get lucky. Before we started the tour we saw the woman who played Janice (Chandler's annoying girlfriend) on Friends. At first I didn't recognize her. She acted normal and was with her two kids getting ice cream. But I kept staring at her, and when she smiled and I heard her laugh I knew it was her. (Yes she really does sound like that when she laughs. but not as loud).

Too bad I didn't ask her to take a picture with us.

An Oscar Marketing Lesson

2006-03-08T22:58:00.000-08:00

There's me and the Oscar I won for Marketing genius of the year!

Too bad it was stuck to the podium with metal rope so I couldn't take it home. :)

I thought this way a great marketing ploy. For the Oscars they set up a small shop will 50 real Oscar statues in cases that people could look at. And they had this one, where people could pick up and take pictures with.

I have never watched the Oscars before this year, but because I held that trophy I wanted to watch. They got me involved in the product. Any time you can let the customer test the product without taking the risk and buying it, you are going to sell a lot more of that product.

It's called the puppy dog close. A little girl sees a puppy in the pet shop window. The owner offers to let the girl and father take the dog home for a night. If the father says yes, he just bought himself a puppy. Because that little girl is never going to give it up, especially after she falls in love with it.

We're gonna be on TV!

2006-02-17T00:51:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday, we hit Universal Studios.

Sorry to say, we were disappointed. The one in Orlando Is better. And the studio tour which I was looking forward to was also disappointing. They didn't show us any of the insides of the sets. All we did was drive around at look at the outsides of buildings.

Oh well. At least got free tickets to sit in the audience of the show America's Funniest Home Videos.

When we went, we got seated close to the front, and most likely we will be in a couple shots. The show airs on March 26th. So we will have to wait and see if we get to be on TV. If you watch the show, we are the couple sitting by ourselves in the middle of the audience. I am wearing a red long sleeve shirt. When the host interviews the winner, we are sitting right behind him.

On another note, Hina's job is at the Stanford University Hospital in Palo Alto which is our next stop. We'll be there at the end of March.

San Diego

2006-02-02T22:07:00.000-08:00

In late January, we spent the weekend in San Diego.

What a beautiful city. It's got beaches, mountains, a beautiful Bay, thriving businesses, and great weather.

From what I an see, there is a lot more developement and growth in and around San Diego then around L.A. There are at least 5 new highrise condo complexes going up in downtown alone. If you are thinking about moving to California, San Diego would be a great place to check out.

It's only an hour and a half away from Long Beach, where we are staying. So we drove to San Diego in the morning and our first stop was the world famous San Diego Zoo.

They have some great animals, including, koalas, pandas, and polar bears which are hard to find anywhere else.

Here are some pictures of the beaches of San Diego and the Bay.

And with this beautiful picture, I will say good night!

Being Tourists

2006-02-02T21:43:00.000-08:00

So we're in L.A.

So many places to visit and things to see.

So where do you think we went first?
Hollywood?
Beverly Hills?
DisneyLand?
One of the many beaches like Malibu, Venice, Huntington, or Santa Monica?

None of the above.

The first place we went to visit in LA was...

This place is so cool. Everything is made of only Legos. And wait till you see the pictures. These guys can make anything out of legos.

Do not enegage in predatory lending or you will end up like this...

This is a lego recreation of the city of San Francisco. They also had New York City, Southern California, Florida, Washington D.C., and a couple other cities.

Here's me and a full size 8 foot Lego Darth Vader.

Onwards to the Coast

2006-02-01T15:59:00.000-08:00

The Grand Canyon was awesome, but it got tiring after a while.

I can sit and watch the waves at the beach go in and out all day long without getting bored. But after watching a rock for more than a few minutes it gets old.

As my friend Peter Manry in Houston told me, "The Grand Canyon takes your breath away. But when you get it back after five minutes, it's time to move on."

And that is exactly what we did. The day after we toured the Grand Canyon, we traveled straight to LA, going over the Hoover Dam, and through Las Vegas.

Here is a picture of the Hoover Dam. I tried hard to get a better one, so you could see the whole thing but from the ground there was just no way.

The day before we witnessed the power of nature. And this day we saw firsthand the power of man. The Hoover Dam stops the Colorado River from flowing freely. If you saw the picture of the river in my earlier post, you might have wondered how such a small river created the Canyon. But before the Dam was built the river was much wilder with a lot more power.

With the Dam blocking the river, man can now control the river as well as create energy from it. Amazing huh?

The thing I liked about the Dam was that it is completely self-funded. It makes enough money to pay for itself so no tax payer money was spent on it. I think we need more projects like that.

Here's an interesting marketing lesson. You have a dam which is nothing more than a large amount of concrete storing water. There is not too much to see here. You walk along the dam, take a few pictures and you are off.

But some marketing genius turned the dam into a huge tourist attraction. This picture to the left is one of the multiple restaurants, gift shops, and parking garages that make money off of tourists. There is also a tour you can take, or you can take a helicopter tour of the thing.

Think about it for a second, a huge piece of concrete as a tourist attraction? A tour of a dam?

This just goes to show you that you can take anything and make it into a money making proposition if you have some creativity.

On our way to LA we passed through Vegas. And along the busiest freeway in town I spotted the following billboard so I just had to pull over and snap a picture. It helped that we were sitting in bumper to bumper traffic, but that's another story.

You know that when real estate schools start renting out billboards along the busiest freeways in major cities that the end of the real estate bubble is coming. This thing has 3-D figures and a neon sign at the top that changes. It must cost them a fortune!

The only way they can afford this sign is if people are signing up in droves to become loan officers, real estate agents, and appraisers. So it is only a matter of time, that things will turn around. Be careful.

I heard today, that at least 5 condo complexes in Las Vegas have been canceled recently because they could not sell enough units to start building. Along the highways from Arizona to LA we must have seen over 200 billboards for builders and new communities. That's a ton of real estate on sale. Add the fact that rates are going up and foreclosures are at an all time high, and we have a serious market correction coming. Hang on for the ride!

The Grand Canyon

2006-02-01T14:38:00.000-08:00

On December the 10th we set out to explore the amazing Grand Canyon.

If you have not gone, you need to go to see this place. It is unbelievable. Just looking at it, it is hard to imagine that it was created by nature.

For those of you who don't know, the Grand Canyon is a huge canyon that was made by the Colorado River over thousands and millions of years. As the snow would melt from the tops of the Colorado Rocky Mountains it would flow down into the Colorado River. The river then winds its way all the way down to the ocean. But along the way, it made it's own path. Over the years, the river would wear away the soil it was traveling over and wash it away creating a canyon.

Words cannot do it justice. And neither can the pictures that we took. Let me share the best ones with you. But you have to see this place for yourself.

There are many ways to see it. You can either stay at the rim and stop along the marked scenic outlooks, you can take a plane or helicopter tour, or you can hike or ride down into the canyon itself.

We only had one day so we decided to take the helicopter tour and stop at some of the lookout points.

Here some our the pictures we took from the helicopter. The picture at the top was taken by us as well.

This is the Colorado River: the culprit behind creating the Canyon.

This is a picture with another Helicopter in the distance. It gives a little perspective about how big the canyon really is.

This is my wife Hina and I taking a tourist photo in front of the helicopter.This picture above is one of me at one of the scenic viewpoints at the rim of the Canyon. Being in a helicopter gives you a bird's eye view but you do not appreciate how large the canyon is until you see it upclose and personal.Do you see the people on the left in the above picture? It's amazing how tiny we are compared to nature.Oops, I forgot to smile in this one :)

Day 2

2006-02-01T14:30:00.000-08:00

Day 2 of our journey was another day of driving.

From El Paso we made our way into the start of New Mexico. Originally the plan was to visit Carlsbad Caverns but we left a day late and had to cut something. So my wife decided to cut the trip to see the bats in caves. Oh Well.

From New Mexico, we passed into Arizona and headed north to our next stop - The Grand Canyon.

Arizona is super hot right now, not just for the weather. Real estate prices are jumping and people are moving there in droves. Why? I don't know. It's hot - over 100 degrees in the summer, it's not very pretty - no water or beaches or greenery. Along the freeways, as decorations they have cacti and rocks. In fact rocks are used a lot in outdoor decoration there. Instead of lawns with grass, many homes have rock gardens, which are different kinds of rocks arranged in special formations.

No joke- we even saw a guy in his front year raking his rocks!

Leaving Home

2006-02-01T13:53:00.000-08:00

Once we got our car, and loaded it up, it was time to say our goodbyes and hit the road.

From Houston we drove West. 13 hours later we were in El Paso which is the western most city in Texas, and also 15 minutes from the Mexican border.

Being a clutter freak, I didn't want to have a zillion CD's in the car. So I bought one of the new Video Ipods and uploaded all our favorite songs onto it. I think it had like 14 hours of music or something. I had also got an FM transmitter so that we could listen to the Ipod over the car speakers. Technology is pretty cool nowadays.

Our Tomtom GPS navigation system worked beautifully as well. It took us straight to our hotel with no wrong turns or missing directions. 100 times better than mapquest. If you do a lot of driving to new places or addresses you must get one of these. It's the Tomtom300. It'll cost you about $500 online but it was totally worth it.

One of the great thing about it is it will tell you what restaurants are nearby. So whenever we had to go to the bathroom and there weren't any rest stops around, we would look for a McDonald's or similar fast food place. It also has a list of tourist attractions, stores, libraries, universities, gas stations, and many other points of interest.

After we passed San Antonio, there wasn't much to see. Just desert. It's amazing to see so much empty land just sitting there. Miles and miles of nothing. As far as you can see. Living in the city, you assume there are people everywhere. But there aren't. Good thing we had a new car. I wouldn't want to get stuck out there.

Loan Officer = Car Salesman?

2006-01-03T23:11:00.000-08:00

I heard someone say that loan officers are more despised by the public then car salesmen.

I though that was a pretty rough thing to say. I know we have a bad rep because of all the negativity in the media, but more hated then car salesmen???? Ouch!

Part of the fun of going around the country is the ability to drive. And to do that I decided to get a new car. Actually lease one. So I have had some very recent experience with car salesmen, and it wasn't any fun.

After test driving a few cars, we picked the one we wanted - the 2005 Nissan Murano. It handled nicely and had enough room for all the stuff we were going to take with us.

That led us to start the negotiations. I really liked the first salesman we dealt with. Too bad he told us lie after lie after lie.

After dealing with him I decided it was time to shop around. And my first stop was the Internet. I found a great site with tons of information that helped me out a great deal. CarBuyingTips.com This site has a lot of useful information. If you are looking for a car, this site is great. Even if you are not looking for a car, but thinking about putting up a mortgage website, this site would be a good model. The owner makes his money from affiliate programs. But because of the wealth of content, he has a lot of sites linking to him, and he is very high on the search engines.

The recommended course of action was to use several of the quoting sites, like cars.com, autobytel.com, etc. So I did. I used them all. All I had to do was tell them what car I wanted and they all said that a dealer would contact me with a price.

These sites do nothing but generate leads which are then sold to the dealers. The same thing happens in our biz. And I am sure that people looking for a home loan using the internet do the same thing I did while looking for a car. They visit several websites and ask for info from all of them.

TIP: There is no such thing as an exclusive internet lead. Even if the site you buy from only gives it to you, the prospect definitely went to another site as well.

As soon as I submitted my requests, the emails started coming and my phone was ringing off the hook with salespeople calling me from the different dealers. What was really astounding was that they were so hungry. You could tell how desperate they were to sell a car from their voices. I told them what I wanted, and they would call back in less then 5 minutes to tell me their price.

One dealer had a super low price. So I did what everyone does. I used his price to get a better price from the second dealer. And the second dealer not only matched it, he did better. So then I went back to the first dealer to get him to lower his price. And back and forth until they both were at the same price and wouldn't go lower.

There was only one difference. I wanted the car in Merlot (dark red). And since it was late in the year, most were already sold. Dealer #1 told me he could get the car in Merlot from another dealership. Dealer #2 told me the car was not available at any dealership anywhere near Houston.

So which one is lying? I decided to visit both to see if I could get any further concessions. At Dealer #1 they put a lot of pressure to get me to sign. And they had the car and color I wanted. But I still wanted to visit Dealer #2. When I got there he told me he couldn't find the car, showed me the inventories of all the dealers in the area, and told me that I should get it from Dealer #1.

That's when I called Dealer #1 and told him to get the car from the other dealership. But it was too late. He told me "They just sold the car a few minutes ago."

It turns out, he had lied about the color just to get me to come to his dealership. He thought that if he told me on the phone that he couldn't get my color I would go somewhere else. So he basically told me what I wanted to hear to get me to his office.

Sound Familiar? A salesman lying about a car (rate) just to get a prospect in the office.

It happens in the mortgage business all the time. So the more I went through the car buying process, the more similarities I saw. Take the paperwork for example. Pages and pages of signing, credit checks, and rate mumbo jumbo that consumers don't understand and the industry makes as hard as possible to comprehend.

Did you know that when you lease a car, they don't quote you the rate, they quote you the Money Factor. And no one at the dealership, not even the finance manager, knows (or will tell you) how they figure out the Money Factor.

In the end, I got the car I wanted, in a color that I had to settle for, in order to get the price I wanted. But it was a lousy experience.

I thought the internet would make things easy. It made a small difference: I didn't have to drive to all the dealers to get their prices. They just told me over the phone. But Bait and Switch is alive and well.

Final Thought: Not all the dealers called me right away. One dealer that is less then five minutes from my house, and who I pass on the road 2-3 times a day, never called me until 1 week AFTER I had requested info from the lead generating websites. By that time it was too late. I already had bought the car.

If you buy leads, call them immediately. Waiting even a couple days will take you out of contention.

Also, location means nothing. I got the car from a dealer 45 minutes away, and never even visited the dealer close to my house.

In the end, I chose the salesman and the dealership that told me the truth from the beginning, made it easy for me to buy, and provided a competitive price.

Around the Country in 365 Days

2006-01-03T22:44:00.000-08:00

I read a survey once that asked hundreds of people what is the one thing they would love to do if they could do anything. The number one answer was to travel.

I too have a desire to travel and see the world. It's one of my many goals in life to experience as many countries and places as possible.

So when the chance came up for my wife and I to travel across the country for a year, we couldn't resist. By profession, my wife is a nurse. And they have something called travel nursing, where hospitals across the country will hire you for short durations 2- 6 months. They pay for travel expenses, rent and utilities. They even pay for full medical and provide life insurance.

And since I have moved away from lead generating for my own loans and converted to a referral only business, I have the ability to travel as well. It doesn't hurt that I have a great team back in the office that can handle all my loans for me while I am gone.

So, I have decided to use this blog to chronicle our adventures, and share what the mortgage and real estate industries are doing around the country. So many of the loan officers I talk to feel that their city or market is so radically different from everywhere else that they need special attention. And that is true in some cases but not in most.

By reading my observations of the mortgage industries in other markets not only will you learn what others are doing, but you will see many similarities between the markets I travel to and your own.

I hope that you will travel with us, enjoying the photos we post, and learn from the marketing I will share with you as we move around.

The plan is to be in the L.A area for 3 months. Then go to San Francisco for 3 months. Then spend some time in New York, and one other place - hopefully Hawaii.

I will try to post as often as possible. So check in every so often.

Mortgage Marketing 101: A Crash Course In Mortgage Loan Marketing

2005-11-03T11:45:00.000-08:00

There are a zillion ways to do mortgage marketing. Obviously we cannot cover even a small percentage of them here. But what we will cover is a few basic mortgage marketing advertising tips that can help you succeed in your mortgage marketing.

Mortgage Marketing - Lesson #1

All your marketing should be held accountable for itself. This means that all your mortgage marketing advertising should be bringing in more money than it is costing you. And you find this out by tracking all your advertising. The easiest way to track is to ask people when they call or come in. "Where did you hear about us?"

If you do a lot of different mortgage marketing advertising, then you need to add tracking numbers to your ads. For example, add coupons to your ads that people can tear out and bring in for a free gift. The coupon should have a tracking number on it so you can tell where the customer got the coupon.

Mortgage Marketing - Lesson #2

You should focus on getting the prospect's contact information in all your advertising. Get them to give you their name, address, phone, and email. This will allow you to follow up with them. Build up your database as fast as possible. Your database is your greatest and most valuable business asset if used properly.

Mortgage Marketing - Lesson #3

Stay in constant communication with your database. At least once a month, they should hear from you, about you, or read about you. The best way to do this is newsletter mortgage marketing. By using this great tool, you can have something in their hands every month. Newsletter mortgage marketing is a must for every loan officer. If you do no other mortgage loan marketing, you must do this. And you must do it every month.

The trick is to outsource the newsletter to a newsletter mortgage marketing company. These companies will write, design, print, and mail your newsletter for you to whomever you want. All you have to do is give them a photo of yourself and pay them every month. They do the rest.

To get the names of some great newsletter mortgage-marketing companies, visit our recomendations.
By just using newsletter mortgage marketing I have seen some of our coaching clients go from zero referrals a month to 2-3 referrals a month. Just by using a simple newsletter.

Mortgage Marketing - Lesson #4

Ask everyone you know for referrals. Contact all your friends, relatives, past customers, and keep asking for referrals. You won't get unless you ask. We have a great program that can help you generate more referrals than you can handle. It's called Referrals on Demand and you can get more info at http://www.mortgagebrokertraining.com/referrals.html

Referrals are the easiest loans to get, and close. You also make more money on a referral loan than a regular loan. And they treat you with more respect. Once you build up your database to a few hundred, you should focus more on them, and on generating referrals. It is the cheapest form of mortgage loan marketing out there today.

7 Mortgage Marketing Tips for Loan Officers

2005-11-03T11:39:00.000-08:00

It is my intention that these marketing tips will help you avoid common mistakes made by the majority of loan officers. Heed this advice!

Mortgage Marketing Tip #1
Make your advertising and print media more effective by having a headline on everything: letters, greeting cards, ads, everything.

Headlines are what get the reader. They make them want to read more. They tell the reader what benefit he/she will get from reading more. And that's exactly what you want them to do.

Make the headline powerful and include a benefit.

Examples:

3 things you can do today to improve your credit
Here's something you might enjoy…
I started thinking of you when I read this article…

Make sure to include a headline in all your media and it will increase your results.

Mortgage Marketing Tip #2
When you do something for a client, brag about it.

What I mean is, if you accomplish something, make it a big deal.'

"Mr. Hity, I was holding my breath for a while, and that collection on your credit report made it real close, but I fought for you and got the lender to approve your loan!"

That's a lot better than saying, "Hi, your loan was approved today. Congrats."

Make yourself out to be the valuable professional you are. Make sure that your clients know exactly what you do for them.

Mortgage Marketing Tip #3

Write thank you notes to people everyday.

This one mortgage marketing tool can make you so much money your head will spin. Everyone loves to be appreciated and acknowledged. Being nice and having manners are a thing of the past. But when you take the time to thank someone, you connect to them on deeper level.

Get yourself some thank you cards from the stationery store and thank people who did something for you today. It could be for anything,

Thank your mailman for bringing the mail up to the office
Thank the underwriter for a speedy decision
Thank your client for calling to say they would be late
Thank the realtor for the referral.

These cards can make someone's day. And you really stand out from the crowd as a caring mortgage professional when you use them.

Mortgage Marketing Tip #4

If someone answers your phone for you, have him or her use the following line.,

"He/she is working with a client right now, let me see if he can take the call."

This does a couple things,

1. Makes you seem busy even if you are not. This shows the client that you are in demand and confirms that he made a good decision by choosing you.
2. Allows you to not talk to people you do not want to talk to
3. Allows you to say to the caller, if you pick up, that they are important enough to you to interrupt an important client meeting.

This might not be a "traditional" mortgage-marketing tool, but it will make you more desirable. And while it will not make the phone ring more, when it does, you will get respect from those on the other end of the line.

Mortgage Marketing Tip #5

CANI

Constant and Never Ending Improvement
Do something everyday to improve your business. 1 small change everyday can make a huge difference in a couple months. Implement one mortgage marketing tool at least once a week. At least.

Over the course of a couple years, the results will be dramatic.

Just one small thing is enough. Examples are:
· Hanging a certificate of completion on the wall
· Hanging a testimonial on the wall
· Adding a signature to your emails
· Adding a small consumer article to your website
· Subscribing to The Millionaire Loan Officer Newsletter at http://www.mortgagebrokertraining.com/newsletter.html
· Reading the FREE articles on mortgage broker marketing at The Mortgage Magic Marketing Newsletter

Mortgage Marketing Tip #6

Look at other businesses for great ideas to adapt to your business

Most innovations come from other businesses.

Like the drive thru window. Who knows who started it, but fast food places use it, banks use it, pharmacies use it, and even restaurants are experiencing success with it.

What new services do you use that make your life easier? Can you adapt these to your business? How about emailing potential customers the interest rate everyday if they request it? Or Providing a Post-Closing Kit with items clients will need when moving?

You can use the marketing tools from other businesses too. If you see a marketing piece that really gets your attention, think about how to adapt it and use it in your business.

Mortgage Marketing Tip #7

It doesn't matter how good a loan officer you are - if you suck at marketing, you will starve.

Knowing how to get clients is infinitely more important than any other knowledge you may attain.

Tony Robbins is not the best NLP trainer out there, but he is the richest because he knows how to market himself.

The Men-Mars, Women-Venus guy is not the best marriage counselor out there, but he sure made a killing in books, tapes, and seminars.

The best mortgage lending marketing tools are available at MortgageBrokerTraining.com's Mortgage Bookstore.

How much money you make has very little correlation to how much you know. Of course you must know the basics, but other than that, it makes very little difference at all.

He who markets best, makes the most money.

Become A Mortgage broker

2005-11-03T11:37:00.000-08:00

Will Real Estate prices keep going up or will the bubble burst?

Who knows? Either way, real estate is a risky business. Tying up all that money and having very little liquidity can spell disaster for any investor.

In any hot market there are always ways to make money without taking any risk yourself.

Just look at Levi Strauss. He traveled west during the Gold Rush to make his fortune as a gold miner. But he found that it was harder than advertised. So instead he did the next best thing, he started selling to the miners. He sold them something they all needed - jeans! And he made his fortune without risk. In fact, many of the store owners in that area got rich selling to the people who had the "gold bug"

If you want to make money on the real estate boom, I suggest you sell to the people who have the "real estate bug". The people who want to get in on the bull market and make a killing. Sell them something they all need- money!

You can do it just like I do, become a mortgage broker.

Become a mortgage broker and you can easily make hundreds of thousands of dollars by helping other who want to get rich quick in real estate.

There is very little cost to get started and no risk. When you become a mortgage broker, you can still keep your day job and work part-time while making a full time income.

In many states you don’t even need a license to become a mortgage broker. You can get started today!

There is more demand for mortgage brokers today than ever in history. And demand will continue to grow. The U.S. population continues to grow. Everyone wants the American Dream of owning their own house. If you become a mortgage broker you can make that dream come true for your fellow Americans.

If you want the cards stacked in your favor you should really look a little closer at the trends that give more reasons to become a mortgage broker.

- The U.S. Population is growing exponentially.

- Americans are saving less then ever before - if someone wants to buy a house, they have to borrow money. They have no choice. They must use your service.

- As home prices go up, so do mortgage broker commissions. The fees are a percentage of the loan amount.

- More and more people are buying second homes and vacation properties.

- Over 65% of people getting a loan use a mortgage broker instead of a bank.

When you become a mortgage broker and work part-time you can work from home and keep your day job. If the market goes up - great!. If the market goes down, people will be selling their homes and investors will be buying. These investors will need loans from you to buy. You make money either way.

You could also be a real estate agent. But you'd have to drive people around all day. Becoming a mortgage broker means you can sit in your office while people come to see you. There is no need for you to go anywhere.

After you become a mortgage broker, life will never be the same.

Answer to Got my interest

2005-08-30T14:10:00.000-07:00

Got my Interest... said...
Hopefully you are still paying it forward, as I feel I may be close to overlooking some serious issues.

When entering the mortgage origination business by way of a 'branch' opportunity under the license of a national brokerage firm, is it still necessary to obtain certification or register through any state specific regulatory agencies? How would I go about determining any such requirements in the state of Virginia?

Hi,

You would have to talk to your branch about that. It depends on how you set up your corporation. The best way to figure it out is to talk a any of the net brances you are considering and just ask them how you would go about it in Virginia.

It shouldn't be too hard.

Answer to Serena

2005-08-30T13:57:00.000-07:00

Serena Howlett said...
Hi Ameen,

I've been reading your newsletter for months and love it. But, I'm afraid I didn't respond to your offer of 3 questions in time and may have missed out. But, just in case...

1. I'm an experienced loan officer. I understand every kind of loan I've ever heard of, can explain the intricacies of indices, margins, amortization, etc., and am writing a training manual for a new broker's new agents, although I will not be working there. I can process loans, and I'm the most thorough shopper I've ever met...to a fault! I often spend hours and hours calculating the most advantageous loan for my client, running scenarios, studying amortization tables, figuring out whether it's worth their while paying some or all of the fees or getting rebate, etc.

But, a year ago I got divorced, rearranged my finances and started with a new broker and $6,000 for marketing. As an experiment, I used half of that on a 3 month Internet lead source. It was a disaster. I don't regret the $3K as much as the 60 hours a week I spent chasing annoyed and unqualified people, or those who used hours of my time shopping me and then going elsewhere. Then a whole series of disasters happened and I am suddenly starting over with NO marketing budget at all. I come from a small family and I've handled all their financing needs. I was under a contract that said I can't take my past leads with me, so basically I have no database, no warm market, and no money.

I want to work with Realtors, but can't get them to give me a try. I can do a refi for anyone not currently in bankruptcy, but don't know how to find them without money. If you can give me a couple of ideas that lead me to 3 loans in a month, I will buy every product you have. Until then, I'm borrowing money to keep my cable and Internet service on. I'm a hard worker, and I know how to do loans...but finding new clients has been hard. I have other skills to offer Realtors. I'm a graphic designer, I have a MS in Public Relations and Public Affairs, I'm attractive and relate easily to people. I really want to stay in this business for life, but if I lose my footing now, I may not have the option.

So any ideas for me? If I only get two loans for the month I could start with your Marketing to Realtors Toolkit.

And if the above is less than 2 questions, some strategies for dealing with clients (and Realtors) who constantly challenge your fees, shop you to death, and then go with another LO thinking they're getting a better deal on fees when I've offered them something that is actually a much better choice for them.

Love your stuff! Advice from you and any of your other readers is extremely welcome.

Thanks!

Serena

P.S. I've put a couple of your articles and instructions on how to sign up for your newsletter in the training manual, so hopefully I'll be sending you some prospects that are new to the business

Serena,

I feel for you. Taking care of a family on one income, or in your case no income is no easy feat. I know, I have done it before. Living on credit cards.

The good news is that you have motivation.
If you have a good company with decent rates and splits you should be good to go. Now all you need are leads.

Get desperate. Do the things other loan officer won't do.

Stop by at realtor open houses. Offer to leave some financing materials. Offer to do open houses for realtors where you sit there instead of them. It sucks but you might get a couple leads out of an afternoon.

Go the library and get a Guerilla Marketing book. Use some of the ideas.

Do loans for free. No FEE LOANS. You might get noticed.

Meet lots of new people. Go to at least 2 networking events/meetings a week. Pass out lots of cards.

Have something on your business card that gives people a reason to keep it.

Figure out what potential borrowers want and find a way to give it to them, cheaper than anyone else. Think. Be creative.

And if all that still is not enough, get a second job until you get back on your feet. Let's be realistic. Loan officer is a job to earn you money. If you are not earning money, then try something else until it does. You already know how to do it, it will just take a little time to build up your contacts again.

And you might want to cancel the cable. Tough times call for drastic measures. :)

Answer To Joe

2005-07-05T13:18:00.000-07:00

Joe wrote:

joe here. Awright! Three free questions. i couldn't find a "post" button so i assume they go here? Ooops, does that count as one of my free questions? Ooops there's two? ;-(

i'm a "newbie". Since rates are still pretty good i'm searching for a few refi's while i try to put together a purchase business. For now i do property searches on people who bought between 1998 and 2002, when rates were high-ish, on the hopes that one or two might have missed out on earlier rifi opportunities. Is there an easier way to do this? And, what i'd *really* like to do is search out people who are living under b/c paper loans but i haven't a clue how to go about this?

And, regarding refi's, since these would be mostly rate/tem refi's i'd like to do a quick 'n' dirty "break-even", etc. for them so i wrote a little spreadsheet routine. My mentor (and every one else in the office) disagrees with my methodology.

What i try for is an "apples to apples" comparison so i
* take a look at their original terms (say 30F and $100,000).

* take a look at how long they've held the mortgage (say 5 years) and calculate their current balance (about $95,000).

* then i run a new payment based on that balance plus finance charges ($95,000 plus say $3,500) as amortized over *25!* years. This is where everyone disagrees with me. They say it should be for 30 years since that was the original term. i say it should be 25 since that what's left and i want "apples to apples". They say it makes us look crappy (compared to the other guys). i say being able to surface the truth (if it is the truth?) is our competitive advantage.

Help?

* Anyway, i then divide the costs of refi by the difference between the two payment rates to come up w/ a roughly right number of months to BE (recover fincance costs) and, no, i don't bother to figure in tax benefits/consequences (after all i am a newbie!)

Joe,

I think you only asked two questions. :)

1. In certain states like Florida there are services (in FL the name is ISC) that provide date from public records. You can search for date of loan, rate, lender name, etc. If you have a service like this great. Or if there is a b/c lender that is big in your area you can search their records.

Or run an ad in the paper "If you are paying more than 9% for your mortgage I can save you X thousand dollars a year regardless of your credit"

Homeownership is public records. So you can also get a name of everyone that owns a home. But what you need is a person who owns a home and that has bad credit. That is what you say to the listbroker you will approach.

Who is the person you are targeting:
homeowner
bankruptcy
multiple collections
maybe a foreclosure
secured credit cards
judgements
tax liens
low credit score
zip codes
professions
maybe he has bought a how to fix your credit product by mail.

Look for a list broker in your yellow pages or online, and see how many of the above they can help with. And add anything else you think might affiliate with your target.

as for your apples to apples idea. It's good if you don't want business.
Apples to oranges is better. The general public doesn't understand the math anyway, so why are you making it harder for yourself to get a loan?

I say try it. See how people respond. If you don't get any business, try it the other way and compare. And just because your mentor or anyone else says so doesn't mean it is right. Test everything. Cause you never know.

Answer to Keiya

2005-06-28T13:00:00.000-07:00

Keiya said...
Hi Ameen,
I have been in the industry only 9 months. I don't like working with realtors much because they are overly interested in my fees. The majority of my market is sub-prime so I don't have the opportunity to work with A credit which makes it difficult to secure loans with low interest rates as well. I have had several realtors "take" customers to other mortgage companies. Case in point, how do I work with realtors and not have to be concerned with them taking a referral I have given them to some one else?

Keiya,

Why don't you do A paper as well? It's easy to do. And if you don't, you are tying one hand behind your back. You don't have to spend money marketing for it, but you should be able to do it.

And if you can't, then the realtors will take the loans to places that can.
If you give a realtor a lead, you should make it clear to bring that loan to you, or you will not be giving them any more leads. Whoever has the lead makes the rules. But you have to deliver.

If you have the leads, you just need to find a realtor willing to send you all his leads in exchange for yours. It should be a two way street. If anyone took a lead of mine to another mortgage company, there would be hell to pay.

There are 1.2 million realtors out there. Find the ones that will work with you, not against you.

Answer to Glen

2005-06-28T12:55:00.000-07:00

Glen said...
Sunday, June 26th, 11:38 p.m.

Ms. Ameen

I'm considering starting my own mortgage brokerage though I don't want to pay for a franchise to get a list of financial institutions. What other options would I have and how would I go about doing it?

How does one become qualified to be able to approve customer's VA and FHA mortgages?

Glen,

Contact your local Association of Mortgage Brokers and get their latest newsletter or magazine and a list of their members. Then do the same for the Association of Mortgage Bankers. That will give you a huge list of lenders.

You can also search on the web, or visit any mortgage trade show, or read any mortgage magazine.

For FHA and Va you will have to meet their requirements. They have a net worth requirement, and a financial requirement. Your books must be audited by a special accountant every year. This is what costs several thousand dollars to do.

But you can find more info at hug.gov for FHA.

We are working on a book How To Start A Mortgage Company which will answer all these questions for you and give you all the info, but it will still be a few months before it comes out.

Question from Kim

2005-06-28T12:45:00.000-07:00

Kim said...
Hi Ameen

Thank you very much to taking my question. I would like to know if you use a script with your clients.If so would you be willing to share?

Kim,
I assume you mean a script for the initial interview. I don't use a set script. But I do have several items that I cover. It really depends on the prospects and how they came to us - ad, referrals, etc.

There are several psychological factors that we use and clues in the office to get them to do what we want. This is actually the topic for this month's Millionaire Loan Officer Newsletter. It's such a large topic that I am having to break it up into three issues. But the stuff is really good.

I'll give you one tip: Reciprocity is one of the laws of persuasion. One way we use it is by giving the prospect a free book when they come in for an interview. By giving something free, the prospect is now in your debt. It is harder for them mentally to say no to something you suggest. The book is just a gift. Has nothing to do with the loan and is not mortgage related. And they must accept. You cannot let them give it back.

It works wonders. For more tips get the newsletter: mortgagebrokertraining.com/mortgage-newsletter.html

Question from Consumer

2005-06-28T12:43:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
Hi Ameen,

I just started working with a mortgage company the does mostly sub-prime lending, the problem I have is the amount of fees charged by the broker and then again by the lender. How do they justify the fees for people just because they have lower scores? I was going to do my loan which is 680 + but the fees are making me reconsider. $5,000 for a simple refinance.

It all depends on what you can negotitate. 680 is not that bad as a credit score. Have your been to any other mortgage company?

If the loan is harder to do, and takes longer, they deserve to be compensated. Information is power. And they know the lender that will do the loan, so that is their power.

Marketing question

2005-06-28T12:41:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
Being new to this business (one week), what are inexpensive ways to market myself? Do you have tips on how to give out business cards? or attractive ways to leave them say on a table at a restaurant with the tip? Clever marketing strategies is what I need. Thanks!

Hello,

Welcome to the biz.
Get yourself a generic marketing book. Like Guerilla Marketing. You'll get a ton of good ideas from books in that genre.

Answer to Diaz

2005-06-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

DIAZ said...
How can this Real Estate market sustain? Is anyone else waiting for a collaspe or is everyone drunk with the euphoria? I lived in Southern California back in the early 90's and watched the market deflate by 30%, does everyone think it is not going to happen, or are they just hoping to keep cashing in until it does?

Diaz,
Make money on the way up, and on the way down. That's how the pros play.

Answer to Visionar7

2005-06-28T12:37:00.000-07:00

visionar7 said...
Question..Loan Origination...if you work at home...isn't loan origination nothing more than requiring certain documents from your prospective mortgager..and then submtting those forms to a bank you work with online...provided we are just talking about a conventional loan...or is there more to it

Hi,

Well you have to get the prospective mortgager. That is the hard part. Processing a loan is easy. You can even outsource it if you don't want to do it yourself. But you also need to collect actual, hard copy paperwork and submit it to the lender.

I Wish We Could Do This Question

2005-06-28T12:34:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
If a seller has a current appraisal for $200k and is willing to take a buyers offer for 180k. Can the buyer finance 200K (or what the lenders appraisal reveals)and receive cash back at closing?

Hi,

Nope.
Fannie Mae won't allow it. A private lender might - if they were out of their minds.

If it's an 80% loan, it's 80% of the price or the appraised value. Whichever is lower.

Answer to Suzanne

2005-06-28T12:20:00.000-07:00

Suzanne said...
How can I research a mortgage product that is being advertised by another mortgage broker. I have clients asking me about the product and my competition is not willing to share who the lender is that is offering that program.

Real Example: No mortgage payments for a year...All I was able to find out from the advertising broker is that it depends on credit and equity position and it is a one year arm.

Suzanne,
This is a common problem for newcomers. There is no easy answer except to be aware of most of the lenders in your area. Or to ask someone who already is. Call your favorite lender and ask if they have this program or something similar. If not ask them who does. Your rep should be able to help if he/she does not have the program.

Programs come and go. You will not be able to keep track of all the crazy programs from all the lenders. Just get on the mailing lists of as many lenders as you can find. And go to the free seminars put on by the lenders to learn as much as you can.

Referral Question

2005-06-28T12:19:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
Hello Ameen,
What are 4 or 5 ways to delicately
ask current and / or past clients for referrals without appearing as pushy or a begger

:)
Buy Referrals On Demand and see for yourself. www.referralsondemand.com

Answer to Mee-Mee

2005-06-28T12:05:00.000-07:00

Mee-Mee said...
Hello Ameen,

I would like to know how to become a preferred lender at a subdivision, who do I need to contact the builder, sales department? How do I approach a builder to make them interested in me versus other big companies? Please Help!

Mee-Mee,

Interesting name!
And a good question.

The builder is usually the one you need to talk to.

First, find out if they have their own lender or if they need one. You can do this by just talking to the sales agent. Then get the name and contact of the main person you need to talk to.

If they need one, you need to make a strong pitch. What are you willing to offer and what will you want. When you contact the builder by phone, try to arrange a meeting where you can present "10 ways (the builder's name here) can make more money in (subdivision name here)".

If you cannot get them on the phone, mail them something with your proposal.
Something that I have learned that builders and developer's like, is if you have a desk or office at their location. This might not work for you, but it might help.

Or you can try to get the sales rep to send buyers to you. If you are a lender you can hire the person without then needing a license. But if the builder has it's own mortgage company this won't work.

There will also be several smaller builders in your area that build 1 home at a time. These people could really use a good lender on their team. You can find them by contacting any mailing list broker for names of the companies and their contact info. Then mail or call them.

We actually had a realtor approach us about being a lender at a subdivision. The developer/builder is a friend of his and wants him to sell the homes for him. But this guy also wants to make money on the loans. Since he does not have a mortgage company, he contacted us to see if we could work something out. He wants a piece of the action and so does the builder.

So we might just open a new company - a partnership between the three of us. That way we do not violate any RESPA laws. The agents will also be the loan officer and I will open the company and my company will process the loans. The builder will provide a space in the sales office.

That's the way it stands now. Hope it works. The subdivision has over 1000 homes to be built!

Loan Product Question

2005-06-28T12:00:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
Hi Ameen,

As a new loan officer, what is the most expeditious way to learn about the loan products I have to offer my customers. Until I get a couple of loans underway, I am finding it difficult to professionally sell something I know very little about! I am told by my broker it comes with hands on experience, however how can I offer something to realtors or builders etc... that I don't know enough about???

Hello,

A fast way is to look through old files. Look at the circumstances of the borrowers, what loan they were put in, and question why. Then see if there was any other product that might have been better for them, or would serve as a back up incase the best product didn't work.

Another way is to talk with lender reps. Take one out to eat and quiz them on what they have and what the benefits are for each product. Most lenders offer similar products so once you understand the main ones, the rest is easy.

Go to the bookstore and buy a mortgage book that lists the different programs. Any book for consumers will do.

Another general question

2005-06-28T11:52:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
I am new to the industry; how do I generate more leads? Where so I start? Should I just concentrate on realtors, CPA's, and Financial Planners? What books should I read? Who Should I market to first to get leads right away? Or should I just try to concentrate on Rafi's first to get started?

Hi,
Refi's are just about done. Going after refi's right now will be a tough road. So ignore them for a while.

Go where the buyers are. Identify the demographics of your target buyer: Age, Sex, Occupation, Neighborhood, Income, Hobbies, etc.

Then market to them.

But you must have a marketing plan. You can;t go after anyone and everyone. You need to determine who will go after. This is called your niche. You will have much greater success going after a niche then the general public.

What do you enjoy doing? Swimming? Then join a swimming club and offer everyone a way to afford their own pool-refi. Then contact several pool builders and tell them how you can help them win over clients who think it is too expensive.

Do you like Motorcycles? Contact all the dealers in your area and show them how you can help them sell more bikes by refinancing their prospects.

Any group that is passionate about their hobby is a great niche market. And easy to dominate.

Do you go to church? That's one of your niches.

If you used to be a Financial Planner, then they would be your niche because you can related to them and talk their jargon. It will be much easier to get them to like you.

Organize your business, build systems, and plans. Only then will you be strong when the winds blow.

Answer to Kalen

2005-06-28T11:48:00.000-07:00

Kalen said...
Being fairly new to the mortgage business what is the quickest way for a new broker to find their first deal? Also, what do you think is the best advertising medium to find clients (direct mail, newspaper, radio, etc)?

Kalen,
You want your first deal? Ok, go ask your parents or relatives. If not, then ask your friends, and get your friends and relatives to ask their friends and relatives. That's how it starts.

The best medium is the one that brings the best results. Your message has to match what your prospects want. The medium is not important. Create a powerful message that will make someone want to call you and you can be successful using any and all mediums.

Answer to general question

2005-06-28T11:44:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
Hi Ameen,

What are the differences between mortgage broker, mortgage processor, loan officer, and loan originator?

Hi,

In my book So You Want To Be A Mortgage Broker is use the term Mortgage Broker to also mean loan officer. And most people do the same in the real world. But they are actually different.

A Mortgage Broker is a company or the owner of a mortgage company that brokers loans. They don't lend their own money. A processor is the person whose job it is to take a loan application and do all the paperwork to get the loan to closing. A loan officer is the person who works for the mortgage broker and brings in loans or just takes loan application. A loan originator is the same as a loan officer.

Make sense?

Answer to Beth

2005-06-28T11:38:00.000-07:00

Beth said...
I have just applied for my broker's license in PA and am getting set up. I was a processor for a one-man shop for two years and then a loan officer for one year. I took off the past two years because I had babies #3 and 4. I know I will be a great broker for my customers. I absolutely love the business and love learning about the business.

My question is this:

What's the best way to go about getting signed up with lenders? I understand that the "best" way is to have a relationship with Account Executives by having done lots of loans with them. But that's not the ONLY way, right?

Beth,

Getting lenders is actually easy. I don't understand why newcomers think it is going to be so hard.

Remember, you are the customer of the lender. Lenders need you. So they advertise heavily and spend large sums of money to get you to send them loans. Plus they are all over. A large number of websites nowadays have lists of lenders that you can contact. Read any mortgage magazines. Get back issues of newsletters from you local Mortgage Broker Association. Type in the word wholesale lender in your favorite search engine. Or, if your office is in a building where there are other mortgage companies, the lender reps will bumble into your office as well.

Once you find one, ask for a broker application. They will be happy to send one to you. Fill it out, and send it in. Some lenders have requirements like experience. So if you don't have that, put them aside and work with the hundreds that have no requirements. When it comes to lender, it's a mortgage broker's market.

Answer to Judi

2005-06-27T11:24:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
I see I am not alone out here as a new loan officer. I spent 23 years in the healthcare industry, but wanted the opportunity to do more in the latter part of my career years than I did in the first. I still see this as a service industry. My boss is terrific and has spent money to have training materials available for the new folks, but I still find myself at a loss as to how to market myself. I have tried a few of the techniques I've read about, but so far have had very little response. I am determined and committed to this business and know I will be successful at some point in time, but I could still use some help along the way. Any tips you and your readers can give me will be greatly appreciated. I really liked Conrad's idea about a handbook. There is so much to remember.
Judi

Judi,

The materials are out there. You just have to find them. We have had great success in having new loan officers use our materials and have success with them.

But your concern is noted, and that is why we are writing Jump Start Your Mortgage Career, a marketing book for new loan officers.

Anything you want to see covered in this book?

Answer to Conrad

2005-06-27T11:21:00.000-07:00

CONRAD said...
I want to assemble a loan officer handbook/training manuel for our office.
This information already exists so I don't want to re-invent it.
We have a not-for-profit Native American housing office to service first time home buyers on our reservation land.
As a Pay It Foreward project why don't we put this info on line?

Conrad,
Nice try, but I have mouths to feed.
We can sell you our training manual at a discount if you order in quantity. So that might an option for you.

I applaud your efforts. Watching the series "Into The West" on TNT brings back the horrors of how this country was founded.

Answer to John

2005-06-27T11:14:00.000-07:00

John said...
I am a broker in Michigan and am looking for inexpensive ways to market my company. Because of a lack of marketing in the past, I find myself without enough customers to support my business. I have learned my lesson and need a way to get started.

There are many great ideas out there but they all require a lot of capital that I don't have because of a lack of marketing ...it's a vicious cycle.

John,
Start with the basics. Mine your database. Create relationships with your past customers and stay in touch with them. Meet new people and add them to your database. This will grow your referrals as well as business.

If you have 300 people in your database, you can assume 10% will move every year. That's 30 potential loans for you right there. Not to mention the refinances, equity lines, second homes, investment properties, etc.

Referrals on Demand can show you all this and a lot more.

Try using some guerilla marketing tactics.
Flyers on cars and such.
Have a booth at a women's trade show. This has shown to bring great returns. You'll be the only mortgage company there.
Website
Join a local real estate investment group.
Subscribe to my Millionaire Loan Officer Newsletter and I'll give you even more ideas.

Another Answer

2005-06-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
With experience it is not easy .....
I have been in the mortgage business for 15 plus (heavy on the plus smile)yrs..as a Sr. Loan Processor/Closer... I now strongly desire to become a LO but I finding that alot of Mrtgage Companies are only looking at me to be their Ops Mgr/Processing Mgr becuz of my strong back ground in the "Operations" side of the mtg business and/or that I'm not in my early 20's that I would not make a good LO ..... How can I get my foot in the door as a LO with strong Mortgage background and not be pre judged because of my experince?????

Hi,

As a mortgage company owner I want one thing: More Loans. If you show me you can bring the goods, you are hired. I don't care if you were the President of FannieMae.

Finding a job on a commission basis should not be too difficult. If you are looking for a salary, you might have a problem. Good processors with experience are hard to find.

I suggest, you find a place you want to work and strike a deal. Part time as processor, part time as LO until you make enough as LO to go full time.

Or you can go straight commission. Any smaller company would love to have you as an LO.

By the way, I need a good Processor too, just kidding. :)
But if you are interested in helping us develop a processor training manual or curriculum let me know.

Answer to Phil

2005-06-27T10:57:00.000-07:00

Phil Midas said...
1. I left a large finance company to work with a broker. I am doing my own digging to come up with leads, can you offer any suggestions for getting leads with out paying up front? (I am currently searching county courthouse files for deeds on b/c lenders and cold calling. Takes time and I'm not getting very many applications.)

2. When I go to a Real Estate office to try to get leads, everyone says, "Fax us your b-card, mail us some info, or, just drop off your info and we'll put it around the office." How can I get IN with the realators?

3. On my cold calls, I am using was I was taught on my previous job, and I feel like I'm striking out. Can you offer info on scripts or fresh info on how to get peopl's attention?

I've been reading your info for the last few weeks, great stuff. Like the idea of "Paying it Forward."

Phil,

Seems like you need more business. :) Who doesn't want more business. There are many great ways to get leads and prospects. My company sells many systems that you can use to get more business.

What you need is an entire system. I cannot answer your question in just a few lines here. And if I told you all I know then who would buy my stuff? :)

I sound like I am just promoting my own stuff, but if you want realtors, you should try, The Marketing to Realtors Toolkit

As for cold calling - don't waste your time. The best way is to think like a person wanting to buy a house. What does this person do, where does he go, what does he read, and what does he want.

Then offer this person what he wants, at the place he goes, in the publications he reads, while he is doing the things he does.

Get him to raise his hand and say "yes, I need a loan".

I am not going to give you any cold calling scripts because I don't want you to get in trouble with Do Not Call, and I don't want you wasting your time talking to answering machines. The people you need to talk to aren't home anyway.

Determine your marketing budget. Determine a way to get prospects to raise their hands. Then follow up religiously.

Check out the marketing products page at www.mortgagebrokertraining.com for more options.

Answer to Tim,

2005-06-27T10:51:00.000-07:00

Tim said...
As a new branch manager for a national mortgage lender, what is the best method for recruiting loan officers? I don't mind recruiting people who are just entering the market because I can recommend www.mortgagebrokertraining.com for training and provide them with
licensing, mortgage software and procedure training. The one thing I really need is a good source to find these people who are serious about becoming loan officers and have the drive to succeed.

Tim,

We are currently thinking about recruiting real estate agents. Abby, (who is my father and runs our mortgage company) just got his re broker license. We are thinking of opening a 100% commission real estate company to attract realtors. Then pitch them to use our mortgage company.

There is a lot of turnover, so any customers or loans we get will be marketed to from the company, so if the agent leaves we still retain the customer.

Other ideas, are job fairs. Booths at local colleges and universities. Being a guest speaker at the Chamber of Commerce. etc.

Be creative. Find someone who already knows how to succeed, and then get them hooked to you. People that know a ton of other people, make good loan officers.

Answer to Toni

2005-06-27T10:46:00.000-07:00

Toni Candelas said...
I loved that movie! what a neat concept! We need to use this concept in all sorts of situations in life.

I just recently became a loan offcicer here in GA. though a small brokarage firm. I am only doing it part-time right now. I am still a full time employee and my present job. I am excited about the business, but I still feel clueless in a lot of ways. I feel like I have the opportunity to become very successful in this business being that I am bilingual. Since I am at a small office, I don't really have the opportunity for any training. Everyone is always so busy. I already have several pre-qual forms.

Is there a web-site for self-training?

On customers with credit issues, do you have any recommendations on raising credit scores a little bit?

Toni,
We have competitors that offer high priced training products. If you can spend close to $1,000 that might be an option for you. Or you can buy our training manual for $137 at our website.

I don't think there are any self-training websites. And that is why we are creating a curriculum to be delivered via website where you can go at your own pace but still have an instructor. This should be done by the end of the year.

For credit stuff, I havea good resource for you. How To Make Your Credit Sparkle.
I wrote it, so I think it's good!

Answer to LLO

2005-06-27T10:40:00.000-07:00

Anonymous said...
A friend of a friend encouraged me to become a loan officer. It has been a MONTH since the state issued my licence and this friend of a friend that processed my employment verification has yet to do any training or anything.
I am clueless about what to do next. How do I self-train?
Thanks so much!
LLO

Self-train? That's an easy one. Buy Residential Mortgage Loan Origination Made Easy from my website . This is a training manual designed to get you up to speed in the fastest time possible.

Also, talk to the guy you work for and offer to process a couple loans for him. Sit in when he meets with a prospect to see how the interview process goes. Spend time at the office and soak up the jargon and ask a lot of questions. Take someone out to lunch. Have a lender rep take you to lunch, or go dutch. Read the mortgage magazines.

Answer To Matthew Lee

2005-06-27T10:28:00.000-07:00

Matthew Lee said...
For Pay It Forward Questions?
!. How much do your charge in Points on Average-How do you differ in pricing b/t prime and sub prime
2. How do you explain your brokers fees to clients so they have no objections to what you are charging?
3. If you were creating a Operations Manual for your business and were outsourcing it- What would be your criteria(experience) for the company/person that writes the manual for you?Do you know of any good resources to get this done(outsourced)?

1. We normally charge 1% origination. No application. $495 processing, plus credit and appraisal. We increase the pricing based on the difficulty of the loan. Sub prime are harder to place, more work involved so we charge more. On smaller loans, we charge more. Anything under 80,000 pays 2 points or more.

2. We talk about them as if they are a given. We don't ask to be able to charge them. We tell them this is what we charge. Like a lawyer quoting a per hour fee. Some have objections. So we show them a list of everything we do for them. Then we show them that paying us a little now, will save them a lot in the long run because of the way we will handle the loan and get them a great rate.

We also presell and use physiological influence to make them want to work with us. We create an aura of, "we don't need your business", but you should give it to us anyway.

3. A mortgage company Operations manual has to be done by a person with mortgage experience. You can pay to have a general one created and then you would probably have to modify it. Even if you took a manual from another mortgage company and wanted to use it, you should not. Make yourself stand out and put that in your operations manual.

If you are interested, call my officer at 713-782-5626 and talk to Mike Larson about our operating manual. I haven't thought about it, but if you want to purchase a copy of it, we might be able to work something out.

Another option is the E-Myth people. They have a program where they walk you through all aspects of your business and help you develop your own. It's a time intensive project, but I think making your own is still the best way to go.

2005-06-27T10:26:00.000-07:00

Matt said...
Pay It Forward Questions:

If you had to pick one single attribute that makes a successful mortgage broker/loan officer, what would it be?

What is the best and most cost-effective training you have ever received that has contributed toward your success (seminars, schools, self-help, etc)?

What is the most effective way to market yourself as a mortgage broker?

Matt,

One attribute is hard to single out. Being a personable person, being liked by others, is a huge benefit. And if that is all you have, then you can make a living. But to be truly successful, you need to be disciplined. Have the discipline to be organized, manage your business properly, do the things that need to be done on a daily basis, and set up systems to run things for you.

The most cost effective training would be the small courses I have bought. They provide more info than a bookstore book and almost as much as a seminar. I don't like seminars too much because they take so long. And with the ones nowadays, the speakers just tease you and want you to buy their stuff. I have also taken part of expensive coaching programs, but they do not teach anything new. The material is out there. You need to discover what you need and fine it.

The more effective way to market yourself is without a doubt, have a database and marketing to it. Building friends and getting referrals. It is easy, the most fun, and can set you up in a referral only business the fastest

Answer to Jeff,

2005-06-27T10:24:00.000-07:00

Jess Asks:

I am strongly considering entering the mortgage business as a loan officer. I will be leaving the high-tech industry, most recently the Internet security market, after nearly 28 years.

My question is: Is there still life in the mortgage business for the next several years for someone to do well?

I know this is subjective so please include as much personal as well as industry trends information with your answer.

Jeff,

There will still be life in the mortgage industry for decades at least. Homes are getting more expensive and more and more people need loans to afford them. So the mortgage industry is not going anywhere.

The question really is, is there an opportunity for the individual to make a ton of money? The future is cloudy. Merger mania is making larger companies. Shopping portals like Nextag and lendingtree are spending millions. Real estate companies are creating or joining forces with banks to have in house mortgage companies. More Real estate agents are getting their mortgage licenses.

But a new study just showed that borrowers save more money on average with a mortgage broker than a lender. Brokers are still doing over 65% of all loans.

And the Mortgage Broker Associations are not as strong and organized as they can be. So things can definitely improve.

For the next 10-15 years at least we have nothing to fear, as long as we keep changing and keep our skills up to date - websites, ways to process loans faster, etc.

Answer to Ann

2005-06-27T10:10:00.000-07:00

Ann said...
Can you explain how YSP works? My broker/boss always avoids the subject with me.

I am planning on opening my own mortgage company in October of this year, is it hard to get a surety bond?

Last but not least, what advice would you give to someone going out on there own in the mortgage business?

Ann,

1. YSP is a way brokers earn a little more (or a lot) on a loan on the back end.
Let's say a client with A+ perfect credit comes to you looking for a loan. You check your rates sheets and you see that Lender A is offering 5.00 at par (no points). Lender B is offering 5.375 (2.00). If you get the loan from Lender B, the borrower gets the rate of 5.375 and you get 2 points as YSP, meaning 2 percent of the loan amount. I just made these numbers up, but you can see how it works.

But if you do not know what the Lenders are offering, if your broker keep this from you and he doesn't share it with you, then your best bet is to give the lowest rates possible. If you think your broker is giving you rates that are higher than par, you can check your rates and compare them to lenders on their websites. Or if you can call the lender, just call and ask what is today's rate for this program. If your broker's rate is higher then he is pocketing the YSP.

2. A surety bond is easy to get if the company is reputable. Contact your state's Association of Mortgage Brokers and they should be able to help you.

I am also coming out with a book, How To Start Your Own Mortgage Company, but it won't be ready for a few months.

3. My advice to someone new, would be to have some money set aside or another income stream. Then study and learn all you can about the business and about marketing. It's ok if you don't know all the loan programs if you have 10 people waiting in line to talk to you.

Getting loans is the name of the game. And you don't have to spend billions to make it happen. Make your own gameplan of how you want to proceed, and do it. WoW your customers with Amazing Service. And learn from others who are successful at what you want to do.

Answer to Chaps

2005-06-27T10:01:00.000-07:00

Chaps said...
I am in the military an I am considering the mortgage business for when I retire. I would like to start working part-time nights and weekends. What would your suggestions be to get hired by an industry that seem to only want to hire experienced people who can work 9-5. I am in the Norfolk, Va area. VA requires three years experience before running your own mortgage brokering business.

Chaps,

Well, you won't be able to start your own business anytime soon will ya? :) Unless you partner with someone who meets that criteria.

Even in your area, there much be small mom and pop mortgage companies that will hire you on a commission only basis. They won't train and will treat you as a nuisance if you do not produce but at least you can get started.

Working part time is how many people get started. And I recommend it if you can do it because the first few months are the roughest in terms of income. Don't quit your day job until you earn enough in fees.

You are just going to have to keep searching. Get your phone book out and start calling. Ask for the manager, and make your pitch. Tell them why they should hire you instead of asking if they have an opening.

"Hi, I am Chaps, a hard working, motivated loan officer with a large sphere of influence, and I am looking for a company to work at on a commission basis where I can submit my loans from. Are you interested in my loans?"

They will ask "How many loans?" You answer, "Well if you are interested and have an opening, we can arrange a time to meet, so I can check out your operation as well." or whatever you want to say.

Good Luck!

Answer to Dylan

2005-06-27T09:41:00.000-07:00

Dylan Asked:
This is a piggyback on Jeff's question above: How will people just entering the mortgage brokering field today make money in the next several years when and if the housing bubble bursts?

Dylan,

Over the last few years, we have had an amazing amount of new loan officers and mortgage brokers enter the business. Everyone is looking to make money quick. And with rates being so low and every homeowner wanting to refinance, it wasn't hard to find loans.

But that is over. The Housing Bubble on the other hand, is causing home prices to rise. Too quickly. Low rates, recovering economy, lack of confidence in the stock market, easy to get loans: ARMS, interest only, etc, have caused many people who have no business being in real estate to become real estate investors.

Let's say the bubble bursts today. Prices in many parts of the country will stop rising. In some areas they will fall because there will be no more investors causing prices to rise. If rates go up, there will be more people who cannot afford their homes and there will be more foreclosures.

As a loan officer, I don't see much trouble. People will still be buying. In fact, the smarter ones will wait until then and snatch up great deals. Investors with money or smarts will make fortunes buying when everyone else is selling. As long as people keep buying homes, we will be ok. Times will get tougher. Competition will get more fierce. But many of the people who we compete with today, will be gone as well, looking for easy money somewhere else.

As for me, I am saving my money. Hoarding it until the sky falls. And it will. Maybe not this year or next, but this mania cannot keep going at this rate. Eventually people will not be able to afford the high prices.

I am in Texas, and the prices here have not gone up at all. In fact, we have several neighborhoods around Houston where prices have gone down. We can't refinance these people because they are upside down. They owe more than the value of the house, even though they have lived there for more than 3 years.

So I plan on buying outside of Texas when prices start dropping and foreclosures start happening. If any of you remember the S&L scandal and the REO coroporation, it'll be similar but with single family dwellings this time.

Be ready for it.

Pay It Forward

2005-06-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

I watched the movie Pay It forward last night. Loved it. It has Kevin Spacey and Helen Hunt, I think that's her name - the woman from Twister. Anyway, the movie was based on a kid who wanted to change the world. And he came up with the idea of Pay It Forward. He did one huge favor each for three different people. Something they couldn't do for themselves and that forced him to change his behavior.

So he does three favors, and the people he helped cannot repay him, they have to Pay It Forward by doing huge favors for three other people. And that's how it spreads until everyone is doing favors for everyone else.

Simple idea, but genius.

It got me thinking as to how I could pay it forward. So I decided to do something a little different.

What I am going to do, is allow everyone who reads this three questions. You can ask anything you wish and ask by posting it here to this blog. I will, as fast as I can, answer them all. We have thousands of people on our email list so we are looking at a potential of several tens of thousands of questions. So I don't know if this will work or not. But let's try. I think most of the questions will be similar anyway, and not everyone will ask.

By posting your questions here, you can read others' questions and the answers I give as well. So here we go, post away.

1st Post

2005-06-23T14:12:00.000-07:00

Why the heck would anyone want to read what I think about everyday? Beats me. But so many of our customers wanted me to do a Blog that I had to start. it's not like I dont have enough to do already. Anyway, this is my first post. So cut me some slack.

I guess I should advertise my site too: Here's the link: http://www.mortgagebrokertraining.com

By the way we have other sites as well. Should I just list all of them? Ok.
http://www.marketingtorealtors.com
http://www.referralsondemand.com
http://www.creditsparkle.com
http://www.kamrockpublishing.com

If you want to buy any of my stuff, go to any other the above sites.

I am wondering if you can help me as the reader. I am working on a new book for brand new loan officers and for those that need some help in the marketing department. Basically it's for any loan officer that wants more loans.

What do you think I should put in it? What should I cover? And if you are a new loan officer, what would you want to know?

You can post your repsonse to this blog.
Thanks
Ameen