With mortgage rates slowly creeping up, recently declined to their lowest levels since November 2011. While rates are still near historical lows, Loan Officers may experience a decline in interested refinance applicants. Top Mortgage Bankers are able to uncover and originate mortgages regardless of the interest rate environment, though. These Mortgage Consultants are extremely talented in cultivating relationships with existing clients and lead sources, educating prospects on benefits of various mortgage options, and providing excellent client service during the traditional hectic end of month closing cycle. However, the top performers are not only skilled in networking, advising, and closing. The elite Mortgage Bankers also leverage Microsoft Dynamics CRM, a robust, yet intuitive xRM solution that is embedded within their Outlook and integrates with core back-office loan origination systems.
Mortgage specialists are able to drum up business despite rising rates because they work more efficiently and have more actionable intelligence on the health of their book of business with CRM. When they come into the office every morning, they know what they need to accomplish that day or week and who they need to call, as Outlook meetings, tasks, emails, and contacts sync directly with CRM. Furthermore, CRM’s Client profile can display in-process, existing, and paid-off mortgages for that particular client so Mortgage Consultants have a complete picture of the client’s overall relationship with the Bank. Plus, they have real-time visibility into their loan pipeline from cradle to grave via centralized Dashboards. Loan deals can be broken down by the status or sales stage of their application ranging from Application Review to Pre-Approved to Searching for Home to Credit Underwriting to Approved/Denied to Closed or Withdrawn, among others, as seen in the example Dashboard below.
Additionally, CRM’s referral tracking capabilities provide a clear snapshot of mortgage referral production, which helps identify the individuals and referral types that send you the most legitimate, qualified leads that convert into mortgage originations. By having this referral charting data handy, Mortgage Bankers can better assess the profitability of realtors, title agents, appraisers, escrow agents, CPAs, insurance agents, financial advisors, bankers, community leaders, and clients, and, in turn, prioritize who they need to connect with and spend more time.
Another reason why Mortgage Bankers using CRM have an edge over the competition is because they utilize custom-branded email marketing campaign and client follow-up templates to stay more in front of their prospects and clients. Top Mortgage Bankers distinguish themselves from the competition by consistently delivering email greetings to clients for birthdays, client anniversaries, or holiday cheer. Similarly, Mortgage Bankers can utilize CRM to stand out from the crowd by expressing their gratitude via new client appreciation notes and gifts and referral thank you notes. Moreover, the CRM database can be filtered so that all clients that have an interest rate above “x%” or an upcoming expiring ARM can be added to a dynamically updated list and then sent promotional ads accordingly. In addition, CRM provides the ability to send out recurring client correspondence concerning upcoming home equity review meetings, economic commentaries, and client newsletters. All of these email touches can be automated and customized to your firm’s unique branding and messaging and their ROI impact can all be conveniently tracked in CRM.
Lastly, CRM also provides Mortgage Consultants with a centralized document repository via tight SharePoint integration. Key client documentation obtained during the loan application process, including mortgage proposals, loan applications, tax returns, verification of deposits, pre-approval and pre-qualification letters, good faith estimates, appraisals, and mortgage application and closing disclosures, can be easily stored and just one click away on the Documents link on the Client profile in CRM. Having the vital documents readily available enhances team collaboration between Mortgage Bankers, Branch Managers, Sales Assistants, Loan Processors, and Underwriters. Due to document centralization and less time spent on chasing down missing documentation, bottlenecks are eliminated, thereby maximizing employee productivity. In the end, that translates into more time for Mortgage specialists to pursue and close more loans, and hopefully jumbo loans!
As the three-time defending East Region Microsoft Dynamics CRM Partner of the Year, Customer Effective specializes in providing CRM solutions for the financial services industry. Please to receive more information on how we have helped leading Banks operate more efficiently to grow their Mortgage business and how we can devise a roadmap to cement your firm as the number one mortgage provider in your community footprint..
by Customer Effective
