I was handed a business card yesterday from someone I knew. She said this is my new business with a big smile on her face.
She was a loan officer, with an out of state lender. Oh Boy! (I am being a wise guy here)
- Me: I asked why didn't you go with a local lender?
- LO: Because we can do loans in all 50 states.
- Me: Do you understand the problems with an out of State lender?
- LO: Not a problem it is an advantage.
- Me: None of the Realtors I know will work with or recommend an out of state lender because of along list of problems.
- LO: I have never heard that.
- Me: How many Realtors have you worked with:
- LO: Hundreds.
That made me stop and think. I better leave that one alone. The ink on her business card was still wet and she was only doing this part time.
- LO: Who do you use now.
- Me: I gave her 3 lenders in our area that I deal with the most.
- Me: Do you do VA?
- LO: I find that no one wants them. (Code for no we can't)
- Me: Really why do you think that is? (I am feeding her a little more line)
- LO: No one wants them because they take too long and cost way too much.\
- LO: Have you done any VA deals before?
- Me: About 70% of my business.
- LO: Oh
- Me: VA loans are usually done in 2 to 3 weeks. Mainland lenders usually take 5-8 weeks if at all and with many more complications.
- LO: We are always faster than VA.
- Me: Who do you run your loans though?
- LO: I use CW and a few others.
- Me: How long have you been doing this?
- LO: I just got my license.
- I thought I better let that go too.
‘
Let's Recap
- She is brand new in the business. (possibly never done a loan yet).
- Works with 100's of Realtors, who do not have a problem with a mainland lender/broker.
- Usually runs her loans through CW.
- Finds that no one likes VA
- She can do her mainland loans faster than a local loan officer can do a VA with automated underwriting or any other LO in Hawaii history for that matter.
- Most importantly her total investment to be a loan officer is $200 or so for the license, no training and a set of business cards.
This is why it is a good idea to get referrals from top Realtors in the area before selecting your loan officer.
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Randy L. Prothero, REALTOR®, ABR, AHWD, CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR
Century 21 Liberty Homes
Randy Prothero is well established as an expert in working with military / VA clients and first time home buyers. His home seller's (listing) campaign is one of the most aggressive marketing programs in the area.
Based out of Mililani, Hawaii. Randy services the island of Oahu (Honolulu County) Performs mediations and ombudsman services for the Board of Realtors. To improve overall professionalism in his area Randy also offers classes for real estate agents.
www.HawaiiRandy.com * Oahu (Honolulu County) Property Search * Hawaii Military Relocations
Randy,
I'm sure you knew I would be stopping by to throw in my 2 cents on this. It sounds like a very sceptical story. lol!
Every state is different I have been involved in only 2 VA loan deals and both times I was the listing agent...they did close with very little problems..but you are talking the old days and if I recall they closed in around 30-35 days. As far as this LO you met with..you are a big boy and I'm sure you can figure it out yourself.
We stay as local as we can. If I can't run to their office, then I don't want to deal with them.
On one of the very first transactions we ever did our buyer used E-Loans. They took forever to get everything together, were next to impossible to get a hold of when we had questions, and did not keep us informed of the progress of the loan. Throughout the ordeal, our buyer learned many things, but the most important thing was that he would never use E-Loans again.
Neal - I felt it was worth sharing with the group. With all the conversations we have recently had on licensing of loan officers, I felt this was a good example of what is wrong.
Lysa - Too funny, I am sure she we do well with the area Realtors. LOL
Matthew - It would be too easy. I decided to back down and let it go.
Randy,
I guess you really busted her! Obviously not the sharpest tack in the box.
Lucky :)
Randy,
I guess you and I will have to reinforce this every now and then.
Randy,
What an interesting post. I'm sure you had a "fun time" with that new LO. Unfortunately, I've been there and all of us have too. It's hard to be new and get business! But concerning VA loans, I find it funny that "no one" wanted them - I'm a vet, much like the millions of us out there that benefit from these loans. Like you said, she probably didn't have it available OR was just clueless on how to do them.
In my state, the process of how LO's can be licensed just changed (yeh!). No longer can a green horn pay their money, pass a background check and then VIOLA your a new LO. We're one of the few states that have pre-licensure requirements. It will be nice when the rest of the country gets on board.
Randy, that is pretty good, she just started and is already working with hundreds of Realtors. I hope you were rolling up your pant legs during that conversation because it was getting pretty deep......LOL
Doug - From your lips to God's ears.
Leigh - I have a saying. If the loan officer tells you they have a better deal than VA. They do not have VA and they are lying. Get a good faith estimate from them and I will send you to VA lender to do the same. In the two cases where the client came back, it wasn't even a close call. All of the others just went to the loan officers I recommended.
George - I was wearing shorts and they weren't high enough.
Lisa- It is a cold world out there for the untrained.
Thesa - They also never seem to care.
Randy - here in CA as with I'm sure many other states you don't even have to have a valid license. You can work unlicensed if the broker has a CFL license. I know of a local company that has 40+ loan officers on their roster, yet DRE only suggest one person there has a real estate license! Scary, eh?
It sounds to me like she went to a Tom Hopkins seminar before she got her license. She can use all kinds of flowery words and people should just melt in her presence.
I hate people who act like they know it all; they are very annoying to those of us who do;)
Randy-There are still too many of these loan officers running around in Hawaii. I always get involved in my clients choice of lender unless they specifically ask me not to. Most of my first time buyers have no idea what they are looking at when they recieve a GFE so I sit down and explain it to them.
Only lenders that at located locally can do VA locally. Thats the requirement for the program, just like FHA. I can't do a VA loan in California as a lender in California can't do one in Hawaii, even though our company is licensed in all 50 states.
David - I just got the dreaded call from the other side of one of my escrows. After the appraisal came in over asking and the other contingencies removed, they now are not credit worthy.
Joe - Local brokers do not do VA either. Instead of saying that, they tell buyers that VA is a bad deal or they have something better. Unfortunately it is better for the loan officer and not the buyer.
At least that person won't last long. At least with me I was honest with you and actually asked if I could go to you for advice if I had questions on VA. We got VA approved, but I haven't had much opportunities with them. I know VA can be very helpful in getting a mortgage for a veteran. Especially when their financial or credit profile is out of the box. Hopefully I'll get a request, you would be the realtor that I would refer them to.
She just couldn't help trying to chew that leather off her shoe huh. Good post though. Warning signs when I'm interviewing lenders.
Lexa
It's not uncommon for new LO's to pretend to know what their doing. As a matter of fact it is usually expected from new LO's. I'm sure that this girl was told by the NetBranch that she was inducted by that they have the best pricing, fastest closings, and best programs. I bet that she even believes it! Still, I learned the ropes the hard way and I have nothing but love for this girl. I am local which is obviously a huge advantage, but after a few years in this business this girl may be a top producing LO (or not).