What is in a name? - Honesty? Integrity? Knowledge? Trustworthy? Creativity? Being reliable?
What is in a name designation? - In most cases, the same that would be attached with any name?
Some of you might be asking yourself, "what am I talking about." How about those names that come with such designations as :
Certified planner - Certified Technician
Mortgage Specialist - Real Estate Specialist
In the mortgage and real estate world, many realtors and loan officers have special designations attached to their names. You will usually find these designations on their business cards or on their web site.
Realtor -
CRS - Certified Residential Specialist
ABR - Accredited Buyers Representative
CNS - Certified Neighborhood Specialist
SRS - Seller Representative Specialist
Loan Officers -
CMPS - Certified Mortgage Planner Specialist
UMB - Upfront Mortgage Broker
CLA - Certified Liability Advisor
My Example : Just last week, I wrote this post about basic information on FHA loans and what you should be careful of. FHA loans 101- The basics of FHA mortgages & mortgage shopping - I truly pride myself on numbers, giving out very accurate figures, and not just my opinions based on assumptions. But to prove them with real numbers, not numbers that can be manipulated to make me look right.
This loan officer comes in and disagrees with my opinion and my figures. Hey, I have no problem with people disagreeing. I might actually learn something. Yet he told me that I wasn't correctly comparing apples to apples and that upfront mortgage insurance was still a cost to the borrower. That part is true, but he didn't read my whole post and review my comparison examples, which detailed this. And if you know how to compare FHA loans vs conventional loans, you understand the whole mortgage insurance issues. You don't a specific designation for this. This person left several comments, but ended up deleting them. Not sure if it was because others disagree with him. This was his last comment....
Now, if you look this person up and go to their web site, this is what you will read in the first paragraph on his web site. "My philosophy is simple - to help you get the lowest cost loan possible. I give you choices and let YOU choose the wholesale interest rate you want." This person is an Upfront Mortgage Broker, UMB, and they sell costs. Overall, he disagreed with me 110%, yet he says that after reading my details, that he is still learning. - ????
Conclusion :
My whole point to this post? To make the average consumer understand that not everyone is as knowledgeable or ethical as they may sound just because they have one of these designations. Yes, many of these designations mentioned require for that person to take classes and a test in order to receive that designation.
How many of you remember going to school and passing a test to a class that you didn't fully pay attention to? How many of you were good at winging things? How many have a photogenic mind, are able to remember what they read or hear, yet might not comprehend what was said?
So, who are you really? Just because you say that you a CMPS, certified mortgage planner, does it mean that you have my best interest at hand? Do you know exactly what you are doing?
In regards to the loan officer in my example? He advertises lowest cost loans. I have an old saying..."the cheapest loan on paper might cost you more in the long run." If this person doesn't know how to compare specific loans, how can this be the cheapest for you? The best? What happens if that person's choices aren't accurate? Wrong? Misleading? Many loan officers sell costs, but can't give you accurate or reliable comparisons when it comes to specific programs. Just keep this in mind when shopping for a mortgage.
PS... don't get me wrong. In many cases, designations are good. But if someone preaches it or slams it don't your throat, that might be their only selling feature to you. A desgination should not be verification for that person to be credible. Just be careful...
FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK
- FHA Loans - USDA Loans - VA Loans -
- Energy Efficient Mortgages -
- Conventional Loans - 203 k loans -
- Mortgages -
Experience & Knowledge at its BEST !!!
_________________________________________________________________________________________
For more information on FHA loans, please go to this link. The FHA Expert
For more information about the 2009 Tax Credit for First Time Homebuyers : 2009 Tax Credit
For important mortgage insight to watch for, please read : Consumers need to be aware of these Red Flags!
Copyright © 2009 by Jeff Belonger of Infinity Home Mortgage Company, Inc
Seed Newsvine
;)
;)
Lewis... thanks for reblogging this. I ended up changing the titile of the post a little... and I added a sentence at the end.. PS... I wanted to add to this post, about those that use names of others to promote their business... ex. those that use Dave Ramsey's name and logo... as in your example of what you went through. This is kind of like the same thing...