Realtors Give Mortgage Referrals for a Reason - Customer Service

Donna, great article.  Yes, we all like to use our lenders that get the job done on time, and work the borrower up front with all the docs first before showing any property!  The lenders have to be on board with how we conduct business, too.

I always refer buyers to mortgage personnel that I know will "communicate adequately" and usually "get the job done".  It makcan be very difficult when they want to use a broker who is out of state and unfamiliar with local laws and customs.  Thanks for the post.

Donna, great post.  This is the purest example on why a Realtor would suggest a mortgage professional to home buyers.  They know that mortgage person and know they do an excellent job.  vs the "what if" of other lenders. 

Donna...service to not only my client...but to me as well. Some mortgage people forget we are clients as well.

Donna - this is great advise.  In almost anything we do as consumers it is good to have personal referrals to check out.

Hi Donna - The mortgage lender is probably the most critical link in the process these days. Years ago, we found a lender who works weekends and evenings, comes back with quick answers, is very competitive, and has always delivered on-time and as promised. We've never had a bad closing on her account. So we will always recommend her when there is an opportunity. But she doesn't always get the deal. When there are problems with other lenders, we do bite our tongues, hard as it may be - things are usually bad enough without rubbing our clients' noses in their mistake.

Donna - Yes, it's true that referrals from someone you know and trust are typically better than just picking someone at random.  When I think of all of the Realtors who have referred me clients over the years, it was because they knew, trusted and respected me and they knew I take care of my clients.

However, keep in mind too, that just because you don't know someone or have never worked with them, doesn't mean that they're not just as good (or better) as "your guy".  While this doesn't apply to your scenario because you actually knew the mortgage person your client used and you knew their reputation.  However, I can't tell you how many times some Realtor who didn't know me and had never worked with me, would diss me because their client chose to use me instead of "their guy".

Just saying.....there are a lot of us MLOs that are absolutely phenomenal even if you don't know us or have never worked with us before.

Donna  oh how true this is .. Most of the time my buyers take my advise . when they shop for rates instead of service they don't always get what they bargained for ..

Donna

Great point on customer service, thanks for sharing it.

Good luck and success.

Lou Ludwig

All we can do is recommend.  Even when they insist on using the same people and end up getting messed over, I never tell them "I told ya so".  That is unprofessional and unneeded at the time and does nothing but make the client feel bad.  At least the loan closed and your buyer is a happy home owner :)!

Good post, but I am not sure you should have tried to help him feel better about his decision. I think I may have remained silent. It was his choice and he learned a hard lesson and he simply needed to bask in the pain. There is definitely a reason people are referred.

Cal

I've had this happen many times. I actually just had this conversation with some buyers last night. You are spot on Donna, I said the same thing, that I am referring a lender because of the customer service that I know they will give.