Reading that post prompted my friend and fellow loan officer Tom to twitter me, then call me from halfway across the US. We had a great chat. He doesn't blog, he doesn't video, he doesn't add to the internet. Tom is a self described internet "end user", and that's ok.
In the course of the conversation he stated that he didn't understand why I limited myself to working local.
Good Question.
- Yes, we can do a loan via the internet.
- Yes, we can converse by phone, by email, and by fax.
- Yes, we never have to meet face to face.
And yes, I've closed loans for people I've never met who were clear across the country.
But I corrected him and said that I don't limit myself, but instead I prefer to work with borrowers locally.
Why?
To this borrower, this is probably the single most important transaction they are every going to make. Everyone knows that with the Rate Shopping, the APR Shopping, and Bait & Switching that goes on, there's a millions ways to screw this transaction up. Not to mention the unethical, dishonest salesmen posing as Loan Officers.
Given all of that. I prefer to work with local borrowers for just one reason...
;)
;)
Hi Mike - I've been following your posts about this. First about your Zillow experience, and then yesterday's post as well. I must say that as a real estate broker, I also prefer to work with local professionals. I've had clients use an out of state lender, and while it occasionally goes just fine, there are often problems. Even with the internet, phones and faxes, it's still a relationship and problem solving business. That's easier to do face-to-face.