Hi all: I was thinking it wasn't too long ago that everyone in the real estate business made money; In some cases, it was an almost obscene amount. Remember the good old days? Countrywide, WA. Mu., etc?
Last week I visited Cedarbrook Lodge which was constructed by Washington Mutual in 2006. What a beautiful place. Opulent would be a better word. Obviously, Cedarbrook Lodge was built in the height of the real estate frenzy. I'm sure it cost upwards of $20 million to construct.
I started in the mortgage business in 2006. Almost everyone who applied could get a loan. I worked for a broker at the time. Our office had over 15 loan officers and they were all doing on average 2-3 loans/month. I know loan officers who had at least 5 years in a row of great production (2002-2007) and did in excess of 10 loans/month. I know realtors who did in the neighborhood of 50 deals/year.
Cut to 2010. Most of the loan officers I worked with then are no longer. They never really learned the business and couldn't handle the guideline changes. Washington Mutual is gone (busted in 2008) and Countrywide was consumed by Bank of America or they would have fallen as well. My small little brokerage used to have wholesale loan reps. calling on us every day. Now, almost everyone is either a correpondent lender or works for a bank.
How the times have changed. Will it ever be like before? Maybe not but those of us who ride it out will reap the rewards. It may just be a couple more years. What have you seen? What do you remember? Feel free to chime in. Thanks for reading!
Comments(10)