4 essential habits to boost your career as a mortgage broker

How do you measure success in a mortgage broker career? Is it in your paycheck? Or is success measured by the depth of your lender panel or the number of clients you work with? Do you simply  know you’ve succeeded when you help a client sign on the dotted line? 

Professional mortgage brokers enjoy a very rewarding career. Everyday, we get to help people achieve one of their biggest dreams: owning a home.

How do the most successful mortgage brokers build a career that is both rewarding and lucrative? Here are four habits of highly successful brokers.

Stay up-to-date

All mortgage brokers follow the lending market diligently. They can rattle off interest rate developments and lending trends with ease.

The most successful brokers, however, don’t just train to identify good loans, they also train to understand how to be a better broker. This means constant professional development in areas like customer service, new technology, time management, self-monitoring and evaluation.

If you don’t learn and grow, your business will definitely suffer. Don’t be left behind when your competition starts using new technology to recruit clients or manage accounts. Stay up to date in the field and consider joining a brokers group that offers development and access to the latest in the field.

Value your own time

Successful mortgage brokers know their most valuable resource is time.  A common mistake made by new brokers is trying to do it all and chasing every possible lead. Cognisant brokers know how to evaluate potential leads before wasting too much time trying to win a client’s business.

Similarly, if a deal looks like a bad one, move on. Spending time going over a bunch of bad options with your clients will likely be fruitless. You’ve been hired to find the right deal, so keep looking until you find it, or let customers go when you truly can’t help them.

Take a customer-centred approach

All brokers have access to loans, but not all brokers offer strong customer service. Taking a customer-centred approach is a guaranteed way to grow your business. If they were happy with you, clients will come back when they want to refinance or buy a second property. They’ll tell their family and friends and be sure to write a good review of you online as well.

After all, being a mortgage broker isn’t just about finding the right loan, it’s about saving home buyers time and stress. If working with you is unpleasant, customers will go straight to the banks on their own.

A customer-centred approach means taking the time to understand your clients’ goals, educating them on what makes a good mortgage, and helping them determine what they can afford and how their mortgage repayments will look over time. Sometimes, mortgage brokers need to break harsh news to clients, letting them know they can’t afford as much as they thought. Successful brokers know how to do this with tact.

Align with the right network

Networking is a bit of a buzzword among successful brokers, but gaining access to the right clients and lenders can be overwhelming when you’re just starting out. Good networking isn’t about shooting fish in a barrel. You don’t want to network with just anyone – you want to find the right people to help you grow your business, improve your reputation and develop as a professional.

If you have just become a mortgage broker, a great way to get a leg up and immediately network with a strong broker community is to join a professional brokers group. Upon joining the right group, you’ll have access to professional development opportunities, new technology and a lender panel that would have taken you years to build on your own.

Are you looking to become a broker or just take the next step in your mortgage broker career? There are numerous benefits of joining a professional brokers group like Redrock. Get in touch with our team to explore your options.