How Do You Close Loans In This Market?

I had a great question come to me today:

Carl, how can you do loans in this market if the value of homes have gone down so much? Lenders will not approve loans unless the LTV's are really low and it's full doc.

I have several points to make here. I don't intend on being rude, but I am going to slap you to try to wake you up. Your car is getting ready to run off of the cliff..... if it hasn't already.

1. So are you saying that 97% LTVs for FHA and 95% LTVs for conventional are "really low"? Yes, the 103% financing days are gone for the most part. Yes, your client will need 3% or 5% down. so market only to people that have 3 - 5% down.

2. With the home values dropping, that actually helps the financing for the purchase markets. Homes are more affordable now than they have been in years.

3. With the full doc issue... yes, you actually have to find borrowers that have a job.

Now, if you are trying to market to refi's that bought at 100% LTV in the last 2 years, and they opened up their own business 6 weeks ago..... stop marketing to them.

It sounds like you are trying to sell albums to a group looking to buy IPODs.

The market has changed, so change your marketing!!!!

If you are doing the same marketing that we were all doing last year, you are destined to fail.

Our mastermind group has thrown all those old mailers, all those old mailing lists, all those old scripts, and all the other stuff.... and threw it out with the rest of Grand Pa's stuff.

It's time to wake up and rethink your marketing. Find out what is closing, what the successful loan officers are doing, and then copy them. Don't copy the ones that haven't been to the closing table lately.

Instead of focusing on what doesn't work, start looking at what does!!

Carl