TOP MORTGAGE BROKER
A Q & A WITH RAMON VON WALKER TOP MORTGAGE BROKER
Q & A session conducted by Marc Summers , President of AIME , with Ramon Von Walker
THE WORLD OF MORTGAGE LENDING is a complicated one , so there are solid lessons to be learned from those working in the top of the industry . With that in mind , the following Q & A session was conducted with Ramon Von Walker , broker and owner of Mount Diablo Lending , one of the top-producing loan originators in the United States . His knowledge illuminated not only some of the lesser known aspects of the brokerage industry but also some of the things that new brokers can ( and should ) do to get a leg up .
Q : HOW MUCH PRODUCTION HAVE YOU DONE THIS YEAR ?
A : Right at about $ 121 million for the year in loan origination value . That ’ s spread out over 307 separate units [ loans ].
Q : WHERE WOULD YOU SAY YOUR MAIN SOURCE OF CLIENTS COME FROM ?
A : We specialize in buying online leads . I have years of experience dealing with the different lead aggregators like Lending Tree , Zillow , Leadpoint , etc . When working in this space , it ’ s extremely important to know your ROI [ return on investment ]. You ’ re constantly searching , negotiating with the lead companies in an effort to achieve the best ROI .
Prior to this year , we were mainly a refinance business and didn ’ t do much purchase business . The increase in rates has lowered origination totals for 2018 and [ led to our ] diversification into the purchase market . We ’ ve aggressively gone after purchase business due to changes in market dynamics .
To that end , we ’ ve established relationships with mid-sized
real estate brokerages to become their preferred lender . The key to forming these relationships is value add . Our value proposition is to assist with lead generation . A lot of the strategies used to generate success on the refinance side we ’ ve modified to help the realtor secure more leads .
Q : HOW DO YOU APPROACH REAL ESTATE AGENTS AND BECOME THEIR LENDER OF CHOICE ?
A : It ’ s very hard to establish one-on-one relationships with real estate agents . It ’ s also very time consuming . You can only talk to a few a week in addition to dealing with your own business . You must speak with 10 – 20 agents in the hopes of sitting down with two for a lunch or coffee .
The most efficient strategy is to go after the ownership group . Network with them — they are the key to success . Look for individuals who own smaller brokerages , 10 – 25 agents . At the larger firms , look for real estate teams . It ’ s very common to see agents work in groups of three to five . This is a much more efficient strategy than having coffee with one agent at a time .
Q : AS A TOP MORTGAGE ORIGINATOR , HOW DO YOU KEEP TRACK OF CLIENTS AND STAY ORGANIZED ?
A : It ’ s an absolute necessity without question to use a CRM . If you aren ’ t currently using a Customer Relationship Manager , get online today and start researching to find which is a best fit for you . Even for people who have a CRM , many aren ’ t using it to its maximum potential . A lot of companies sell out-of-thebox versions .
Once you ’ ve established a sales strategy and working patterns , I ’ d highly suggest customizing your CRM to support
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