What to Look for in a Mortgage Loan Processor

Good as gold. That’s what I call a processor that knows how to get the job done, and quickly. I’m met many loan processors in my career, and I can honestly say that many of them were not very good. It’s not that they didn’t “work hard”. They did. It’s just that although they were extremely busy “working hard”, it didn’t matter. They didn’t close the loan—meaning I didn’t get paid. Boo hoo! ;-) I learned this lesson very quickly.

In the mortgage business, it’s only results that count. Not simply “working hard”. That’s one reason why if you have a good processor, do whatever you can to keep them--because they are extremely rare!

Here are some tips on choosing and working with a good processor:

* Know how loans in your company are processed and what the procedures are. How far do you, as the loan officer, take a file? Where is the line of separation between origination and processing? What are your duties and responsibilities? What are the processors? Make sure everyone is clear on things.

* Make the processor take “ownership” of the file. In order to do volume in this industry, you need to take an assembly-line approach to loan origination (like how my Sink or Swim worksheets show you). How can you go out and get more loans into your pipeline, if you are constantly putting out fires on the loans you already have? That’s the processor’s job—to take care of issues that arise on the way to the closing table. Your focus should be on selling—not fighting with lenders, appraisers, attorneys or whoever!

* If you work in an environment that has a team of processors, and anyone can take the file, then try to get assigned to just one particular person. Or, try to develop a good working relationship with a processor. You want someone who will treat the file as their own, and take it all the way to closing. How many times have you had a good loan go bad, because of a goof-up in the processing department. In large mortgage companies, this is better known as “The Black Hole”--loans go in, but they don’t come out! ;-)

* To motivate and encourage ownership, cut the processor in on a piece of the commission, or pay them a flat fee per file. If they don’t close the loan, they don’t get paid. Do this, and you’ll see a dramatic rise in the level of attention and detail given to your loans.

* Stay away from third-party processing companies. Most of the time, you’ll end-up just doing most of the work yourself anyway. My experience has been that they do very little to push the loans ahead. If the processor isn’t on-site, it will take you at least 3 times as long to get the loan closed. You’ll be going back and forth…calling, faxing, emailing, etc. Things will slip through the cracks, and you’ll end up doing the work yourself, just to get the deal done.

* Learn how to do processing and be a processor. This will make you a better loan officer, and will show you the pitfalls and things to look out for on the loan. You’ll know right away if there are issues you’ll need to iron out, before you hand it over to your processor. The best loan officers, are the ones that can foresee issues before they arise.

* If all else fails, hire someone else to process loans for you. Get someone proactive NOT reactive. Don’t waste time trying to train someone who can’t learn. You’ll lose more in commission than it’s worth.

I learned many of these lessons the hard way. Yes, I lost loans and commission and had many fights with processors that were no good. After I found Nancy (my processor of many years), and we put our heads together and created the Sink or Swim Loan Closing System at http://www.loanclosingsystem.com loans went a lot more smoothly. I know how hard she works, and by working together we were able to reach new levels of production together. I encourage you to find a Nancy of your own.