I wrote a while back about referral partners other than Realtors (here), and that was a general overview of the other professionals that loan officers should consider partnering with. Over the coming months, I’m going to periodically explore each of those proposed partners in depth, covering A) why you should work with them, and B) how to start building relationships.
Builders can be an incredibly valuable resource for LOs — if you know how to maximize the relationships. So, how can LOs begin to establish relationships with builders in their local market? Here are some ideas to help:
Get Their Attention (and keep it)
In order to benefit from working with builders, you need to start by getting their attention. Nobody is going to send you referrals if they don’t know who you are and how you conduct your business. Connect with local builders on LinkedIn and (preferably) in person through networking events and groups. Once you’ve connected with them, then it’s time to start building your reputation in the community. How? By learning everything you can about what they need and how you can provide value to them. The point is to establish yourself as the go-to LO for the builder community, and you can do that by finding out what problems they’ve had with lenders in the past. Then, you just need to develop some creative strategies to circumvent those problems. The better you get to know your builder contacts, the more indispensable you can make yourself to them; and if you can make their lives easier, they won’t ever consider trying out an untrusted source.
Become an Expert
Let’s say you earn a builder’s trust and they send a client your way; how familiar are you with the products you have available to help? Do you understand the difference between working with clients of builders as opposed to a standard homebuyer? You don’t have to be an expert to start connecting with builders, but you do have to be an expert to keep the relationship alive and profitable in the long term. Commit to learning as much as possible, and you’ll quickly build a solid reputation in the community and separate yourself from any competition.
Communicate
Keep your builders in the loop. Update them on the progress of the loan process, warn them of any potential bumps in the road as soon as possible, and maintain open lines of communication. If you can help your builder partners do their jobs better, they will appreciate you even more.
Deliver Top-Level Service
The best way to maintain your builder relationships and get word-of-mouth referrals, is to deliver highest-level service. This should already be a goal for you with everyone, but it’s just as essential here. When you deliver top-level service and leave every client impressed, your relationships will continue to grow stronger.
Stay tuned for more articles on suitable referral partners in the coming months, and let me know if there’s anything specific you’d like me to cover.
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