Housing’s Good and Bad News Both Present Opportunity

By Bill Bodnar

With the news breaking that homeownership in the U.S. has dropped to its lowest point since 1965, consumer confidence in housing might be down. Another less-publicized stat came out days later: CoreLogic's June report said home prices rose 5.7 percent year-over-year. Bad news and good news are both chances for mortgage loan officers (MLOs) and their Realtor partners to ferret out opportunity…they serve as an invitation for a conversation or referral. MLOs and agents should be putting out questions and thoughts to their prospects, past and present clients like….

Don't let low homeownership figures get you down—there are other lows that are very positive….

This news makes a great pitch for refinance business or at the very least a mortgage review. It's also an opportunity to find out if this person knows anyone still renting or who could also use a review.

Homeownership rates may have reached lows—but prices sure haven't.  

Here's an invitation to discuss equity position, the ability to refinance, market pace, inventory shortages and plans for the next one to five years.

Whether it's a postcard, an email or even a call outline, industry news can be a goldmine for MLOs and their partners. The key is getting it out there in a timely, organized way with a provocative message that makes people want to know more and have a conversation that could open up possibilities for them and feed your pipeline.  Automation can help you not only get the word out quickly to select target groups, but also fulfill important compliance requirements and preserve company branding. Coordinating and your marketing, branding and compliance and housing them in your CRM system will allow you to create and distribute messages quickly. Keeping up with industry news and how it can help consumers and generate business is great, but it doesn't benefit anyone if you don't follow up.

Bill Bodnar is Senior Vice President of Strategic Accounts at Vantage Production and works with the nation's largest lenders to increase production, efficiency and compliance. He plays a key role in the creation and publication of Mortgage Market Guide including the Daily Update and Instant Re-pricing Voice Broadcast Alerts.