Dear MortgageRight, Is It Just Me, or Is My Institution’s Pricing Off?
In this article
Dear MortgageRight,
I’m starting to think I’m losing it. As a loan officer, I bust my tail every day. I work hard to offer competitive rates and excellent service, to earn a decent mortgage loan officer salary, and to do right by my clients. But lately, it feels like every time I try to court a client or close a deal, the numbers don’t work out. My institution keeps raising its rates, and it’s hurting my business. I’m scrambling to stay competitive in a tough market, but my company’s structure is making it hard–if not impossible–for me to succeed.
I don’t have any real insight into the company’s P&L or pricing tool, so I can’t see what’s going on or where the extra fees are going, but it’s fishy, and I don’t like it. The company is making sure to protect their profit margins—but they don’t seem to care what happens to mine. If I can’t offer the best rates, clients are going to take their business elsewhere.
So here’s what happens: I absorb the hit myself. To offer competitive rates, I tighten my own belt; I even cut my own pay. At a time when I should be investing in the future, preparing for the next market upswing, I’m hamstrung by budget cuts.
And I’m not the only one hurt by my institution’s dubious rate changes. These pricing structures also hurt my clients, and I hate that. I didn’t get into this business only to make money–I wanted to help people. I care about my clients. I care about their monthly payment because I know them and I know money is tight.
Loan officers like me chose mortgage loan officer jobs because we wanted to help people’s dreams of home ownership come true. Sure, we want to be financially rewarded for our work, but we also want to give our clients the best deals so they can walk away happy.
I’m fed up with the lack of transparency. I’m tired of cutting my salary so middle management doesn’t have to cut theirs. I’m tired of feeling out of control, like other people’s agendas are affecting my productivity and pay, and there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m out here working hard, looking out for my clients’ best interests–who’s looking out for mine?
Am I crazy to think things should be different?
Sincerely,
A burned-out mortgage loan officer
Dear burned-out mortgage loan officer,
You’re not crazy. Not at all. And honestly, we’ve all had a similar experience. That’s why we started MortgageRight—because we believe things can be, and should be, different.
Mortgage loan officer jobs are often negatively affected by unnecessary expenses, padded fees, and unpredictable rate changes that trickle down from on high. Every time the market gets tight, we hear similar complaints from hard-working producers like you: Companies raise their rates without justification or explanation. To preserve their profit margins, lending institutions and higher-ups may add points and hidden fees to their pricing and compensation structures. This hurts mortgage lenders like you. Your lending rate increases—your rates may even surpass national levels. Then you have a painful choice to make: You either cut that expense from your compensation or pass it on to the buyer. Either way, it hurts your business.
Mortgage Loan Officer Jobs Deserve Transparency.
We feel your frustration. Mortgage loan officer jobs are challenging enough as it is: lending rates are high, housing inventory is low, and savvy consumers are shopping around, refusing to settle for less than the best rate. You’re already fighting an uphill battle, so when your company inflates its rates, it’s an unpleasant shock.
It’s like coming home to Thanksgiving dinner expecting to swap fun family updates between bites of Grandma’s famous pumpkin pie, but you end up half-choking on your pie because it turns out your sister’s new boyfriend has conned the whole family into starting a Ponzi scheme. You’re like, “What’s going on here? Is anyone else seeing the problem I’m seeing?” But they just keep eating their pie.
The problem is, when you don’t own your mortgage business, you’re not in charge. Someone else sets the pay structures and fees. You want to offer your clients the best rates, but you can’t—you’re doing business with your hands tied. And the only thing more frustrating than the lack of control is the lack of transparency. No one tells you why the company’s rates are changing or where that money is going. (It’s certainly not going in your pocket!) Without access to your company’s P & L model or pricing tool, not only are your hands tied—you’re also doing business in the dark.
We started our business because we want to help yours. Lenders working mortgage loan officer jobs deserve transparency. You deserve to know how your company is running its P & L model and where all those mysterious fees are going, but when you work for someone else, you’re not going to get that kind of honesty.
When you start your own mortgage branch with MortgageRight, you’ll experience incredible freedoms. You’ll be able to set your own rates, determine your pay structure, even hire your staff. And you’ll always know where your money is going because our P & L software will track and report your expenses.
Who Pays for Padded Costs? You Do.
Here’s another pain point we see in many mortgage loan officer jobs: When the company raises its rates, motivated lenders like you take the hit. Desperate to stay competitive, you cut your own pay so you can land a client. Then you work hard to close the deal—success!—but you promptly get penalized a second time when your company hits you with a “success tax.” That’s not right.
It’s time to stop taking it on the chin for your company. At MortgageRight, we want you to keep the money you make. You work hard to offer your clients a smooth lending process and great rates so they can thrive–you deserve to thrive too. When you make money, your earnings shouldn’t go to middle management. Your salary shouldn’t be cut while the higher-ups keep theirs.
If you’re losing business, try our pricing polygraph tool. It will compare your pricing to the rates MortgageRight offers. Stop wondering if you’re offering the best rates—find out the truth about your rates and about how much more money you could be making.
For a conventional loan, our pricing will be about 40-50 basis points on average, compared to many companies. For the government-backed loans it’s 75 to 100, depending on their setup.
Who Else Pays for Inflated Rates? Your Clients.
Inflation has affected everyone. We’re all paying more for everything: housing, food, gas, insurance, entertainment. Like you, your clients are working hard to make their take-home pay stretch as far as they can. So when you can’t offer them the best rates, it matters. A higher interest rate can be the difference between a client buying a house that barely suits their needs versus the house they really want.
Access to Better Pricing Means You’ll Close More Deals.
Many mortgage companies claim to offer competitive pricing, but if your company is weighed down by non-producing middle management, inflated marketing and tech costs, and mandated policies, then a good chunk of your earnings is going to support those structures. Bottom line: Other people are getting paid off your volume. You’re working hard to line other people’s pockets.
Our goal at MortgageRight is to help you start your own branch and offer the most competitive rates possible. When you have access to better pricing, you can:
- Win more deals.
- Avoid unnecessary structures and fees that inflate costs.
- Earn more money without overcharging the borrower.
- Keep your own profits so you can push them back to your client, your staff, and yourself.
We don’t want you to lose loans because of pricing and policies you can’t control. We want you to feel good about every loan you close, confident you’re taking great care of your clients—and yourself.
Ready to Make a Change?
If you’re ready to escape a dysfunctional corporate structure—to close more deals and keep more of the money you make—schedule a live demo. Find out how to take charge of mortgage loan officer jobs, and your success, today.