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When I was a new loan officer, one of the most difficult things I had to learn was that not every loan that walked in the door was a good loan. Some loans were bad. Really bad. And like time bombs waiting to go off, they usually exploded right before closing*taking my hard-earned commission with it! It doesn*t take too many loans falling-out to learn fast that not every loan is worth your time.

New loan officers are hopeful. They*re excited. They want to sell and--of course--they want to close loans. But because they are new, they lack experience. More importantly, they lack intuition. They don*t know the problems and pitfalls to watch out for and they can*t accurately judge if a loan is worth pursuing or not. In their eyes, every loan is a possible commission. And they'll do whatever it takes to get it!

But please be careful. That loan you are about to price-out could be a long-term headache, especially if you don*t know all the facts upfront. Customer love to *hide* things and they won*t volunteer information unless you ask.

It is important to have a complete picture of the borrowers financial history, future goals, risk patterns, etc. so you can make a value-judgment on the type of loan that would work best for them (given their personal situation). You need to know when to offer a fixed rate, adjustable rate, interest-only, 80/20, HELCO, LIBOR, second only, etc., all different types of loans.

You also need to educate the borrower as to how the mortgage process works and how complex it is. They need to know that you aren*t just an order-taker. There are differences that exist between programs, and there are a million rates from a thousand lenders. No one truly has the lowest rate, because there isn*t one. When the *lowest* rate is found that day, someone else will always do it one lower. And with rates fluctuating all the time, trying to find the *lowest* is like trying to hit a moving target flying at 30,000 feet. It can*t be done! Do you have time to research every lender and read all the loan guidelines? Of course not! You*re too busy selling loans! Lol.

To win in this business you need to quickly cut the wheat from the chafe, and knock the customer off rate and get into the meat of the loan. What are they trying to accomplish? Do they have any other debt they can roll into the loan? Would they like to cut their monthly loan payments? Is there anyone else on the loan with them? Does the property have any peculiarities that you need to be aware of before you order the appraisal? Etc. etc. etc.

I ask literally hundreds of questions of all of my borrowers and it's the single reason why I have been so successful over my career. I want to know everything UPFRONT*and I do mean EVERYTHING! I ask it all, because I don*t like surprises and borrowers don*t either. By the way, you can see my entire list of questions at http://www.loanclosingsystem.com as each step is covered in excruciating detail on the worksheets in Sink or Swim.

It's funny, one of the most frequently asked questions I get from customers is, *Why are you asking me all these detailed questions? No one else asked me this?*

My response: *Well, Mr. Prospect*these questions all affect your interest rate and I want to make sure I get the best deal for you. Let me ask you this, if no one else asks you these questions, how do you know you*re getting the lowest rate possible?*

Their reply*simply DEAD SILENCE. And then I know I*ve won. The customer is mine for life. I*ve knocked them off rate. Customers can sense if they can trust you and they would rather go with someone they feel comfortable with rather than take a chance and get burned at the closing table.

Ask questions that others don*t and you will quickly set yourself apart as a person who's serious about helping the borrower. Don*t reinvent the wheel. Do what I do and you will win too.