Talking Tech: Mortgage Broker Tools You Need to Know About

Discovering the digital era.

Doing things digitally is nothing new to the world at large. The first credit card with a magnetic strip came out in 1969. The first cell phone was invented in 1973, and the first laptop came out just two years later. Digital living has been a constant for decades, so why is the mortgage industry just now catching up?

Over the past few years, the industry has seen an influx of on-demand internet-based borrowing. Businesses are named, websites secured, and platforms are built to help buyers apply for financing and move through the mortgage process entirely online. The days of going into your local bank or broker’s office may not be over, per se, but let’s be honest: Those days are numbered.

Between online borrowing and a pandemic, people simply can’t be bothered — and who can blame them? According to The Washington Post, three big banks accounted for half of all mortgage loans in the country in 2011. By 2016, that market share dwindled to 21%. As of 2020, non-bank lenders made up more than 68% of all mortgage loans in the country. Suffice to say, competition is as fierce as it is fast.

That’s actually good news for mortgage brokers, who make up the majority of the ever-growing non-bank lending sector. While the digital transformation of the mortgage industry has changed the face of the business, the brain — what makes the industry run — remains essentially unchanged, for better or for worse, but open to influence and ripe for improvement if you’re equipped with the mortgage broker tools available to you.

Building a better broker.

Improving the front-end of the mortgage experience has been admittedly useful for the customer. Applying has become a streamlined thing, but the mechanics of it all — finding and uploading documentation, paying fees, and underwriting — have been left alone.

So what’s that mean for brokers? It means the back-end evolution is in your hands, so long as you take advantage of the cutting edge mortgage broker tools that brightminded people are bringing to market every day. Even better: using these tools will allow you to stay competitive in a broker workforce that’s grown to more than 100,000-strong.

Three mortgage broker tools to think about:

1. Web Presence & Social Media
When it comes to securing leads, a strong web presence is a broker’s best bet. When you’re competing with fellow brokers, big banks, and other online lenders, you’ll be lost at digital sea if buyers can’t find you in search engines. Creating a professional website in your name, complete with your business’s brand identity, will help you stand out from the crowd and allow you to highlight your experience, services, and success stories.

Beyond that, social media allows you to show off your expertise while making it even easier for prospective clients to contact you. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter — TikTok, if you’re feeling particularly creative — can help your business immensely, or harm it if they’re not used at all.

2. CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
Our business is all about relationships, so it should go without saying that having a way to track and maintain these relationships is vital to your success as a broker. A CRM is one of the most important mortgage broker tools available. Certain sites like HubSpot and Salesforce allow brokers and other mortgage professionals to find out where their customers are in the sales funnel, distribute marketing communications, and take a big-picture look at the customer journey from “free quote” to “keys in hand.”

Without a CRM, brokers are left in the dark. No insights to consumer activity, no clue when to reach out (let alone what products to ask about), and zero idea of whether or not their efforts are successful or not. Potentially, you’re limiting yourself to a single piece of contact from your or another website’s form.

Unfortunately, even though those aforementioned platforms are stellar CRMs, they’re not enough. You’re going to need an LOS, too.

3. LOS (Loan Origination Software)
Your LOS — or lack of one — can make or break your success as a broker. Loan origination is a lengthy, involved process, so the right platform can set you leaps and bounds ahead of your competition.

One of the major advantages of using an LOS is the automation component, which effectively puts the program in the driver’s seat, allowing brokers and buyers to work through the mortgage process seamlessly.

Look for a secure, cloud-based platform that comes with time-saving features like loan comparisons, automated anytime underwriting, and easy-to-use calculations (like how much cash your customers need to close).

Octane puts you in overdrive.

Ready to put the pedal to the metal? We’ve got the platform that’ll put your business in overdrive, and it’s called Octane. Our forward-thinking proprietary software was built for borrowers and brokers alike. For brokers, it acts as an all-inclusive CRM and LOS. For buyers, it streamlines the end-to-end lending experience to deliver the best mortgage possible.

Don’t believe us? We’ve got the proof. Check it out:

The back-end evolution is in your hands, so long as you take advantage of the cutting edge tools that brightminded people are bringing to market every day.