Thread: Lender referrals

Just wondering how many of you get work from lenders. Would it be a good investment of my time and dollars to pursue them. If so, what works for you? Mailers or visiting the office or what?

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Frank,

I get steady referrals from 3 lenders local to my area. Combined, they account for about 4 to 5 inspections per month. I'd say they may be a good source, but I never directly solicited them myself.

One lender is a credit union I do business with; a realtor who left the business to work with them referred her clients to me, and things started to expand from that point.

One of the others is a lender who saw several of my reports and then met me at a first-time homebuyer seminar put on by the local (county) HUD office.

I have no clue how I got in with the third; my point of contact there is a bank president. I did have some affiliations with one of his brothers in a previous career, but have never met the president face-to-face.

One benefit is that the lenders I'm working with seem to have a better grasp on report issues than most realtors (it may be pure luck here), hence a lot less drama with more extensive reports.

The major drawback is that from time to time I have to deal with some lender-required issues that are pretty mundane in reality but become a sticking point, i.e., peeling paint, stained carpet, cosmetics, etc. Usually a brief phone call calms things down.

I have no interest in lenders without a local presence that has enough authority that I can deal with them directly to resolve issues.

Jeff

Lender referrals are a good source. I get a few a month from a couple of lenders. Some are unusual but nothing that big. One thing I have noticed is that two of the lenders deal a good deal with FHA loans and they want a person who has a HUD roster number to do the inspections. Why, I do not have a clue but if it makes them happy and they keep calling who am I to argue.

I'm refinancing my home right now and the lender I'm using has already sent me one inspection.

Any refferral is good provided that it comes with no strings attached. Spend some time talking and checking things out first before spending a lot of money. sometimes a good chat and good connections is what you need. Not everyone wants to have more flyers they have to trash but a nice cup of fresh ole coffee and some donuts sometimes will help pave the way. being friendly does not have to cost alot, but good relations are worth it.