Rising interest rates and economic uncertainty have triggered major pullback from consumers, underscoring the necessity for mortgage professionals to revamp and fortify every angle of their business.
Further still, forward-thinking lenders understand that this downturn doesn’t just warrant an immediate response to weather the storm but also to prepare for when the market is white hot again –and that means upgrading the most critical areas now.
Market Predictions 2023
All Signs Point To Purchase Market Remaining Strong
Buying a home remains an amazing opportunity for those with the resources. With higher interest rates potentially leveling off in the near future, consumers will be looking to mortgage professionals to help them understand their options better – including buydown products that will help them manage their rate for the first couple of years of their loan.
GSE Programs Ensure Affordability and Reignite Consumer Enthusiasm
Home affordability is top of mind for government-sponsored entities (GSEs) right now, and they continue to roll out policy updates so that more people can purchase a home. With sound policies from GSEs and access to information through mortgage professionals like you, consumers are becoming more confident, and homeownership will no longer feel like an elusive dream.
Getting and Retaining Clients: The Goal in this Cyclical Industry
This year, your focus should be on retaining clients. Building a booming refinance market starts with purchases and creating great experiences that keep borrowers coming back for more! Tailor your technology to allow maximum speed and efficiency in closing loans quickly – within two weeks or less – so everyone involved gets an incredible experience at every stage of the process. Doing this will create lots of opportunities for those looking to refi down the road, not only now but well into 2023 too!
Broker Channels On The Rise
We are entering a new era in mortgage brokering, with brokers currently accounting for 22% of loan originations and predicted to surge up to 33% by 2026. Aside from the several thousand in savings that can come with using a broker, consumers are looking for personalized guidance and education –a niche that plugged-in brokers are particularly dominant in.
Winning in the Immediate + Preparing to Dominate
Even without a definitive answer on when the market tides will turn, mortgage professionals must strategize to win in the present and the future.
To be clear, this article isn’t about helping you to “stay afloat” in a challenging market.
It’s about making the necessary technological transformations that help you win in any market –going beyond surviving a storm and shifting into mastering it and having the tools required to service the inevitable demand in the times ahead.
Let’s break down what that will look like in 2023.
2023 is all about Making Strategic Mortgage Tech Investments
Customer Experience is King
Consumers are becoming more and more self-sufficient when it comes to accessing their personal finances. From shopping for a new credit card to comparing car loans (and home finance options), their next financial venture is just a few clicks away. In fact, upwards of 85% of Americans prefer to use a mobile app for their financial and credit needs.
But instant gratification or self-sufficiency isn’t the main differentiator that you think it is.
Consumers have voted with their dollars and made it overwhelmingly clear that they demand an exceptional customer experience.
Have you already made the necessary changes to ensure you’re offering it? Are you delivering it consistently across all platforms and executing it better than your competition? Remember that a customer experience that converts goes beyond convenience.
It captivates, delights, excites, and provides access to a bright future they’re ready to make a reality.
Boost your Realtor Referrals
The mortgage industry has become a highly tech-savvy space, with rapidly evolving technology and user demands affecting every loan transaction. Yet amid all this advancement, we can’t forget human interaction still plays an essential role in generating success.
This could be seen through your online reputation – consumers trust their peers when deciding who they should work with for critical financial matters such as a mortgage.
It’s even more true regarding realtor partners; referrals from this network can make or break your pipeline, no matter the market.
Working together, agents and mortgage professionals are a robust partnership with the same mission: to make home buyers happy! Building an effective working relationship requires more than just teamwork. It takes communication, trust, and the ideal lending ecosystem that optimizes collaboration.
Depending on where you’re currently in your digital transformation, it could be as simple as filling in existing technology gaps or possibly an entire mortgage tech stack overhaul. Whatever the case, building a wider referral network and developing deeper relationships with realtors should be based on creating the ultimate experience for agents, borrowers, and mortgage professionals.
Leverage tech for LO recruitment & retain your top producers.
Competition is always high in our industry, so building and maintaining your powerhouse team is even more paramount during challenging markets. It’s also all the more difficult.
One of the best ways to achieve this is by equipping your team with tools that nurture and fuel a healthy pipeline of qualified leads. Intuitive mortgage technology like that from LenderHomePage is designed to delight and capture those high-priority consumers – the lifeblood of your top producers.
Plus, intelligent mortgage tech streamlines the process and provides your decision-makers with the insight they need to hyper-focus on qualified candidates while seamlessly nurturing the rest.
Prioritize social media management and digital presence!
Out of all the marketing efforts available, the one that is often considered most paralyzing by LOs is precisely the one that is the most critical for 2023 — social media!
Consumers are overwhelmingly savvy about using the internet to support their home-buying process, including social media. By making it a priority to capture that mindshare of those browsing social media and asserting yourself as an expert, you can build your brand and earn the trust of potential borrowers.
While paid social media ads are still king for capturing leads, simply having an active and engaging social media presence is a robust way to expand your sphere of influence, increase lead-generating opportunities, and drive action.
While social media can be daunting, it by no means has to overtake your workday productivity.
Take advantage of our social media mortgage marketing services that automate the process (from providing the content to automated publishing to done-for-you-branding), and never be worried about leaving “money on the table” by ignoring social media marketing.
There’s no way around it; the mortgage industry is bracing for a formidable next two years as housing demand and interest rates continue on their path to correction.
But don’t let that distract you from the immense opportunity that is still available –and will multiply.
Leverage data-driven mortgage marketing strategy.
McKinsey reported as early as 2021 on a powerful trend for both bank and nonbank lenders. Investments in third-party technology and data resulted in massively improved customer experience. However, it also demonstrated that it could similarly turn data-driven insights into a marketing strategy that can help lenders navigate the ever-shifting lending environments.
For example, data could be used to predict a consumer’s propensity to apply for a new mortgage within a specified period of time. By combining traditional credit data and Fair Credit Report Act-compliant alternative credit data* (or expanded FCRA-regulated data), lenders could increase the likelihood of connecting with qualified consumers. Essentially, lenders can leverage the data to analyze who is qualified based on their credit criteria, plus the possibility that they will apply for a mortgage loan.
However, propensity models are only part of the equation.
Data is also the foundation to hyper-segment your marketing reach, which is particularly critical in times like these when you’re trying to extend your marketing budget. By incorporating your internal CRM data with non-FCRA data, you can further distinguish look-alike populations to customize your messaging across all your marketing channels.
Once you have your look-alike prospects, you must nurture them in a digital ecosystem that ultimately converts them to clients.
For forward-thinking mortgage pros and those who know winning takes strategy supported by innovative technology, 2023 will be their year.
