As an industry, when did we decide that it would be a good idea to remove an industry professional from the origination process and assume that borrowers want to complete their own application? What study or research did we find that decided… THIS is the way the industry is moving? I posted an article last week that showed 90% of borrowers (INCLUDING MILLENIALS) want to talk to a human, but we’re still investing in “Rocket” this… and “Streamlined” that. Did you know, that despite all the technology enhancements in the industry, it took longer to originate a loan this year than in 2016? Yep… it was almost a full week increase from last year. What are your thoughts?
J.D. Power completed their annual customer satisfaction ranking for mortgage originators (article here) and guess what? Borrowers (again INCLUDING MILLENIALS) who applied with an actual person scored their experience 10 points higher than those who submitted their app themselves. Look, just because millennials have cut the cord from cable and prefer sending money through Venmo, rather than having cash does not mean that we want to process our own mortgage loans… or at least not without the help of an experienced mortgage professional. Maybe the industry needs to look at this data and reinvest into its employees to make sure they’re doing the right things to make the origination process as “effortless” (shameless plug) as possible. I think technology is great, but I think it’s best when it supports the origination process… not run the entire thing.
The team and I are having Friendsgiving this weekend… to be honest I’m starting to enjoy Friendsgiving more than the real thing. I mean don’t get me wrong forced conversations with awkward cousins, distant aunts and a drunk uncle is fun, but for some reason I’d much rather have dinner with some close friends who enjoy drinking, eating and watching football as much as I do.