Also fundamental to expanding brokers’ reach and effectiveness, according to Haddad, is “getting out of the weeds”: having processing dialed in every step of the way, freeing up valuable time to speak with consumers and referral partners instead of getting bogged down in the minutiae of other tasks. That, too, requires a frank analysis by each broker of their current systems. “We need to be front-facing and allow processing to take care of it,” Haddad said, “whether it’s third-party, whether it’s PA Plus, whether it’s in-house – it doesn’t matter. But if you think you can do it by yourself, you’re mistaken.”
How mortgage professionals can become better brokers
Formerly a high-profile executive in the retail space, and the current president of Next Door Lending, Haddad is well placed to assess the current landscape as it relates to mortgage brokering. He said rather than whittling away time learning systems and focusing on process, brokers should be homing in on their sales approach: how to acknowledge, respond, pivot into different conversations and open up new ones.
To boost their market share in the US, mortgage brokers should focus on community strength, branding, and client education. Hunter Bolling of Grow Mortgage emphasizes the value of staying positive and supporting each other.
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— Mortgage Professional America Magazine (@MPAMagazineUS) October 3, 2024
While many people recoil at the thought of hearing the sound of their own voice, he said listening back to phone calls and different conversations is something he’d make time for from the get-go if he had to start his mortgage career again. “You should add that to your repertoire every single day, and you should want to know how you sounded on the call previously,” he said. “That’s definitely something I wish I would’ve done differently.”
What’s next for AIME?
AIME is poised to continue its strong progress of recent years in 2025, with a rebrand of its “Brokers are Better” mantra to “Brokers are Best” illustrating its renewed commitment to the broker profession.
That adjustment has been accompanied by a focus on live calls streaming on the association’s public pages, allowing brokers to learn from high-performing peers about the best way to handle certain types of query and glean insights into retaining customers and building business.