Many people wonder precisely what a mortgage broker in British Columbia does on a daily basis. Being a mortgage broker offers the opportunity to earn an excellent income coupled with the flexibility of enjoying the benefits of self-employment. A career as a mortgage broker may be the dream job you are looking for. Many stereotypes exist about this challenging line of work. Some think work as a mortgage broker is a typical job which offers regular 9-5 office hours spent behind a desk. Others speculate that mortgage brokers are on the hunt every day at the most prominent financial institutions and real estate agencies searching for the next great lucrative deal. The truth is a career as a mortgage broker offers financial stability, job security, and flexibility of schedule.
What does a day in the life of the average mortgage broker look like?
Mortgage Broker Mornings
Working as a mortgage advisor has the benefit of adjusting your schedule to fit your needs. Since mornings are typically slow, many people would fit personal or family activities in this time period. Some health conscious mortgage advisors will try to slip in a quick run or a workout session. Others may drop off their kids to work first before going to the office or the first meeting.
Still, some early birds may wake up even earlier to take use the early hours of the day. Whether it is making and enjoying a healthy breakfast, taking the dog for a walk, or hitting the gym, the choice is yours!
To start off the day, mortgage advisors would quickly scan their emails, text messages and social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) for any urgent tasks. Then would be checking up on the news feed to keep pace on any developments in the real estate or financial sectors they need to be aware of that could affect their day’s events.
Though some mortgage brokers do work from home, others must commute to an outside office. Those residing in large metropolitan areas such as Vancouver or Toronto often make use of the transit or train system and can use this time to catch up on administrative tasks. This is also a prime time for answering emails from prospective clients, or line up necessary appointments for future deals.
When typical office hours begin for the day, the mortgage broker is prepared for action. With lawyer’s offices and lending institutions now open for the day, most mortgage brokers begin their day by corresponding via e-mail or phone with these people to help negotiate mortgages and make inquiries. This often involves calling several different financial corporations to ascertain the greatest possible deals. These calls reveal such details as the conditions applied to any mortgages, available interest rates, and any possible advantages to the client for partnering with one firm over another.
Later each morning, most mortgage brokers allot a portion of their day to researching lending institutions to understand any new changes to their policies as well as the most recent lending rates. This intense study is critical to maintaining the most current information to help clients to receive the best possible return on their housing investment.
For mortgage brokers who work with more specialized products, there is an extra touchpoint with new or niche lending institutions marketing new mortgage products. To learn more about how certain new product can help their clients, the mortgage broker is required to conduct in-depth research to best understand the advantages of recommending this potential company and its products to their clients.
Mortgage Broker Lunches
Lunch time could be a time to catch a breath and take a break in a busy day. However, for many young and hungry mortgage brokers, they would be working instead. There are many ways to productively spend the half hour to hour breaks:
- lunch meetings with clients or prospective clients to understand their needs and drum up more business
- answer emails and voicemails that piled up during the morning
- meet up with colleagues to brainstorm ideas of the best ways to help their clients achieve their goals
- lunch and learns to to learn about new opportunities in the area which can help each mortgage broker to stay on top of the latest trends
Mortgage Broker Afternoons
Mortgage brokers often make the most of their time by using conference calling to connect with clients. Conference calls can often include the prospective lending institution to provide more immediate answers to questions along the path to negotiating a mortgage.
For clients with less than optimal credit, private calls between the broker and client can provide valuable information to determine which lender is the best suited to the client’s needs. Once this determination has been made, paperwork such as mortgage applications, credit bureau processing, purchase offers, and MLS property listings can be accomplished.
Another key point of most mortgage brokers’ days includes in person meetings with new clients or first time home buyers. These initial point of contact appointments help with ascertaining such important details as client goals and timelines as well as any possible impediments to home purchases which must be overcome.
Once the majority of the day’s meetings have been completed, the mortgage broker must then take the remainder of the afternoon to review any incoming correspondence as a result of the morning’s communications efforts. Many of these will require a response via email or phone or may contain pertinent documents for review.
The final office task of the day typically consists of a review of the day’s tasks and the creation of an overview of things to be accomplished in the day ahead.
Mortgage Broker Nights
Since most clients can’t meet with mortgage brokers during working hours, evening meetings must be scheduled. Mortgage brokers will often meet with clients at coffee shops or restaurants to finalize any documentation required for obtaining a mortgage. During these meetings, the following details are often discussed:
- Mortgage commitments required
- Lender conditions
- Future steps in the process
- Signing of all documentation
- Acceptance of the down payment and proof of income statements
For the ambitious individual, being a mortgage broker can be a fast paced and highly rewarding career that you were looking for. As you can see, there is never a dull moment. The sky’s the limit when it comes to opportunities for career growth. This is especially true in Vancouver and British Columbia, where the real estate market has been enjoying sustained growth over a long period of time.
Want to Learn More About Being a Mortgage Broker?
Fundamentally, being a mortgage broker (technically a mortgage sub-broker) means a job that involves helping clients find money from lending institutions to finance their real estate properties. Many people only think of taking a mortgage from the bank to buy a home. But there is a lot more. Click here to learn more about what it is like to be a mortgage broker.
How Do I Become a Mortgage Broker?
The main hurdle of being a mortgage broker involves taking the BC Mortgage Sub-broker Course and pass the BC Mortgage Broker licensing exam. The exam is quite difficult and involves reading hundreds of pages of materials. It involves complex math, legal, mortgage, and real estate questions.
But that’s where Quick Pass Master comes into the picture. We can help you quickly pass the exam with a lot less hassle. Quick Pass Master courses can help you realize your goal of passing the mortgage broker licensing exam. Contact us now at 778-686-8555 or [email protected] to learn more about how we can help you.
