How to pick a mortgage coach for this market

In an industry without formal education requirements, mortgage coaches can play a critical role in professional education and development. But gone are the days when loan officers were the only ones who needed to stand out from their competition — mortgage coaches are now the ones competing for a dwindling pool of LOs.

At the same time, their coaching can be more impactful than ever in a low-volume environment, offering solutions ranging from production advice and mindset coaching to social media and enterprise strategies.

How to pick the right coach

How do you decide which coach can get you to the next level? Several mortgage coaches said coaches should walk the walk before they talk the talk. Ron Vaimberg, president of Ron Vaimberg International, Christine Beckwith, CEO at 20/20 Vision for Success Coaching, and Kyle Draper, CEO of KyleDraper, all say that if a coach doesn’t have a coach, run.

“It’s hypocritical,” Draper says. “You mean that you want someone to pay for something that you don’t pay for? I think asking a potential coach if they have a coach is a good way to sift through posers.”

Vaimberg says a common mistake is coaches who deviate from the original goal of their clients. “The way I view it is, as long as I’m doing my job and I’m creating value, you’re going to stay with me. If I’m not creating value or this is not working for you, we go our separate ways,” Vaimberg says.

Jake Vermillion, chief marketing officer for Mortgage Champions, says a lack of focus during the coaching process can be avoided with a clear coaching pitch that promises a client exactly what they’ll get from the experience — nothing more, and hopefully nothing less. “Our pitch for the average person is we will triple production within the ninth case for your typical producer. The average loan officer, industry-wise, does 1.8 loans a month. On the bottom end, with our clients, you’re talking six loans a month,” he said. “We’re not going to teach you how to become an influencer on social media or tips on how to present yourself over video.” 

But that’s not to say other types of coaches aren’t important, Vermillion clarifies.

“This industry needs a plethora of coaches who are qualified and have different areas of focus to be able to meet loan officers and lenders’ varying needs, and we should all be able to work in partnership,” he said, adding that whether someone starts with Mortgage Champions’ training, moves on to enhance their social media presence with others, or works on long-term planning with another expert, it’s all about building a strong, effective business over time.

Some mortgage lenders employ in-house coaches. Bill Hart, coach at Movement Mortgage and Sam Abazari, coach at UMortgage, each acknowledged how important it is to forge a genuine connection with LOs.

“I think the industry is evolving to a point after all of this pain and discomfort people have gone through for the last two to three years where a transaction is less attractive than a genuine relationship,” Hart explained. “I just see it in recruiting as an example right now, regardless if it’s connected to a coaching entity,…everybody sort of knew in the good times that you could get hired, get a bonus, and then become a free agent again.”

Abazari discussed how to maintain value as companies weigh their options in a down market. “More companies are shifting away from in-house coaches because it’s expensive to set it up, and it takes time for the results to come in,” Abazari said. “It’s a unique skill set to hire for…you need someone who understands mortgage origination extremely well, you need someone who understands coaching well, you need someone who can run and organize that department well, and then can train future coaches for scale.” 

Setting expectations

For Vermillion, knowing how to position yourself in the marketplace differentiates who your clients will be and how seriously they’ll take the coaching. 

“We’re not positioned in the market the same way that a lot of coaches from the New Dawn era are. Many of them are part-time originators sort of trying to build this influencer coaching thing on the side,” Vermillion says. “We have nothing against that, but we don’t want loan officers getting sucked into what they think is going to be a solution to solve all their problems.”

Vermillion’s training program, Mortgage Champions, is designed for large enterprises and group training, and is spearheaded by his father, Dale Vermillion. The company’s been around since 1995 and claims to have measurable ROI, as well as being used to train over a million mortgage professionals and over 450 lenders.

“Some of these solutions [out there] are very expensive, and the reality is, the people that they’re getting advice from are not top originators,” Jake Vermillion remarked about other coaching options. “If they were [experts], they probably would just originate loans because they make a whole lot more money than trying to get the individual coaching clients.”

“There’s been a big shift in LOs becoming coaches,” Casey Cunningham, XINNIX founder and CEO says. “It’s a combination of some who couldn’t make it and thought they’d thrive in an advisor role or those who have passion for the industry. That’s why [coaches] need to tell clients to trust their gut and ask for references, results, and how those results are measured. Anytime anyone is considering a coach, you want to look at their track record and see if there’s a connection.”

Establishing credibility and selectivity 

Coaching is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Vaimberg, a coach with 27 years of experience, says that he’s tailored his coaching approach around the gripes he hears about other coaches.

“I listen to their biggest complaints about other coaching companies and I have found patterns. Most of these companies don’t offer real in-depth coaching training, they have no choice but to have their clients follow a template,” Vaimberg said. “Another big complaint that I hear is that ‘my coach wants me to do things I don’t want to do,’ things that are counterintuitive or go against who the client is.”

Vaimberg also said that some coaches aren’t selective with their clients, which is why a lot of his clients come from previous coaching programs that didn’t suit their needs. “Nobody can coach with me by signing up on a website. They have to fill out a form, and then I conduct an introductory coaching session so I can learn what their needs are, and it allows seeing if I want to work with them, if I’m a good fit for them,” he explained. “Life is too short to work with people you can’t stand working with.”

Cunningham agrees. “If they’re not leaning in, we’d rather them unplug from the coaching immediately,” she said. “We have them sign a commitment upfront that they understand accountability is expected. This isn’t a ‘Hope you do it’ — you have to do it.”