Fed Bans Lenders from Paying Yield Spread Premium to Brokers

The Federal Reserve announced several new rules like banning YSP loan commissions in an effort to minimize abusive mortgage lending practices.  The Fed actually said that mortgage lenders paying yield spread premium, also known as YSP led to the collapse of our housing sector.   The truth is that the Fed has had knowledge of broker paid commissions since it began well over a decade ago.  To say that the brokers charging higher rates on artificially reduced Fed rates caused the housing crisis is absurd.

Will Banning Mortgage Rebates Help the Mortgage Industry?

These new home lending regulations are part of the new financial reform legislation mandated by Congress.  The new rules apply to mortgage loan originators, brokers and loan companies, including banks and mortgage firms employing them. Under the new regulations loan originators may no longer be paid a increased commissions for suggesting one home  loan over another.

How will the YSP Ban Affect Your Business?

This is a devasting blow to loan companies that seek talented loan professionals.  As most of you know, loan officers were paid higher fees for charging a higher interest rate on mortgage to consumers over the last few years.  The fed is blaming the foreclosure crisis on mortgage brokers. 

Will this be the end of No Cost Mortgages? The rule change is intended to prevent loan originators from receiving higher compensation at the cost of damaging consumers.  Mortgage lenders can still continue to receive fees that are based on a percentage of the loan amount, however, which is common in the mortgage business.  Many loan originators have been sharing their yield spread premium commissions with their borrowers in an effort to reduce or even eliminate closing costs.  Where do you think no cost mortgage loans originated from?

Loan originators will also be prohibited from receiving compensation from both the consumer and another party such as a bank or mortgage company. Consumers were typically not informed that loan originators and brokers often received payments for their work from both parties. The new rule seeks to protect consumers who agree to pay the loan agents through a higher interest rate or through fees such as points charged up front on a mortgage are not paying more as a result.

The Fed said they are also instituting a rule prohibiting loan originators from directing a consumer to accept a home mortgage that is not in the consumer’s best interest in order to increase the loan agents’ compensation. The rule preserves consumer choice by ensuring that consumers can select from other home loan options, including loans with the lowest mortgage rate and the least amount of closing costs rather than loans that pay the originator higher fees.  The new YSP rules are set to go into affect April 1, 2011.

Does the Fed Have the Governing Authority to Ban YSP in all 50 States?

The Lead Planet believes that in a free market society in the US that charging a premium for your services is a great American virtue.  Better disclosures would have been a better solution rather than banning sales commissions to loan officers.  For now, we are reporting that once again our government has taken measures to strip some of our liberties. I don’t believe we have heard the end of this issue.

Internet Mortgage Lead Generation Campaign Improves with SEO

In the monthly mortgage lead generation report, the Lead Planet announced a significant improvement in lead quality from the previous month.  Internet mortgage leads converted over 17% better in June than in May!  Our mortgage clients reported better credit quality and higher conversions on both purchase and refinance leads! A spokesman for Lead Planet said, “As an internet mortgage marketing company we utilized our own search engine marketing strategies to focus on keywords that drove traffic to loan applicants with better credit scores.” 

Our mortgage SEO solutions continue to help our clients in multiple ways because we are able to target specific niches through precise internet mortgage lead generation campaigns.  Whether it’s VA, FHA, conforming or jumbo, the Lead Planet has the ability to significantly increase search engine ranking for most mortgage websites that display original content.

Call 619-600-5720 to get more information on mortgage lead generation, search engine optimization and custom websites that rank high and perform well on Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Whisperings of Mortgage Professionals – Mortgage Lead News

Home mortgage rates dropped to record lows last week, but many mortgage brokers and lenders were not cheering. With banks offering more affordable home loan rates than ever before, you would think the professionals selling interest rates and finance opportunities would be more excited. First of all mortgage rates have been ridiculously low for several years. Second, the mortgage guidelines have tightened to the point that not that many loan applicants qualify. Mortgage leads have increased slightly over the last few weeks, but most applicants simply do not qualify.

The new finance reform bill comes down hard on loan professionals for misconduct and fraud. Sure some of the requirements for mortgage lending need to change, but fairness seems to be disappearing from the reform bill. Privately many mortgage brokers are concerned that our government is trying to cap their income. Most of us believe that in America, the land and the free that you should not have your government limiting your income. According to BofA mortgage executive, Jeff Moran, “There seems to be two sets of rules —-One for the conventional mortgages and another set of rules for the government backed home loans.” Moran continued, “With our economy and housing sector in such a fragil state, it is imperative that we make industry changes that protect consumers yet do not hinder genuine home financing opportunities that will help people in our economy get back on their feet.

Is it fair that the government that was involved in pushing risky loans to unqualified borrowers should be dictating how much money we should make? The competitive nature of the mortgage business has been the driving force for new lending products and finance opportunities that have helped this great country expand. The notion that our government is implementing restrictions on our industry yet the government mortgage products are exempt from disciplinary repercussions is maddening.

What can you do? Be vocal and get involved with groups like the Mortgage Bankers Association and local groups like California Association of Mortgage Brokers. There are local mortgage associations in every state, so get involved. Partner with mortgage marketing companies like the Lead Planet who will support you with industry news and internet mortgage leads that will help increase your cash flow. Call 619-600-5720 to get more information on new mortgage lending opportunities and online mortgage lead promotions.

Online Mortgage Lead Committment

The importance of buying quality mortgage leads that convert cannot be understated.  The days of throwing money at any lead broker online and succeeding are gone.  In fact if you do waste your mortgage marketing dollars like that you will not be in business for long.  If you are a loan officer or mortgage broker there is no getting around that these are tough times for the mortgage industry.  The reality is that the home loan products available carry much tighter guidelines than we have seen in the last twenty years. That means if you are serious about being competitive, you need to buy mortgage leads from a lead generation company that can perform day in and day out.

Shopping online for the best mortgage lender to meet your borrower’s needs is indeed a challenge and that is why the Lead Planet has partnered with experienced mortgage companies that know how to close loans in this market.  If you have purchased 1000′s of leads two in ten will likely convert.  One in twenty is pretty standard these days with most lead companies. The Lead Planet has made a commitment to helping loan companies get better conversion ratios from their online mortgage leads. 

Mortgage lead buying is all about commitment and buying large quantities to get a return.  Buying 100 quality mortgage refinance leads could cost $2,500.00 (100 x 25.00 per lead). If you only get applications on 20% of the leads and close half of those loan prospects you are getting a worthy return on your investment. The key is to set your monthly budget for two to three months at a time. Stick to it and buy all the loan leads you can afford if you have a talented staff and lenders that are ready to fund your loan submissions. One of the most common mistakes companies do is to not buy enough leads or stop the online mortgage lead campaign too quickly.  We are proud of the fact that our clients tell us that our live transfer leads convert better than their other lead companies.

Lead Planet Announces New Free Mortgage Lead Campaign

The Lead Planet Company announced yesterday a new promotion offering free mortgage leads to loan companies looking to buy quality internet leads.  Find out why loan companies continue to come back to the Lead Planet year after year for internet mortgage leads. We are one of the most respected and experienced mortgage marketing companies online that offers real-time mortgage leads, live transfer leads, loan modification leads and debt leads for broker, lenders and mortgage bankers.  For the last decade, we have specialized in internet marketing for the mortgage and finance related industry. 

Take advantage of our summer lead promotion that includes 10 free mortgage leads with every order of 50 or more online mortgage leads. (The promo also includes loan mod and debt settlement leads)   

Jump-start your pipeline with quality loan leads generated exclusively by Lead Planet websites. Call 619-600-5720 or fill out the short form to the right of this article and you will get a free mortgage marketing consultation with no obligation.

Mortgage Lead Technology

The Lead Planet believes that lenders and brokers can benefit by incorporating the latest technology with their mortgage marketing efforts.  The mortgage lead generation industry saw the latest technology at the LeadsCon conference in Las Vegas.  With the mortgage qualifying efforts more challenging than ever, it is imperative that loan companies learn to buy qualified mortgage leads and then track the communication between the applicant and loan officer to maximize loan origination.

3 Ways to Maximize Internet Mortgage Leads

• Tips from lead generation experts and how their successful clients are leveraging new technology?
• Improve lead management with better lead tracking systems integrated with intelligence, and live transfer mortgage leads
• Increase lead conversion rates for purchase and refinance leads

Watch this free webinar sponsored by Leads360 led by trusted lead technology companies. Now is the time to improve your lead tracking system and take advantage of new break-through technology.   Call the Lead Planet today and find out how integrating a lead management system like leads360 can improve your conversion rates for online mortgage leads.

Lead Planet Reports Big Jump in Mortgage Refinance Lead Volumes

For most of 2010, thousands of loan officers have been scrounging for hot refinance leads. Amid the mortgage turmoil, many homeowners have been reluctant to re-apply for a refinance loan after being turned down by a bank or lender.  Finally, we got some good news related to the mortgage industry.  After 6 consecutive weeks of declining refinance application volumes, RTT reported a surge in home refinancing activity.  U.S mortgage demand increased again last week, led by a bounce-back in refinance applications and interest rates hitting their lowest levels since mid-March. 

According to Bryan Dornan, the Lead Planet founder, “Mortgage marketing has been difficult in 2010 for loan companies that focus solely on refinancing, because lending guidelines have tightened to a very uncomfortable level.”  Dornan continue, “Stated income loans are gone—- home equity programs have disappeared —–  and subprime loans are on trial waiting for the Obama administration to figure out how best to politicize the mortgage reform.”  Buying qualified mortgage leads can be challenging.  The reality is that not that many borrowers qualify to refinance their home under the tightened guidelines. 

Rumors of private money entering the mortgage market soon would be welcomed and could create additional opportunities for mortgage lenders, brokers and aspiring loan officers.  The Lead Planet reported that refinance lead volumes rose nearly 20% last week and their clients have been reaping the benefits with a flood of new loan submissions.  Purchase lead volumes increased 5.75% even though home buying applications have slowed significantly nationwide. 

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported Wednesday that its refinance index jumped 14.8% from the previous week, hitting its highest level in six weeks. The surge in home refinancing applications, however, was nullified by a decline in the MBA’s home purchase index, which dropped 9.5% on a seasonally adjusted basis. Unadjusted, the index decreased 8.9% from the previous week, and 0.6% from the same week last year.  The decline in home purchase applications was likely due to the expiration of the $8,000 home-buyer tax credit on April 30th.  

For custom mortgage lead generation programs and more information on buying mortgage leads, please call the sales department at the Lead Planet 619-600-5720.

Lead Planet Offers Mortgage Marketing with Organic SEO and PPC Management Solutions

Can you compete in this mortgage marketing arena or should you outsource the internet marketing to a lead generation expert?  Outsourcing the pay-per-click management makes sense financially for mortgage companies that do not have the ability to bring an expert in-house.  Nationwide Marketing offers pay per click advertising for mortgage lenders, banks and brokers. 

The Lead Planet has over a decade of experience with online mortgage lead generation.  We provide the following mortgage marketing services:

• PPC Management – We research, create and manage Google Ads to generate mortgage leads cost effectively.
• Organic Search Engine Marketing –Custom SEO campaigns to increase organic mortgage leads.
• Local Search Optimization – This unique lead generation campaign is created to capture mortgage leads by region. (ie. “Los Angeles home loans”, “California mortgage lender”)
• Mortgage Web Development -  Our web-design team will create a website with content, landing pages and online loan application.  Then our SEO team will optimize the site to maximize search engine rankings.

The Lead Planet has been doing mortgage lead generation successfully for over a decade and they have a proven track record generating quality mortgage leads organically.  For a free search engine marketing consultation, Call 888-271-9581 ext- 103

Free Sales Training for Internet Mortgage Lead Management

The Lead Planet Company announced a new value added service with their mortgage lead generation. In addition to their free lead promotions, the Lead Planet will be offering free sales training to brokers, loan officers and lenders when they purchase 100 or more loan modification, debt settlement or mortgage lead packages. The Deal Maker will train up to 20 loan officers on effective methods for managing internet mortgage leads.  Take advantage of the proven strategies and tips for originating loans from internet leads

Our lead generation company offers both non-exclusive and exclusive mortgage lead programs.  Loan professionals are able to target borrowers that best fit their lending niches. When you open a Lead Planet account, you can set your lead filters by state, loan type, loan amount, LTV and more. 

Call 619-600-5720 to get started.

New Mortgage Lead Promotion

To roll out the New Year, the Lead Planet announced another free lead promotion for new accounts.  The direct mortgage lead company is offering 10 Free Leads when a company purchases 50 leads or more.  The Lead Planet offers both non-exclusive and exclusive mortgage lead programs.  Brokers and lenders can set up lead filters by state, loan type, loan amount, LTV and more.  Call 619-600-5720 to get free mortgage leads.