How will Zillow Home Loans Impact You as a Non-Bank Lender?

Zillow’s acquisition of Mortage Lenders of America has been looming over us since late last year. We’ve all been wondering with the move into the mortgage space, will Zillow be following the footsteps of other industry dominating behemoths, taking a Amazon-, Apple-, Uber-model?

Real Estate has been facing this peril for 5 years now, it’s called the iBuyer Model (ala Zillow Offers). And now Zillow is going deeper into the full home-buying experience, by attaching their own mortgage origination offering to every home that is bought/resold.

iBuyer has already scooped 5% of the market, with the potential to get up to 20% by the end of year, according to some, and it is deeply affecting real estate agents. With over 1 million homes per year now “attached” to their lending services, this is now going to have a significant impact on you as a lender.

While it is definitely feeling as though there’s nothing we can do to stop these giants from encroaching the lending business, we’re of the opinion that now is the time to hold on tight to your clients. Double down on building your brand and keep them ENGAGED.

Empower The Consumer with Real Data They Can Use

Where you can win, is by staying relevant. Get personal. Keep your 1:1 relationships with your existing clients. Do this by offering data that lets your clients know you are a true (human) expert, who is motivated to help them build wealth.

After all, you’re the one that just helped them finance the biggest asset they will ever own, their home. But what’s more than that, you are  in the game of helping them make smarter, more informed decisions, on how to turn their home into a wealth building machine. Do not let your clients wander off to Zillow to do their own research on how much their home is worth. Put their own personal home data right in front of them, and make sure they it’s coming from you. Their Loan Officer. (Not some online service).

Build your Brand (and keep their trust)

The trust you build between you, agents and homeowners is critical. This trusted relationship you worked so hard on during the home buying experience is what will break the cycle of losing clients to Zillow, if nurtured. There’s a science behind the human connections that we build, and using apps like Homebot to keep your relationship  is a critical step towards staying connected to your clients.

Be known for helping not only your clients know exactly how much their home is worth and how much equity they’ve earned, but also your how you’re available to help your clients network! Who wouldn’t plug in their address on Facebook, to get a personalized home report from you!?

Keep it simple. Keep it informative. And you’ll be that much closer to making sure that your empowered, and engaged clients, will never leave you for Zillow.