Predictive Home Buyer Scenario - MBai150 - Script & Playbook

Contact was in the market for a home in the past 18 months but has recently reduced revolving utilization. Good sign they are getting serious about buying.

Alert Background: 

This contact meets the minimum credit criteria set by your organization and has had a mortgage inquiry in the past 18 months, but no new mortgage resulted from their previous attempt.   The borrower has also significantly reduced revolving utilization in the past six months. This is usually a sign that they are serious about buying a home. Maybe in their previous attempt, they found they had too high of a debt-to-income ratio, or perhaps they have had an increase in income since. Either way, things are moving in the right direction recently, and you should reconnect. They may or may not have found a buyer's agent to work with. If you refer a soon-to-be buyer to an agent, you will likely get more of their other soon-to-be buyer business.  

Script Example:

This script is one example; feel free to make it your own and communicate the message in your own words. 

"Hi (First Name),

It's (Your Name)." 

Make the Connection: At this point, you want to remind them of how you know each other. This will change the tone of the conversation from a cold call to a warm call. For example, if you spoke to them about buying in the past, bring that up. If this is a contact that an agent provided to you, let the client know the connection, for example:

"We spoke a year ago when you were looking into buying a home..."

OR 

"I was introduced to you by (Referral Partner Name) a year ago..."

OR

"We worked together at ABC Co. a few years back ..."  (you get the picture, right?)

Now that the conversation has relevance, it's time to start talking about them...

"You may have seen the letter or email from me recently; my system periodically reaches out to clients that may be in the market for a home, and your name popped up, so I thought I would give you a quick call. Are you still in the market for a home?"

Now let them talk, and ask follow-up questions that will get them talking about their plans, for example... 

"Have you been looking at any homes recently?"

"Have you looked at getting pre-qualified to see what you can qualify for?"

"Is there anything preventing you from buying vs. renting that I may be able to help you navigate?"

Give Value: Let the conversation continue from here, with you asking questions about them. Let them tell you how you could help them. Remember, buying a home is a complicated process. All you are looking for in the initial call is if they intend to buy in the coming months. People don't want mortgages; they want homes. The more value you can give, in the form of insight or answering questions, the more likely they will open up and have a meaningful discussion.  

Differentiate Yourself: Talking about rates and terms will put them to sleep. Rates and Terms will sound very similar from one lender to the next. Tell them how you are unique compared to other lenders and why you like helping find their dream home and solve pre-qualification hurdles better than "the other guys."  

Possible Next Steps:

Contact is ready to buy in the next 1-3 months:

• Answer any questions they have and get them pre-qualified! Then, send them a follow-up email, so they have your contact info on hand.  
• If they aren't ready to pull credit, let them know about your SoftPull tool, and you can still get the pre-qualification process going without a hard credit pull. Answer any credit and income-related questions that may be a barrier in their mind.
• If they don't already have a buyer's agent, ask them if it's ok if you introduce them to a good agent you know and trust! This will help you keep the deal and strengthen your partner relationships.
• If possible, make an introduction to the agent so the client has a warm intro and the agent knows that the referral came from you.  
• Ask them their preferred method of communication that will work with their schedule, i.e., email, phone, or text. 
• Keep in touch often throughout the process.

Contact isn't quite ready, but we are thinking about it, maybe within the next 4-8 months: 

• Send them an email thanking them for the time and let them know you will check in in 30 days. This will ensure they have your contact info if they have any questions along the way. 
• Set reminders in your CRM to follow up with an actual check-in email or call once a month.  
• If they don't already have a buyer's agent, ask them if it's ok if you introduce them to a good agent you know and trust! 
• If possible, make an introduction to the agent so the client has a warm intro and the agent knows that the referral came from you.  

Contact isn't interested at this time:

• Send them an email thanking them for their time, and leave your contact info. 
• Tell them you are here to answer questions even if they aren't ready to buy.
• Add them to your value-driven nurture campaigns in your CRM.