Home Buyer Education: Industry-wide Teamwork a Key to Success We can work together, teaming up to present a “soup to nuts” home buyer education experience for consumers.
For decades, residential real estate industry professionals have pointed out that buying a home is the largest financial transaction most people will make in a lifetime. Those of us who have made our careers in the industry may sometimes lose sight of the complexity involved. To best serve our customers’ needs, I believe we should take a step back. Put ourselves in the shoes of the individuals and families who are getting ready to buy a home, especially if those folks are first-time home buyers.
From deciding whether homeownership is the “right” housing choice to shopping for a home to choosing a particular type of financing to closing the sale, buying a home can be a difficult and confusing process. Along the path toward ownership, home buyers encounter many professionals—real estate professionals, lenders, title and escrow agents, the list goes on. Most of us are more than eager to offer information, guidance and educational resources. In fact, it may be worth considering the idea that some buyers may suffer information overload.
The question is: How can we provide information in a comprehensive manner? One answer is: We can work together, teaming up to present a “soup to nuts” home buyer education experience for consumers.
A-Soup-to-Nuts Approach to Education
Traditionally, consumers have relied on their real estate agents or brokers as the primary source of guidance when buying or selling a home. This puts real estate professionals in a position to serve as a trusted advisor—and successful professionals know this is also one of the keys to creating customers for life and earning new business through word-of-mouth generated by satisfied customers.
Today’s trusted advisor might be asked not only for suggestions about choosing a lender, but also for opinions about financing choices. Yet with hundreds of loan programs and numerous loan terms, options and features, agents and brokers cannot be expected to possess the expertise required to help a specific customer in the decision-making that goes into choosing a specific home loan. This is where the concept of teamwork really adds value.
Teaming up with a lender that offers educational resources about home financing has many benefits. Home buyers receive information they need to make a decision about the type of financing that may best fit their circumstances. They also may benefit from receiving information within the context of a more comprehensive presentation of the entire buying process.
Teamwork with the right lender may benefit real estate professionals, too. Real estate professionals and brokers can fill in some of the ingredients that may be missing from the “soup to nuts” recipe. Ideally the lenders’ own consumer education resources also are comprehensive—offering potential home buyers insights into shopping for a home, choosing a real estate professional, and understanding the entire process.
What else should real estate professionals consider when teaming up on consumer education? One of the keys to success in consumer education is working with lenders dedicated to the concept that education is one of the most basic conditions for responsible lending practices.
Education vs. Sales Tactics
Make no mistake—education is not a euphemism for “sales tactics.” Responsible lenders making the best choices for agents and brokers interested in teamwork are also those delivering clear, consistent and objective information about the terms, conditions and consequences of a particular loan.
In addition, many lenders have teamed up with excellent nonprofit organizations that share the important vision of financial education among children and adults. Again, home buyers benefit from access to information. Agents and brokers also may benefit from lender-nonprofit relationships, as the costs associated with educational resources are not added to your balance sheet.
Beyond the fact that education is the right thing to do and the hallmark of a responsible lender or real estate professional, consumer education is good business. By providing educational resources, a level of trust can be established that enhances one’s reputation and positions oneself as a trusted source for residential real estate services with consumers, advocacy groups, industry professionals, the general public, and legislative and regulatory bodies.
In today’s transitioning housing market, teamwork with industry professionals can make a positive impact on many aspects of your business. I strongly urge you to consider teamwork as a strategy for educating home buyers. A home buyer empowered by information and knowledge is a buyer who may well become a customer for life. Ken Harthausen is managing director, Strategic Business Alliances for Countrywide Home Loans. For more information about Countrywide’s Strategic Business Alliances, call 800-401-3402. |
