Thoughts from a Commercial Mortgage Broker: Eight Ways to Help Close Your Deal

Doug Marshall, CCIM
Market Assessment


In today’s commercial real estate environment it is imperative that we do everything we can to get the few deals that are out there closed.

We certainly don’t want to be the cause for a sales transaction going sideways and yet many times we can inadvertently put a deal at risk.

Shown below are eight ways a real estate broker can help his chances of his deal closing.

1. Listing brokers, use realistic pro forma numbers in your marketing packages. Good, solid numbers that can be supported by the historical operating statements makes everyone’s job (buyer’s broker, appraiser, mortgage broker and lender) that much easier.
   
   
2. Listing brokers, accept the responsibility of getting property documentation from the seller into a format that is acceptable to the buyer. Without good property documentation the decision to buy is put at risk.
   
   The goal should be to make it as easy as possible for the buyer to agree to buy the property.
   
   Once the deal is accepted by the buyer, the property documentation used to get the buyer to say “yes” then helps the appraiser and the lender do their jobs.
   
   
3. Buyer’s broker, get involved in assisting the client with choosing the mortgage broker/lender. As a broker, you are perceived as knowledgeable when you can recommend a competent mortgage broker to assist your client. It also increases your probability of getting paid.
   
   
4. Buyer’s broker, communicate regularly with the other real estate professionals (mortgage broker, lender, escrow officer, appraiser, etc.) that are working to close the transaction. We are all on the same team. The buyer’s broker should consider himself the “quarterback” leading his team to the finish line.
   
   
5. Use realistic deadlines in the sales agreement. A good mortgage broker can assist you in determining reasonable timelines for when the loan will be approved and when it will close.
   
   
6. Be proactive about the issues, not reactive. A good real estate broker anticipates what the issues are going to be and then presents his rationale with sound documentation that mitigates these issues.
   
   
7. Buyer’s broker, encourage the borrower to get his personal loan documentation into the lender quickly, thoroughly and accurately. Again, the goal should be to make the loan process as easy as possible so that the lender can get it approved.
   
   
8. Don’t violate the “Golden Rule” of lending which is, “He who has the gold makes the rules.” Accept that the lender has a process they must follow. Your job is to help the mortgage broker/lender get the loan approved so we can all get paid.

A special thanks to Jerry Aalfs, Tom Bradley, Tom Fischer and Liz Tilbury who gave valuable input on this article.