Recent mortgage lead rankings rate both and mortgage lead providers and the mortgage firms that buy the leads. Several services are focusing on the reverse mortgage sector, while one is targeting hard money loans and another is zeroing in on Home Affordable Refinance Program prospects.
A March 11 press release declared LendingTree LLC’s entry into “rate table” market with the launch of LoanExplorer, a second-generation loan comparison tool for prospective borrowers. LoanExplorer reportedly uses several channels for delivering customers to partnered lenders.
LendingTree also announced another tool, available on the company’s website, that lets consumers compare their options for and lenders offering reverse mortgages. As a cost-per-lead product, lenders will pay for each received referral.
The next day, midwest mortgage software provider Mortech Inc. said its marketing and point-of-sale originator tools were successfully integrated with LoanExplorer.
“The online loan marketplace is an excellent source of mortgage leads for originators who are responsive and ready to interact with consumers quickly,” Don Kracl, vice president of mortgage products for Mortech-parent Zillow, said in the announcement. “Giving out users access to consumers who enter through the LendingTree LoanExplorer makes sense for all parties involved.”
Supreme Lending grabbed the No. 1 spot on LendingTree’s top-10 lender list for the third quarter of last year. LendingTree said it considered lenders in its network based on mortgage shopper reviews, which scored each lender’s mortgage rates, fees and closing costs, responsiveness and customer service.
TopConsumerReviews.com LLC, an independent consumer products and services reviewer, came out with its own list of the top-five mortgage refinance companies for 2013, and LendingTree received the No. 1 spot. TopConsumer credited LendingTree’s calculation tools, lender relationships and professionalism as reasons for the premiere ranking.
Los Angeles-based Leads360 released two origination tools aimed toward helping originators increase closing rates, according to an announcement last month. Performance-based distribution allows lenders to gauge loan officer performance at an individual level. The tool will then use its metrics to adjust lead assignments and increase loan closing chances. Lead360’s lead-scoring feature provides lead quality rating ability so originators can prioritize the leads based on which ones are likely to culminate in a closed loan.
In early March, the company heralded the availability of Leads360 Express, a cloud-based customer relationship management tool designed to help originators in small mortgage businesses increase conversion rates and revenue. Leads360 Express General Manager Corey Brundage highlighted the tool’s quick implementation time, with most users “up and running” in 10 minutes, and said new clients would see enhanced productivity “from day one.”
Also in March, Lender411, a consumer-serving mortgage information and ratings website, announced the debut of ReverseMortgages411.com, a new online site focused on helping senior citizens understand the pros and cons associated with a reverse mortgage.
Blue Loan Services said being included in Lender411’s top 50 California lenders list was a “great achievement,” according to an April 27 press release. Lender411’s website ranks Blue at No. 23 and discloses site contribution as the determining criteria.
On March 21, Purple Leads used the media to highlight its newest mortgage product, compiled lists containing leads for Fannie Mae, reverse mortgages and HARP loans.
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Reverse Mortgage Lenders Direct Inc. completed its purchase of three reverse mortgage websites, according to a May 2 notice. The acquisition of www.myreversemortgagesite.com, www.reversemortgagerescue.com and www.yourreversemortgagealternative.com includes the domain names and current website-associated keyword rankings on search engines. This buyouts follow Reverse Mortgage’s similar purchase of About Reverse Mortgage’s website, announced Sept. 19, which reportedly was the highest, organically ranked website.
Powers Marketing Group recently released a white paper titled Why Mortgage Brokers Buy Powers Marketing Group Mortgage Leads. Powers lists its quality sources gathered from live transfer campaigns and real-time landing page leads. As well, the company says its operation as lead publisher versus a data provider helps garner more qualified consumers.
On March 15, Boston’s MortgageAuction claimed its online auctions to match lowest mortgage rates with borrowers has saved consumers an average of $10,000 since the company debuted in Nov. 2012.
“Online mortgage rate shopping has been a dark alley for borrower and lenders,” MortgageAuction’s Chief Executive Officer Jeff Chin said in the company’s press statement. “An open, competitive bidding model is a measurable time and money saver for the borrower while boosting the quality of the lead for lenders. The model is a clear win-win that will bring light to the mortgage industry.”
In a recent white paper, Iquarius Media claimed recent research points to mortgage brokers looking for pay-per-click marketing to help increase loan conversion volume. Iquarius pointed to an exodus of lead sales firms as one of the driving factors behind brokers looking for increased client acquisition. Brokers are looking for ways to turn the pay-per-click model into increased website traffic and to leverage the increased site visits into loan conversions, the most important component. Iquarius said so far, the most successful click-to-close conversion brokers are the ones who provide relevant information to consumers and who proactively give answers to basic questions most people have.
On Apr. 22, Hard Money Calculator announced its debut of NoDoc Plus, a third-generation market tool for consumers in search of loans that requires no income or credit score documents for qualification. Hard Money said the offering allows consumers to maintain anonymity when searching and comparing hard-money loan offers, while lending partners see higher yields through a process not slowed down by documentation requirements.
Rounding out the latest lead provider activity is a May 3 white paper tidbit from MortgageLeads.org on what lead-growth tactics yield higher conversion rates. The online and print contact generator for real estate professionals said sale probabilities increase when conversion efforts occur on weekends. In fact, the company said its data points to weekend leads converting “20 percent better” than weekday leads. As well, MortgageLeads claimed using print for growing prospective client lists still remains “a highly effective tool.”
“We’ve helped clients access these leads, and what we’re seeing as a result is conversion rates that have the companies without personnel available to operate in these so-called ‘off-hours’ slots can’t even begin to compete with,” MortgageLeads Director of Business Development Josh Conklin said.
