The low-hanging fruit of refi has long been picked
A refi wave that has now passed it’s stage of yielding easy pickings, Sweeney suggested. “We had a lot of people enter the market who did not understand what market cycles look like, what kind of volatility they were in store for – but you did,” she said. “Everybody in this room knew that this cycle would come.”
How does she know that? “I know that because wholesale is the only channel that has continued to grow,” she said. “We’re up 35,000 originators since January of last year. You guys have helped bring those people over. You’ve educated them and let them know of the opportunities that exist in the broker channel and you’ve led by example.”
She noted what their attendance at the FUSE conference represented: “If you’re here, you’re committed to growing and making it through this market and getting to the other side. And you’re committed to do it in a team that’s going to help elevate you for the next 10, 20 or 30 years. You’re here because you want to win and because you know how to win.”
Surviving the market downturn is like going to the gym
In this tough market marked by high mortgage rates, low inventory and inflation, there are no shortcuts to success in the industry: “While we’re growing, we need to figure out how to get better through the pain,” Sweeney said, likening the daily grind to working out at the gym. “You go to the gym to lift weights,” she said. “They are going to make you stronger. It’s painful, but it works. And time and time again, people have tried to find ways to skip the gym because it’s not fun and they try to look for other ways to get in shape and get stronger and be able to run further and every single time, people come back to the gym because that’s what works.”
In these challenging times, it’s all about the hustle: “We have to hustle and we have to look at things from a champion’s perspective,” Sweeney said. “This market is not for the faint of heart. We all know that, and I’m not telling you anything you haven’t heard before.”
Source: mpamag.com