u/Virtual-Foot4613

I became an MLO recently with cross country mortgage. Wanted a change from being a Realtor. The lender job is more my cup of tea but it’s just a different game than the Realtor side in terms of client acquisition.

A few colleagues of mine become dual licensed so they can leverage their Realtor license to have easier access to buyer leads and try to double dip. Which I get and it’s clever and legal with all disclosures. They think the industry is going this way with even Realtors becoming dual licensed.

However, I’m just wanting to master my trade and be good at one thing and not try to wear all these hats. (Sure I’ll close a Real estate buyer/seller if it came on a silver platter.)

What do you y’all think of this trend of dual licensees? Do you think the deal consolidation will be the future?

Is anyone currently doing or have done the impact elite coaching?
Interested in hearing 3rd party reviews about it.
Seems like it’s marketed towards heavy hitters.

Do any of you think we’ve hit digital ad fatigue?
Are people are now blind to a lot of Instagram and YouTube ads at this point. We skip, block, and scroll past without even thinking. It feels almost automatic now.
Even for me personally, I’ve realized I trust a brand way more when I see it in the real world, like a well-designed billboard on my commute or a smart placement in a movie theater, compared to a random sponsored post that shows up in my feed.
It’s got me wondering if the whole digital gold rush is starting to feel oversaturated. Like has it reached a point where it’s just too much noise now?
And if that’s true, are we slowly shifting back toward physical presence being what actually builds trust again? (Not that it left)
Curious what others are seeing and experiencing right now.

Howdy team, I’m trying to learn from people who’ve gone deep and successfully dominated a specific niche rather than staying general.

For those of you who consider yourselves “niche masters”:
What was the turning point where things really started working for you?
What marketing channels actually moved the needle (Google Ads, SEO, referrals, cold outreach, events, etc.)?
If you had to restart today, what would you focus on first?

And most importantly: what does your current marketing / advertising spend look like as a percentage of revenue?

Not sure if I’m just noticing it more lately or if it’s actually getting worse, but man… it feels like every time I get online and actually engage with something, it turns into someone trying to pitch me something.

Comment on a post= someone DMs you
Ask a question= “hey I can help you with that, book a call”
Join a group= instantly added to some funnel or email list
Even just normal conversation in certain spaces feels like it’s leading somewhere.

I get it, I’m in Real Estate like you guys. I understand how the game works. Everyone’s trying to generate leads and make money.

But it just feels like there’s barely any real interaction anymore. Everything is either qualifying you or trying to move you into a pipeline.

And the weird part is, all the advice is always like “go engage online, build relationships, be active in communities”… but the more you do that, the more you just end up looking like a target.

At some point it stops feeling like networking and just feels like you’re walking through a bunch of different sales funnels all day.

Maybe I’m just burnt out on it, not sure. Curious if anyone else feels the same.

One piece of advice I hear constantly is, “Pick a niche.”

The problem is that it seems like 70-80% of the business is still conventional loans, so I’m struggling to understand whether niching down is actually the best strategy or just marketing advice that sounds good.

For those of you who have been in the business for a while:
-Did you choose a niche? If so, what is it?
-Do you market yourself almost exclusively around that niche or do you still advertise everything?
-Has it actually generated more business or referrals?
-Have you ever felt like you were turning away business by being known for one thing?
-If you could start over, would you niche down again or position yourself as a general mortgage expert?

I’m especially curious about niches like self-employed borrowers, DSCR investors, VA, FHA/first-time buyers, doctors, etc.
Would love to hear some real-world experiences instead of generic marketing advice.

Hello, just curious to see if anyone on here has a HTML code of a mortgage calculator that slips seamlessly into GHL.

Thanks,

Has anybody ever done a booth at a local event in your area?

What kind of material or freebies do you give out?
Any lead capturing strategies like a raffle?

Has any dual licensed RE & LO on here ever started a Real estate team? Bring on a group of ambitious Realtors to mentor and provide leads to. Get a team split on the real estate side. Then compliantly receive buyer lead referrals on the LO side.

Do any LO's on here just run a well produced video commercial style paid advertisements or Billboards and drop like $1K-$2K per month and call it a day?

Am i naive to think like this? I just see non RE or Mortgage business marketing like this all the time and they seem to be doing alright. While our industry seems to be teaching free gimmicks and schmoozing Realtors as the main business marketing model.

I'm willing to pay to play (withing reason) and feed the machine.

By all means, let me know.

Hola, voy a Colombia por primera vez y estoy buscando recomendaciones de restaurantes cerca de la Zona T. Quiero lugares con buenos precios y buen ambiente. No quiero pagar precios de turista o “precios de gringo”, pero sí me gustaría estar cerca de la vida nocturna y de mi hotel.
Gracias,

I'm curious what people are spending right now on direct-to-consumer marketing and whether it's actually working.

I feel like traditional referral channels are getting tougher every year. Realtors are struggling, builders have preferred lenders, and everyone seems to be chasing the same referral relationships.

For those of you generating business directly from consumers:

• What's your monthly marketing budget?
• What are you spending it on?
• How many leads are you getting?
• What's your rough cost per closed loan?

Not looking for guru answers or "just provide value" type responses. I'm interested in real numbers from people actually doing it.

Whether it's Google Ads, SEO, Facebook, YouTube, mailers, local events, first-time homebuyer classes, etc., I'd love to hear what's working and what isn't in 2026.

Has anyone managed to build a business that's mostly direct-to-consumer instead of Realtor-dependent?

Thanks.

Hey comrades, I’m sponsoring free kettle corn at a summer festival in my hometown. There will be a 2.5” sticker on each bag with my name and a QR code. What do you suggest for the optimal landing page for the QR to direct them to? Before I get them printed I’d like to hear from you.

Hey everyone,

I’m looking for some guidance from lenders/brokers who are actively doing FHA loans (or FHA-like 3.5% down programs) for self-employed borrowers.

Specifically wondering if anyone has lenders that are flexible with income documentation like using a Profit & Loss statement or alternative income documentation instead of full tax returns.

Has any of you hired a licensed 3rd party LOA to process your loans? If so, how much do you pay them per file?
I can’t afford to pay someone salary yet.

Thanks,

Hey team, just wonder if anyone is willing to share with me a presentation I can copy-paste and present to referral partners at small lunch N’ learns.
I appreciate it in advance.

Do any of you use The Greatness Tracker? from The Core Training.

I’m curious what other LOs are doing when it comes to hosting events as a business development strategy.

For those of you who host events to attract Realtor referral partners:

-What type of events are you hosting?
Are they educational, networking-focused, happy hours, lunch-and-learns?

-How often do you host them?

-What’s your typical attendance?

-What’s the average cost to put one on?

-How do you get people to actually show up?

-Are you generating enough new business to justify the time and expense?

I’d love to hear some real-world numbers if you’re willing to share:

Curious what everyone’s using for DSCR deals lately. Who are your go-to lenders and why?

I’ve been thinking about this and wanted to get perspective from other loan officers/brokers who also hold a real estate license.

I’m licensed in both, but I’ve noticed that when I publicly mention the real estate license side, it sometimes creates hesitation with realtors. Like they assume I might compete for their clients or try to double-end deals. (I get it too)

Because of that, I’ve seen some LOs completely leave it off their public profiles and branding.
So I’m curious:

-Do any of you intentionally omit your real estate license from your social media, bio, or marketing?

-Is it actually better for referral relationships to keep that separate?

-Or do you think being fully transparent builds more long-term trust, even if it costs some realtor relationships upfront?

I’m trying to figure out if this is a strategic move or just unnecessary self-editing.
Would appreciate any real-world experience from people who’ve dealt with this.