As the market improves and fewer foreclosures come onto the market, the volume of broker price feedback decreases significantly. Many real estate agents find it easier to acquire businesses late in the listing, and therefore many leave the BPO scene altogether in search of greener pastures. What does that mean for other BPO agents? More volume. It is the equivalent of the middle class squeezed out and all the money absorbed by the 1%. Survival of the fittest is the name of the game and only brokers with the most streamlined systems, leveraged workforce, diversified portfolios and insider connections to asset managers are still in the game. It also makes sense from a financial point of view to have simplified broker price opinion management. Does it cost more for an appraisal company to assign 1 agent 100 orders or 100 agents 1 order? Logical, yes. Ethical… that’s another debate.
So what are the secrets to having a streamlined system, leveraged workforce, diversified portfolios, and inside connections with asset managers?
1. Simplified system: As a BPO/REO agent, you must have a complete system for broker price opinion management. A system that tracks each order for the general ledger. A system that organizes each tax record, document and note belonging to the property. If you outsource Broker Price Reviews, a system that receives the task back and forth from you to the assignee and then returns it to you in full, and you get status feedback throughout the journey (think email autoresponders). And oh, it needs to be timed! Delivering orders in 24 hours or less will result in a significant increase in business over the standard 48 hour response time.
2. Leveraged Labor: An appraisal company places 100 orders in its coverage area. This company has been dead for 2 months and now is your chance to prove that you are a viable high volume broker. This is when Broker Price Opinion outsourcing becomes so powerful. If you have the manpower to fulfill these orders, companies will quickly realize that you have the capacity to generate a high volume of work, so they will turn to you the next time they need a Go-To agent, creating a snowball effect.
3. Diversified Portfolios – This is a crucial aspect of business. Many agents get involved with one or two high-volume companies and neglect to work with other companies. In a rapidly changing world, some of today’s slow BPO companies are tomorrow’s future, so be sure to sign up to new companies and/or reapply to old companies that turned you down years ago .
4. Asset Manager Connections: Create ways to make yourself heard. There are thousands of agents in the field, so you need to advertise how you truly stand above the rest. Each email assignment request has the name and email, often including the phone number, of the person who will check the quality of your orders. Sometimes the asset manager information will appear on the form. Treat them like potential customers and get in touch to request more orders. Keep an open phone and email line. Respond to quality checks as quickly as possible.
5. There is no point 5, but it is always supposed to end in an odd number, right?