Sales for Mortgages: Operating Guide 🏠

Welcome to the Mortgage Sales Operating System. This module is purpose-built to handle the specific complexities of the mortgage lifecycle, separating the "chase" (Lead Management) from the "process" (Loan Underwriting).

This guide outlines how to move a borrower from an initial inquiry to a funded loan using the automation built into Valstorm.

The High-Level Workflow

The system is designed to reduce data entry. You focus on the relationship; Valstorm handles the record keeping.

<MermaidChart chart={` graph LR A[Lead Generation] --> B(Nurturing & Pre-Approval) B --> C{In Contract?} C -- Yes --> D[Loan Created Automatically] D --> E(Processing & Underwriting) E --> F((Funded / Won))

style D fill:#e3f2fd,stroke:#2196f3,stroke-width:2px style F fill:#e8f5e9,stroke:#4caf50,stroke-width:2px `} />

1. Working Your Leads

A Lead represents a potential borrower interested in a Purchase, Refinance, or HELOC. This is your workspace for prospecting, collecting documents, and getting the borrower pre-approved.

Status Automation & Timestamping

You do not need to manually track when things happen. The system listens to Status changes and logs the dates for you.

  • New: The lead has just arrived.
  • Attempted Contact: You tried to call/email (System tracks Attempted Contact Date).
  • Made Contact: You spoke with them (System tracks Made Contact Date).
  • Prequalification / Preapproved: You have pulled credit and issued a letter (System tracks these milestone dates).

Critical Data Entry

To ensure the downstream automation works, ensure you capture these fields during the Lead phase:

  • Loan Purpose: (Purchase, Refinance, HELOC)
  • Property Type: (Single Family, Multi-Family, etc.)
  • Purchase Price: The target price or estimated value.
  • Co-Borrowers: Link any secondary borrowers here.
  • Occupancy Type: Enter how they intend to use the property (Primary/Secondary Residence or Investment)
  • Loan Type: Mortgage, Home Equity, etc.
  • Loan Program: Conventional, FHA, VA, USDA, Jumbo, HELOC, Home Equity Loan, etc.

The "In Contract" Hand-off

This is the most important automation in the system.

👉 The Action: When a borrower gets an offer accepted, change the Lead Status to "In Contract".

✨ The Result:

  1. The system creates a new Loan record automatically.
  2. It copies the Borrower, Co-Borrower, Property Address, Price, and Loan Purpose to the new Loan.
  3. It sets the Loan Status to "Contract Received".
  4. It generates a standardized name for the Loan (e.g., Smith - 123 Main St - Purchase).

Note: Do not manually create Loan records. Let the Lead conversion handle it to ensure all data maps correctly.

2. Managing the Loan

Once the Lead is converted, the sales cycle moves to the Loan object. This record is the "Source of Truth" for the underwriting process, identifying the property collateral and financial details.

Loan Status Pipeline

The Loan object tracks the file through the operations/processing department:

  1. Contract Received
  2. Loan Registered
  3. Disclosures Out / Signed
  4. Submitted to U/W
  5. Conditional Approval
  6. Clear to Close
  7. Funded (The Goal!)

Automatic Calculations & Naming

  • LTV (Loan-to-Value): As soon as you enter the Loan Amount and Purchase Price, the system will auto-calculate the LTV percentage.
  • Naming Convention: If the subject property address changes during processing, the system will automatically rename the Loan record to match the new address, keeping your pipeline view clean.

Closing the Loop

When you move a Loan status to Funded, the system automatically reaches back to the original Lead and updates it to Won.

Conversely, if a Loan is Canceled, the system updates the original Lead to Preapproved, putting them back in your pipeline to find a new property without losing their data.

3. The Role of Contacts (The "Rolodex")

You might wonder: "Why do I have Leads AND Loans AND Contacts?"

Contacts represent the actual human beings. They are the hub that connects everything.

  • Identity Resolution: If "John Doe" applies for a loan today, and then comes back in 3 years for a refinance, the system recognizes his email/phone. It creates a new Lead for the refinance but links it to the existing Contact record.
  • Communication History: All emails, SMS, and call logs are linked to the Contact. This means if you look at John Doe's Contact record, you will see the history of his Purchase in 2024 and his Refinance in 2026 in one place.
  • Referral Partners: Use the Referred By field to link a Lead to another Contact (e.g., a Realtor or Past Client). This allows you to run reports on which partners are sending you the most business.

<MermaidChart chart={` classDiagram Contact "1" -- "Many" Lead : Has applied for Contact "1" -- "Many" Loan : is Borrower on Contact "1" -- "Many" Lead : Referred

class Contact { The Person (John Doe) Permanent Record Communication History }

class Lead { The Potential Deal Status: Pre-Approved Temporary (Converts to Loan) }

class Loan { The Active File Status: Underwriting Financial Data } `} />

Best Practices Summary

  1. Trust the Contact Sync: When creating a Lead, if the person already exists in the system, Valstorm will find them and link them. You don't need to check for duplicates manually.
  2. One Lead = One Transaction: If a past client calls to refinance, create a New Lead, do not re-open their old "Won" lead. This keeps your production numbers accurate for the current year.
  3. Trigger "In Contract": Always use the status change to generate the Loan. This prevents data entry errors between the pre-approval details and the loan application.