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How to Talk to
a Banker
If you are
considering a home mortgage, commercial loan for your business, or a line of credit,
banks can be a great help. For many people, the thought of going
to a fancy office to talk to a richly-dressed banker about a loan can be downright intimidating. Fortunately, it
gets easier every time you go through this
process if you look at it as a growing experience.
Here are some tips
to help you in speaking to financial lending professionals of
all types:
1 - Concentrate on your appearance. Dress for the
occaision (at least business casual). No shorts or jeans! Look
prosperous and feel confident in what you're wearing. Be clean
shaven and neatly groomed.
2 - Be prepared. Know exactly
how much money you need. Have your finances in order. Have
accountant reports if the loan is a large (especially commercial)
loan. Accounting reports are not as necessary for mortgage real
estate loans unless you are at risk of not qualifying. The more
documentation you can provide the better your chances for the
loan.
3 - Make every presentation professional. if you do not
write well (like me!) have someone with attractive handwriting fill
out a loan application. Print any reports on linen or nice
looking paper. You can purchase presentation products
from Staples, Office Depot, Office Max, etc. Make everything you
submit comply with excellence. Excellence in presentation
communicates you take time to do what is necessary in important
situations.
4 - Work on your credit score if needed. If you
have questionable credit, don't despair. Many people get loans with
poor credit. The important thing is to work on your credit if you
need to for a long enough time to establish a pattern of recovery.
Debt reduction in a few key areas may be needed. Credit counseling may
be helpful as well.
5 - Look at the
banker as an average person. He puts his or her pants on one leg
at a time too! Many of the people who work in these offices
are not as rich as you think anyway. You are there to help them make
money too, and they cannot perform this function without clients like
you.
6 - Understand the banks are there to provide a service. If
no one utilizes their services, they make no money. They need you just
like you need them. You're helping them to make money; they're helping
you accomplish your dreams and goals. That's a win-win
situation in my book.
7 - Work the playing field. If you
don't like the service or the attitude at one bank, try a different
one. I have found the large national banks are often harder to deal
with than a local or a state-wide bank who has more flexibility on the
local level. Your entire future is not based on a loan from one
bank. Shop around. Banks are eager to gain market share and
new banks often do it by making loans more flexibly than established
banks.
Mark Evants
(C) Christmark Enterprises,
LLC
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