The #1 Source of Purchase Loans in 2026

0:00 The mortgage industry has a serious attention problem. We're obsessed with AI. We're overlooking where nearly half of all purchase borrowers are actually choosing their lenders. New research from Stratmore Group found that just 1% of surveyed purchase borrowers selected their lender because... of an AI recommendation. And yet, walk into any mortgage conference this year, every other session is about AI. Every panel seems to be talking about AI. Everybody's chasing the next shiny tool. We're spending so much time talking about this 1% that we're overlooking the 49%. Now look, I'm not saying that AI isn't important or relevant or won't grow in the future, it absolutely will. But if you're a loan officer trying to grow your purchase business right now, over the next 90 days to six months, well shouldn't your attention actually reflect where the opportunities are coming from?

0:47 Because right now, real estate agents in your market are recommending lenders to buyers. And if they're not recommending you, those opportunities are going to somebody else. So in the next 10 minutes, I'm gonna show you three independent studies from 2026 that reveal where buyers are actually finding their mortgage lenders. Then I'll show you the prospecting mistake that keeps so many loan officers from building more agent referral relationships. Stay tuned to the end because I'm gonna show you the main prospecting mistake that keeps so many loan officers from actually succeeding in getting realtor referral relationships And I'm going to share with you a story about one team who used this process to get in front of 55 agents in a single room, including 23 agents they had never met before.

1:31 So let's get into the numbers. In June of 2026, Stratmore Group published findings from its Mortgage CX program. These are predictions about what might happen five years from now. These people are telling us how they selected their lender. That's you. And the purchase numbers are pretty revealing. Realtor referrals, 49.4%. Friends and family, 13.6%. Existing lenders, 10.5%, builders, 8.9%, and online reviews, search AI, equating to a total of 4%, with AI alone, 1%. So again, look at this, 49.4% selected their lender through a realtor referral. Now that's one study and one study by itself isn't enough for me to necessarily draw a big conclusion.

2:13 So I went looking for another source, different company, different research. And that's what I came across Zillow's 2026 consumer housing trends. Zillow found that 20% of mortgage buyers first discovered their lender that they used through a real estate agent referral. 14% found their lender through a real estate website or app. So digital research clearly matters. But when it came to where buyers first discovered the lender that they ultimately used, agent referrals were the number one individual source. And then there's one more study. ServiceLink released its 2026 State of Home Buying Report, and they looked at who recent buyers turned to for advice or where they turned to.

2:55 43% turned to the real estate agent. That was the most frequently cited source. 35% family and friends. 29% turned to lenders or loan officers. And 21% turned to social media or AI chatbots. Now these studies measured different things to be clear. Stratmore looked at lender selection. Zillow looked at lender discovery. And ServiceLink looked at where buyers turn for advice. but they're all pointing toward the same reality. Relationships have enormous influence over how people find and choose a mortgage lender. And Stratmore's 49.4% is a big enough opportunity in and of itself.

3:36 Because if nearly half of the purchase borrowers in that study selected their lender because of an agent referral, there's one question every loan officer should be asking. Whose name is that agent saying in your local market? There's a difference between being discoverable and being recommended so here's where i think the mortgage industry is getting distracted we're treating ai like it's already fundamentally changed how borrowers choose their lender but the research doesn't support that conclusion at least not yet we've seen something like this before mike seminari at stratmore made a point that really stuck with me remember when mortgage websites started becoming popular We were told that buyers wouldn't need loan officers anymore. How long have we heard that? Then social media came along and suddenly everybody was saying your digital presence was going to become more important than your relationships.

4:21 Then online reviews, right? They exploded. And the prediction was that borrowers would start choosing mortgage lenders the way they chose hotels. And I'm not saying that online reviews aren't relevant. They are, right? But what actually happened with reviews was interesting. Reviews often became a way for borrowers to validate a lender. And yes, you can get discovered via Google reviews and your Google profile. You definitely should. I'm a strong believer in that. Even still today, an agent recommends somebody, the buyer still Googles, they check reviews, right? They want to make sure that they're legitimate. The relationship created the opportunity. The review helps reinforce the decision. And AI may be playing a similar role right now. Buyers, of course, can use AI to learn about mortgages, to research different products and pricing, compare options, ask questions, and research lenders.

5:08 And I know that there are lenders watching this right now. You may have gotten recommended by AI. You may have closed some deals from AI. And I applaud you. And I think that is definitely something that should be in your wheelhouse and be focused on of how do you actually build an online presence to get recommended by AI. But researching a mortgage and choosing a lender are two very different things. And that's the distinction that I want you to think about. Being discoverable versus being recommendable. You want both, right? But if your goal is to generate more purchase business right now, being recommendable deserves a whole lot more attention, right? Wouldn't you rather be recommended than discovered? Because when a buyer asks their agent, hey, who should I use for financing?

5:49 You want your name to be the answer. So let me ask you something. In the last 90 days, how many different real estate agents have referred you a buyer? Can you name 10? Can you name five? Can you name three? And if that list is shorter than you'd like, you have a relationship problem. You have an awareness problem. Almost every loan officer understands how important real estate agent's relationships are. They don't need another person telling them to go build agent relationships, we've heard that, we know that. The problem is how they're trying to build them, how you're trying to attract real estate agents and get their attention. Think about your traditional approach, you're calling agents, you're chasing, right? You're cold calling, you're scheduling coffee meetings, you're popping by open houses. taking people to lunch, right? You're dropping off donuts at a brokerage office or you're catering to an open house, hoping somebody remembers your name on a weekend.

6:36 Look, I've done all of that. Do those things work? Yeah, I'm not saying they don't work, but they're hit or miss, right? They can work. But here's one fundamental limitation. You're building relationships one agent at a time. One meeting, one conversation, one agent. And every time you want to grow, you have to repeat the process. So here's what's broken about the traditional relationship realtor prospecting process, okay? Here I've got the agent prospecting pyramid, right? And on the bottom of the pyramid is we're seen as a solicitor, right? We're cold calling, we're outbound, we're chasing. And if you get lucky, you move to the vendor stage. And the vendor stage is all based on products and price. You know, pricing, products, here's my loan, I close in six minutes.

7:19 So the bottom of that prospecting pyramid, you're a solicitor, you're chasing your cold calling. I get it, that's a part of our business at a certain stage. Next level is, hey, congratulations, you're a vendor. Your whole value is based on your products and price and how fast you can close. Well, you and I both know that's not a unique differentiator. Do you wanna be perceived as a vendor? No, so here's the problem. There's a referral gap in between that's difficult to cross, and that's why you don't get the amount of referrals you wanna get, is because the trust isn't there. More importantly, you're showing up like a vendor and sound like everybody else. What I'm proposing to you is enter the awareness stage with real estate agents where you're seen not as a vendor solicitor, but as a partner and a peer. And then eventually becoming a leader and a mentor. And how do you do that? What's the fastest way you do that?

8:00 You do that with education. You lead workshops, events, and classes that are relevant topics that help realtors solve problems. So what if instead of scheduling 20 separate meetings and coffee meetings, right? You can get 20 agents in one meeting. You could have an hour of a captive audience. What if instead of chasing agents and asking for 15 minutes of their time, you created something that they actually wanted to attend? And what if instead of being another lender asking for business, you were the person teaching them how to get more of their business solving their problems? where now they're coming to you. That changes the entire dynamic. The way you prospect agents determines whether you're spending most of your time chasing relationships or creating opportunities to attract.

8:40 So you shift from one-to-one prospecting to one-to-many education, workshops, training events. Instead of meeting agents one at a time, you're creating an opportunity to engage with 20, 30, maybe even 50 agents. But where I think this is even more important is your position changes. When you call an agent asking for an appointment, you're just another lender hoping they'll give you a shot. But when you're standing at the front of the room teaching agents something, sharing information that helps them grow their business, you're no longer just asking for their attention. You've earned it. And that makes the next conversation a whole lot easier. Now, getting 50 agents in a room doesn't mean you automatically get 50 referral partners. That's not how relationships work. You still have to follow up. You still have to build trust. And you still have to deliver when an agent sends you a buyer.

9:23 But look at the difference in opportunity. Coffee meeting creates an opportunity with one agent. A well-attended class or workshop can create opportunities with dozens of agents. And instead of starting those relationships by asking for something, once again, you're starting by giving something of value. And then the law of reciprocation takes over. Let me tell you about Kevin. Kevin leads a team at Churchill Mortgage. Good producer, good team, experienced. But like so many mortgage teams, his loan officers were spending a lot of time on traditional one-to-one prospecting, trying to create new age and referral relationships. So Kevin decided to try something different. Instead of asking more agents to meet him for coffee, he organized a class. One topic, agents actually cared about. One date, he got the invitations out, and he facilitated the information.

10:07 55 agents showed up to his first class. But here's the thing I really want you to notice. 23 of those agents he had never met before. 23. How long would it take you to get in front of 23 agents who you had never met before? Some of those who have business that they can send you. 23. Think about what that means. 23 agents with no previous relationships were now sitting in a room, captive for one hour, learning from him. Now, obviously that doesn't mean all 23 became referral partners, but it does mean 23 new opportunities to begin a relationship. And that's the difference. The class opens up the door. What you do after the class builds the relationship. Kevin just didn't try to get better at chasing agents.

10:48 He created a reason for agents to come to him. Now, maybe you're saying to yourself, hey, Jeff, I've never taught a class before, or I've taught a class and it didn't go well. Nobody showed up. Look, I get it. I've been there. I've heard it all. What am I supposed to teach? Why would a real estate agent listen to me? How do I get a brokerage to let me in? Maybe the biggest question of all, what do I do after the class so that these conversations turn to referral relationships? And those are good questions because putting on a class is one thing. Turning it into a repeatable system for building relationships is something entirely different. And that's why I created the Agent Class Method. It's a free five-day mini email course, one short email a day for five days, and it walks you through how to use classes and events to create more agent referral opportunities.

11:29 It covers what to teach, how to get agents in the room, how to deliver a class that builds your credibility, even if you're uncomfortable presenting, even if you feel like you're not the expert, and what to do afterwards so those initial conversations have a chance to turn into referral relationships. So if you're tired of chasing agents, look, there's a link in the description below. You can get access to my free five-day mini class. It's completely free. And look, AI is going to keep changing this industry. We know that. I believe every loan officer should be learning how to use it. But don't get so distracted by what might drive your business tomorrow that you totally overlook what's driving much of it today. the relationships, the trust, and the real estate agents who are helping buyers make decisions every single day in this market. The data doesn't lie.

12:09 It tells us where the opportunity is right now. Now it's up to you to do something about it. If you liked this video, it was helpful. Do me a favor. Hit like, subscribe, share it with somebody else. I'll see you on the next one.