Stage 1 · Open
Say who you are. Ask a question.
No framing, no compliment, no explanation of why you called. Plain and slightly awkward beats polished — polished is what every other lender sounds like.
Live call
Call setup
Fill what you know as you go.
The opener
Two lines. Then stop talking.
“Hey [Agent], Scott Smith — I’m a mortgage guy here in Denver. You got a second?”
“I’m trying to get a read on something and figured I’d ask someone who’s actually out there.”
Listen forWhether you get the second. If they sound rushed, go straight to the question — most people will answer one.
Do notLead with the report. Do not say you only call top agents. Do not tell them what they’re bracing for. Every one of those is a tell.
The production data picked who you dialled. It never gets spoken.
Stage 2 · Their read
Ask what only they know.
Agents get pitched constantly and asked their opinion almost never. Ask one question, shut up, then trade back something they don’t have.
Live call
Pick one question
Default is the first. Match it to what you see on their card.
“Are your buyers actually using the leverage they’ve got right now, or are they still sitting on their hands?”
“What’s actually getting deals closed in your price range right now — concessions, buydowns, price cuts? I’m trying to sort what’s really moving from what people say is moving.”
“Are sellers actually flexible right now, or just saying they are?”
“Who’s actually buying in your area right now? I see the loan side of it, but you’re seeing the people.”
Listen forPayment pressure, qualifying problems, slow lenders, deals dying. That’s the whole map.
DoLet silence sit. The first answer is polite; the second one is true.
Trade your read back
This is what makes it a conversation instead of a survey. Give, then move.
“Yeah, that’s what I keep hearing. The leverage is real but the payment math is what’s killing it under four-fifty.”
“Same. What surprised me is how few agents are loyal to one lender anymore — most are spread across five or six.”
“Denver’s median is up around four-sixty now. Below that it’s a completely different conversation than above it.”
Two people who know things. You have not pitched anything yet.
Stage 3 · What’s stuck
Minute four, not minute one.
Only after they’ve decided you’re worth talking to. Asked early it’s a cold pitch; asked here it lands as “now that you mention it.”
Live call
Read their answer
What they said in Stage 2 tells you where to go.
“Payment’s too high”Structure — talk concessions and buydowns generally. No numbers.
“Buyers can’t qualify”Go straight to the parked-buyer ask below.
“My lender’s slow”“What’s slow — the approval or the file after it?”
“Deals keep dying”“At what stage — appraisal or underwriting?”
“Can’t find inventory”Nothing from you yet. Stay in market talk and close on the report.
Mostly listings“When offers come in, how are you judging whose financing is actually solid?”
The parked-buyer ask
Not a live deal. The ones they’ve written off — nobody is defending those.
“Can I ask you something — do you have anyone right now who wants to buy and just can’t get there? Not a live deal. The ones you’ve kind of parked.”
“Send me one. I’ll give you a straight answer fast — and if it’s a no, I’ll tell you it’s a no.”
Why it worksTheir lender already said no, so there is no relationship to displace and nobody to compete with.
Say it about youSpeed is a safer promise than outcomes. Never claim you’ll get it approved.
If you revive one, you closed your way in instead of pitching your way in.
Stage 4 · Objections
Short answers. No speeches.
Every one of these ends with the report still on the table. The disarm lives here — not in the opener.
Live call
“I already have a lender.”
“Good, you should. Not what I’m after. I’m the second opinion — the file they passed on.”
“Not interested.”
“Fair. Can I send you the Monday market note? If it’s not useful, tell me and I’ll stop.”
“I’m busy / bad time.”
“Totally fair — thirty seconds. Are your buyers using the leverage they’ve got, or still waiting?”
“What do you actually want?”
“Honestly? To be your second lender. Most agents use four or five. I want to be one of them.”
“Where’d you get my number?”
“It’s on your listings. I did homework before I called.”
“Aren’t you my competition?” (dual-licensed)
“Fair question — I’m dual-licensed, but I’m calling as a lender, not to touch your listings. Anything I can’t serve I’d rather hand to a partner like you.”
“I work with my spouse / in-house.”
“Understood, I’ll leave you be. Mind if I send the market note anyway?”
Never sayAny rate, APR or payment figure. Any version of “we’ll get it approved” or “we never lose one.” Anything trading services for referrals.
Safer bragSpeed, not results. “Same-day answer” is something you control. “Undefeated” is an outcome claim and nobody believes it.
If they say stop — stop. Mark DND, both channels, permanently.
Stage 5 · Close
The report is always the close.
Free, useful, no signup wall. It puts you in front of them weekly without another dial — including on the calls that went badly.
Live call
If they’re leaving
Release them first. People stop leaving once you’ve let them go.
“No worries, I’ll let you go — one thing so you have it. I’m not trying to take over as your main lender. But if you get a file that’s a mess, send it to me. Straight answer, fast, and if it’s a no I’ll tell you it’s a no.”
“All good. Just so you’ve got a name — I’m the second opinion guy. Self-employed, weird credit, whatever’s stuck. Send me one sometime and see what happens.”
Close by how it went
One ask. Small.
Good call — “I’ll send you the Monday piece. And send me that buyer when you get a minute.”
Neutral — “Can I put you on the Monday market note? Ten seconds, and you can tell me to stop anytime.”
Short — “I’ll let you go. Can I send you the market piece?”
Book it before you hang up.
Stage 6 · Log & send
Drop it in GHL.
Tags them “Agent Partner” and writes the structured note to their contact, creating it if new.
Enter their cell and hit Send to GHL. Everything above flows into the note.
Co-branding is not offered on this call. Any co-branded marketing must be fair market value with a documented, proportional cost split and cannot be conditioned on referrals — route it through compliance before offering. Internal working tool; programs and qualification outcomes are subject to eligibility, documentation, underwriting and applicable disclosures. No rates or payment figures on any call.