Successful brokers are those who understand the commercial mortgage lending process and know how to manage it wisely. To close small-balance commercial mortgages, it’s important for brokers to work closely with their lenders and borrowers in order to close each loan as quickly and smoothly as possible.

At the end of the day, it comes down to submitting the necessary information, having open and productive conversations and assisting your borrower throughout the process.

Provide your lender with as much information as possible.

A good rule of thumb before submitting a small-balance commercial mortgage request is to first ask the lender what documents they’ll need to review it. Then, collect all the relevant information and present it to them. Don’t skimp on detail, especially if there are aspects of the deal that could be considered problematic. If there are issues, your lender will find them when underwriting the loans, so it’s best to disclose all of the information upfront.

Prepare your borrower to speak with your lender.

Many small-balance commercial mortgage lenders will want to speak with your borrower at some point in the lending process to go over the loan with them and make sure that all of the information they have is correct and to ask any final questions. Be sure your borrower is prepared to discuss their reasons for seeking financing and any financial bumps they’ve faced in the past.

Make sure your borrower understands the product they’ll be getting.

In order to avoid wasting time, it’s important to explain to your non-bankable borrowers the type of loan for which they’ll be able to qualify. If a borrower is expecting bank terms and a low rate and then is presented with a nontraditional mortgage, you might lose the deal, so it’s crucial to prepare your non-bankable borrowers for what they can expect.

As a broker, it’s your job to aid your lender in the collection of information and to help your borrower to present that information in a way that will lead to a small-balance commercial mortgage.  If all parties are on the same page from the start, the underwriting process will be simpler and your loans will be more likely to close.

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