Interview with Broker

Interview with Melba Baquero, Broker with Platinum Funding

1.) What is one major reason why you enjoy your line of work?

A: I love working with numbers. My brain seems to look at everything as a puzzle, like having to match income with bank guidelines.

2.) How long have you been working as a broker?

A: I started about 8 years ago.

3.) What sparked your interest to pursue a career in this field of work?

A: The thing that I really wanted was a flexible schedule that I was able to make really good money.

4.) What measures did you take to pursue this line of work?

A: I did a little research on the field and asked a relative who was working as a loan officer if I could spend some time working with him on his files then I shadowed him for a little

5.) How did you go about landing your first job?

A: I was taking a call for my cousin and it ended up being the broker, he spoke to for a bit then asked me if I was interested in working with the company so I started off as a loan officer.

6.) What were you doing to generate leads?

A: I started off like most other folks by working on some loans with family then I started meeting more people and then I started working with those individuals. I also connected with a realtor.

7.) How did the downfall of the economy affect business in the valley?

A: I believe it weeded out the people who should not have been in the business.

8.) During that time what did you do to generate leads?

A: I just tried to go back and help any individuals get out of bad loans they were put into.

9.) Were you able to find other methods to keep existing clients?

A: yes, I got into doing loan modifications for people I knew and had done business with in the past.

10.) What do you believe the downfall of the market was due to?

A: I believe it was due to the lack of regulations and corporate greed. There were a lot of people who were not following the laws and getting away with it.

11.) In your opinion where do you believe the real estate market is headed in the next 5 years?

A: I think it’s going to be a slow crawl back up to the top, it will be better, but never like it was.

12.) Have you worked in any other area than loans and brokerage?

A: No, I enjoy this area of the field and wouldn’t do anything else

13.) What do you use to stay informed about the market?

A: through emails my corporate office sends out. Now with the new MLS guidelines we have to have training and tests every year.

14.) What kind of projects are you currently working on?

A: I am just working on residential properties. I am also looking into other cities down south like Temecula, CA.

15.) In this business what do you think are important traits or skills to have?

A: Networking is very crucial in this line of work, it is a people and business and communication is key in being successful in this career.