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Show Summary
In this conversation, Sierra Johnson emphasizes the importance of building personal rapport with clients during the loan process. She shares her approach to making clients feel valued and accessible, highlighting the need for open communication and trust. By providing her personal contact information and being available outside of traditional business hours, she aims to create a more human connection with her clients.
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Investor Fuel Show Transcript:
Sierra Johnson (00:00)
Yeah, I get folks that don’t even know that they can pull out a loan, they can do a second position against their investment property. I get individuals that don’t even know what a DSCR loan is, that you don’t have to have.DTI debt to income ratios to qualify for funding. If you have a property that has equity and it’s generating income, that income can be used opposed to what your personal income is. I have clients that don’t know that they qualify for funding because their credit isn’t the greatest. I mean, there are a lot of people that have misconceptions on funding. You don’t have to have a perfect profile to get a loan.
That’s where we come in. We come in as your consultant. We’re trying to set you up to be as, you know, appealing as possible to the lenders, but sometimes we get, you know, what we call hairy files. And there are lenders that will still give you money. My job is to get you in the kind of debt that’s going to help you. I’m not in the business of just having people sign up with these terrible loan
Kristen (02:35)
Welcome back to the Real Estate Pros podcast. I’m Kristen and I’m here with Sierra Johnson, who is a senior advisor at Loan Geek. We’re going to talk about creative financing, adding a personal touch to your business. I’m excited to get into it all. Thanks for being here, Sierra.Sierra Johnson (02:48)
Thank you so much for having me. I’m looking forward to our conversation. I’m excited.Kristen (02:52)
Yeah, solet’s get into kind of how you your background and how you got into this industry.
Sierra Johnson (02:58)
So I’ve been in finance since 2012. It all started with good ol’ Wells Fargo, being in collections, learning about debt and how people’s lives surround it, essentially. Got out of finance for a little bit, went into the assisted living world for some time. was with a company called Brookdale for nine years and found that my true passion is in finance. I’m…good with numbers. liked money and I like talking about money and I like teaching people about money. So I got back in the finance world in
and it was kind of something that just fell on my lap. I didn’t really look for it but it came to me and I took on the opportunity and I executed it well. I partnered with the
me to stay within the same industry that he’s in with another company he was running. And now I’m with that company called Lowgeek and we…
are growing, yet we’re growing rapidly. We just won Broker of the Year for ⁓ the, it was a private convention in Arizona that just went by, but we just won Broker of the Year, so that’s exciting. It’s bringing a lot of traction for us. But yeah, I’ve been in finance for quite some time now, but the actual role that I’m in right now, I’ve been doing.
Kristen (04:22)
It’s really exciting and tell everyone a little more about Loan Geek and kind of what services you guys offer.Sierra Johnson (04:28)
Absolutely. So right now, Loan Geek is a real estate finance advisor. Essentially, we’re a consulting company. We help business owners obtain financing for real estate needs mostly. We do have different ways to fund deals that don’t necessarily have the purpose.of getting real estate or using real estate, but what we use to secure our loans has to be real estate. ⁓ We have a partnership with Unsecure Financing in case, you know, someone doesn’t have any real estate to leverage, but for the most part, 95 % of what we do is in regards to the finance for real estate. And we work with a lot of investors, business owners.
If people have equity in their property that they want to pull out, we can find first and second position mortgage. I even have a third position product now. We do lines of credit, ⁓ but everything that we do is based off of obviously everyone’s different criteria, the type of properties, and just overall the story of what we’re looking to do for them. We can get creative in many ways. I have clients that want to do a really good flip and put very little money down. ⁓
options where they don’t have to put much little to no money down. So we get pretty pretty creative to try to get things done the way that will work best for both the lender and the client.
Kristen (06:42)
Amazing. mean, there’s a lot there, a lot of flexibility. And when people come to you, I’m sure you get a slew of people, but do they know what they want or do you kind of guide the conversation and figure out something creative?Sierra Johnson (06:56)
It’s both I get some people who have no idea what they’re even looking to do They just hear on an ad that you can get things done creatively. So it really just depends on the person. However ⁓ You know if someone comes in and say hey, I have this amount of money. This is what my credit is This is what I’m looking to do. Can you guys find a loan if it’s realistic? We can get it done If not, I’ll try to find an alternative. I don’t like telling people no, I feel like all leads and all opportunities do not dieThey just eventually have to be reshaped. ⁓ And again, creative financing is exactly that. It’s creative. You have to think of a strategic way to get it done. So if you own more than one property and one of the properties has a lot more equity than the other, we may be able to use that property ⁓ as long as you don’t live there. So we get very, very deep into what it is that the client has going.
and see what we can find that can fit their needs. Our network of lending sources is, we’re over like 256 different lenders, that’s including private lenders, larger lending companies, private equity firms, hedge, I mean, we have it all. The ⁓ owner of the company has done a really good job.
in signing up with some really dependable strong lenders. you know we’re pretty much very as creative as you’re going to get in the brokerage world.
Kristen (08:29)
Do you find like, you have any, or do you sell anything or help people with anything that a lot of people don’t even know is out there? Like are there some kind of hidden gems in this world that you wish people knew a little bit more about?Sierra Johnson (08:42)
Yeah, I get folks that don’t even know that they can pull out a loan, they can do a second position against their investment property. I get individuals that don’t even know what a DSCR loan is, that you don’t have to have.DTI debt to income ratios to qualify for funding. If you have a property that has equity and it’s generating income, that income can be used opposed to what your personal income is. I have clients that don’t know that they qualify for funding because their credit isn’t the greatest. I mean, there are a lot of people that have misconceptions on funding. You don’t have to have a perfect profile to get a loan.
That’s where we come in. We come in as your consultant. We’re trying to set you up to be as, you know, appealing as possible to the lenders, but sometimes we get, you know, what we call hairy files. And there are lenders that will still give you money. My job is to get you in the kind of debt that’s going to help you. I’m not in the business of just having people sign up with these terrible loan
I think that it’s important that my clients are educated on the debt that’s…
get in because then you got people who are I don’t like to call them desperate but that they will find anything just to get some money in their hands and I want to make sure that I feel good about the transactions that I close I don’t like putting people in debt that I know that they can’t get out of or they’re going to default on immediately I kind of like want to really feel like I know this client enough to know that hey I don’t want to put
$500,000 in your pocket because you might like I don’t I’m not in the business putting people in the worst position that they’re in already
Kristen (11:00)
Yeah, I that makes a lot of sense and I feel like that’s a very I’m sure it’s It makes you really stand out that that’s the way you approach it And I’m sure that helps even if it’s not exactly what they want to hear it sets them up in the long run for more success ⁓ Can we go into more like credit scores? I do know that’s a big thing for people. They don’t know What’s the minimum do they think it’s too low kind of what have you been seeing?Sierra Johnson (11:15)
Right.so we don’t have a minimum of who we will work with. However, I do let clients know that the higher the score, obviously the better the terms. However, we have finance options that don’t require your credit to even be pulled. It just really depends on the scenario and the amount of equity. ⁓
⁓ And then the clients also don’t know the different credit scores that are out there I hear all the time on credit karma My credit my you know on this app it shows my score is here And I always tell them if it’s on an app that gets updated once every three months It’s not going to be inaccurate ⁓ What I’ve seen is the my FICO has been pretty accurate from what’s coming back from one
Kristen (12:15)
AllSierra Johnson (12:22)
full credit but I always tell my clients to never trust the free apps if it’s free it’s probably not accurate you always want to get ⁓ a ⁓ reliable credit source and you need to know what your credit score is on the mortgage level because there is a mortgage score there’s an automobile or if you’re like you know looking for an automobile to financeThere’s credit card scores, so there’s different scores. ⁓ My FICO does a really good job breaking each of those down. ⁓ And that’s what I usually refer them to go check. I say, hey, I’m not going to pull your credit, because I’m not a broker that believes in pulling somebody’s credit six times to get a loan. ⁓ I get a lot of clients who come to me and say, yeah, the last person I was going to have my credit pulled four times. Well, ⁓
Kristen (12:56)
right.Sierra Johnson (13:13)
You just lost about 50 points just doing that. I’m not here to do that. I will have a soft pull at most just to give us an accurate idea if we have to do that. But for the most part, tell them to go on the zap, check your score, tell me what your middle score is, because that is what our lenders are going to look at. They’re going to look at the mid score. They’ll pull all three, and then whichever score is in the middle is the one that they’re going to use for their pricing.But yeah credit is it’s a it’s a factor to determine whether you qualify for a more expensive loan or a less expensive more competitive terms And then the amount of loan to value which is calculating the amount that the we’re lending you opposed to the value of the property So that’s a big important thing too because if you have someone who has a very low credit score They may not qualify for an 80 % loan to value on a property that they want to buy
They may have to go to like 60%. So instead of putting 20 % down, you’ll be putting 40%. So credit score is a factor to the type of loan I can get you, but it doesn’t necessarily determine whether I can get you funded or not. again, I have lenders that don’t even pull credit. So it’s again, creative financing.
Kristen (14:24)
yet.Totally. Well that’s amazing. And I’m sure a lot of people come to you kind of as you were saying there are the people who don’t really know what they want and you know they’re learning through you. How do you help people really understand what terms they’re agreeing to? Because I’m sure there’s a lot of people who kind of just
sign and you know want the money right away.
Sierra Johnson (15:26)
And so100 % and that’s what I take most pride in when it comes to what I do is educating. One thing I learned growing up is never sign without reading.
something. It’s just not smart to do, but I do understand in the nature of the world, speed and immediate satisfaction for lack of better terms is big. But I take very good, I take part in breaking down.
What we do is we will go out and get pricing, and then we will issue a term sheet, and what we call is a terms acknowledgement form. And this is something that will be very thorough to explain to you what to expect with the offer that we have. ⁓ And I hop right on the call. We’re getting right on the call. We’re going to talk about it, or in person, however, dealing with that client. ⁓ And we’re going to talk about the terms. And any questions that you have, if I don’t know the answer, I will find them out.
And you can do that before you even decide to sign the term sheet. ⁓ I really am very, big on you knowing what you’re signing up for. Obviously, things change throughout a long process from
to the time that it’s actually closing. And my job, or what I take most pride in, is to make sure what I offer you is what I close you at. As long as everything that you told me is true. And there’s no surprises that come up in the underwriting process. We try to get you what you got in the beginning at the end as well. But yeah, it’s very important that your clients are aware of the term that you get, because the loan can determine whether or not.
deal is good. If your debt is not good on the on the deal that you have for your for your transaction, you just screwed yourself. I have a lot of you know flippers who get stuck in deals because they over leveraged.
themselves and they can’t sell or they have to take a loss. So it’s very common to get in a bad transaction and the debt is what’s causing you to not make a profit on your sale. So my job and what I take most part in this is to make sure that you are aware this is what it is, this is how it looks.
And if there’s anything you do not understand, let’s talk about it. will explain it seven different ways if I have to. Now I always advise clients, you have the opportunity to go get a lawyer, right? You can go on chat GBT these days. ⁓ So there is still a service that you could do yourself, but a lot of people don’t want to do that. A of people don’t want to go pay for lawyers because what you’re going to have to do is you’re going to have to pay that lawyer for every step of the way.
Kristen (17:48)
Mm-hmm.Sierra Johnson (18:10)
You’re going to have to, every time you get a new document, they’re going to want to be paid to even read it over and explain it to you. ⁓ Even using AI, you know, there’s ways to get things that you don’t understand broken down more thorough. But there are clients that really truly just want that relationship with someone who knows that has their back that can come in and negotiate fees back and negotiate rates that can actually go out and look for competitive offers in case, you know, the first offer that they get they don’t like. So.It’s a need for what we do. There are people who simply just want somebody to call when they’re ready to get money for our real estate. And I’m usually that go-to for the people that I work with. Everyone I work with comes right back. I haven’t had any clients that, I mean, I may have. I can’t keep track. But for the most part, I’ll…
Kristen (18:53)
Mm-hmm.Sierra Johnson (19:03)
I’ve been very blessed with keeping relationships very, very long term with industry.Kristen (19:11)
Yeah, that’s amazing. mean, I think as investors are building out their team, it’s so important to have someone like you who they can just keep going back to. Yeah. And it seems like just from everything you’re saying, it seems like you really have a personal touch to what you do. Kind of in an industry that feels maybe a little like numbers based and maybe a little stiff, it seems like you really bring the personal touch to it. Can you just talk a little bit more about that?Sierra Johnson (19:21)
Mm-hmm. Yep.Yeah.
Yeah, of course. So ⁓ the best part about what I do is I always feel like my clients leave out way more confident than what they felt coming in. Because they do come in with so many questions, concerns, and worries, and hesitations. And there’s some times where I don’t even get the full story on the first call. They’ll leave things out or they’ll
not tell me things that could be very necessary to know in the beginning of a loan. So I really try to build a really personal rapport when I get on that phone call. The very first contact, I do a really, I just want them to know I’m a person. I always try to make them understand that you’re not just a file on my desk. You’re not just a number. I give them my cell phone number, I tell them they can…
text me. I’m a mom so obviously I have a life outside of work. However, I’m very accessible. I don’t have a nine to five business hour time frame that you can reach me at. I tell them if you have a question at 11 o’clock at night and I just happen to be on my phone, I will answer it. ⁓ So I really try to make it personal in the very beginning. Now throughout the process, always tell them, said, look, they’re going to be very best friends throughout or you’re going to hate me and then love me at the end.
Kristen (21:04)
Bye.Sierra Johnson (21:04)
Because I’mstill the middle man, I still have to be the one to come and ask for documents and help push the loans through. for the moment.
your mom.
But yeah, I think that having that rapport and just creating like a safe space for my clients is what keeps me from being consistent. ⁓ Even if you go on Google Geeks, Google reviews, I have a lot that clients have so gracefully left for me simply because I really do take pride in keeping them happy throughout the process and making it as convenient as possible. I know that.
⁓ I get a lot of contractors who do deals and they hate paperwork. They can build you a 5,500 square foot, three story house, beautiful, something I would never be able to do in a million years. they had.
struggle with with just simple paperwork and just understanding like entity documents and how to get things filed with the Secretary of State. They just don’t like to handle that kind of stuff. So I come in and I bridge that for them and they did and I have a great team of processors that helps me just to make sure everything is aligned. So we do a really good job just making it as convenient and streamlined as we possibly can and just giving them that extra service because again you know a client can go to a lender direct
Some lenders do direct consumer contact. However, clients don’t know what to and what not to share with underwriters.
clients don’t know what to and what not to, know, overly volunteer. You know, sometimes they make it harder on themselves when they tell too much of the story or provide too many documents. you know, having someone like myself and my team, we know what they’re going to look for. We know what they want to see and we know what they don’t care to see. So it’s a really good… ⁓
service for people and I always, I said, clients come back to us all the time. They return, they, we are the go-to for some folks transactions. And I mean, we have people that can do three, four transactions a year and they’re only going to use Long Beach to do those transactions. So it’s very personal. At least I try to make it personal across everyone as much as I can.
Kristen (23:30)
I love that. Well, I mean, you’ve given suchgreat information, ⁓ kind of helping people navigate this world a little bit better. Tell everyone where to find you and how to work with you.
Sierra Johnson (23:39)
Yeah, absolutely. So I am on LinkedIn, ⁓ Sierra Johnson, Sierra like the mountains, SIE, RRA. ⁓ I am on Instagram. I have two different Instagrams that I’m using. is Sierra underscore the loan lady, L-O-A-N-L-A-D-Y. And then I am also on.page but I still post about business related things it’s SI underscore the T H E underscore broke and then it’s BROK and then capital H E R so brokher and that’s and yep thank you it’s a little twist on the broker because I really believe that
Kristen (24:14)
I love that.Mm-hmm.
Sierra Johnson (24:21)
You know, I’m doing a really great job in this industry. I really feel like I’m hurt when it comes to brokering. I’ve learned the game really well.Kristen (24:27)
What?I love that. I mean, that’s it. I love Broker. That’s awesome.
Sierra Johnson (24:32)
ThankKristen (24:34)
Well, thank you so much again. ⁓ I think people probably have a lot of good takeaways from this. So thanks for being here.Sierra Johnson (24:41)
And I’m happy to talk so if anyone has any questions, feel free to reach me on any of those and we can schedule a call and we’ll go on and see what we can do to help you with your next transaction.Kristen (24:52)
Well, thank you everybody for listening and please take Sarah up on that. I think she has a lot to share and hope you learned a lot today, got some inspiration for your own business and we will see you back next time. Bye.
