Expect The Unexpected

Expect The Unexpected

How to plan and prioritize for 2021

BY MARY KAY SCULLY | CONTRIBUTING WRITER, NATIONAL MORTGAGE PROFESSIONAL

After a whirlwind 2020, many people are excited for a new year and hopefully a fresh start. However, 2021 brings with it a lot of unanswered questions. There’s still uncertainty around the COVID-19 pandemic and its lasting effects. We have some temporary relief on the January expiration of the QM patch, but are awaiting the final rule and what that will look like. Then in March comes the Uniform Residential Loan Application or URLA, which will change the way many of us are working. Finally, 2021 could bring significant changes when it comes to ARM indexes.

Long story short, there is a lot about 2021 we simply do not know. There are so many aspects of the industry that you can’t control, however, you can control how organized you are and how prepared you are to embrace whatever changes come down the line.

PREPARATION

Planning for 2021 will look far different than it has in years past. When planning for 2020, everyone took for granted that things would stay relatively the same. It goes without saying that was not the case. In your 2021 plans, understand you must be nimble and may have to change procedures, adjust for volume or staffing and so on.

For 2021, it is crucial to prepare for what you don’t know. To deal with uncertainty, make parallel plans. Plan for if a scenario does or does not happen so you are not blindsided by either outcome. Having multiple options and courses of action ready to execute will be invaluable when the time comes to set those plans in motion.

Keep in mind that no one can definitively predict what the industry will do. The best course of action is to recognize change and change with it. When the QM patch expires, prepare for potential changes in guidelines or production. Be ready to put the right operational support in place. The key is to be proactive, rather than reactive.

The same goes for the start of URLA. Start working with LOS vendors to embrace this change by updating screens and reorganizing workflows, learning about new fields and having a subset of data for online customer interfaces.

Also, prepare for an adjustable rate mortgage market with non-QM loans. Be flexible and have plans set in place for volume, training and so on.

TIME MANAGEMENT

As important as it is to be prepared, it also is important to manage your time wisely. Working efficiently ensures you have time to adjust to the changes 2021 might bring.

From a business perspective, it’s important to allow time in your 2021 plan for engaging new business. Don’t get so focused on the day-to-day that you don’t plan for the future. Planning ahead for new business helps defend against uncertainty or when the market changes. While serving current customers is important, making time for new ones also should be a priority.

Working at home creates much more potential for distraction. Many of us have families, roommates, pets and household tasks all competing for our time during work hours. Set a timeframe for certain tasks and be sure those tasks are work related. This creates accountability, as you have to stop and reevaluate what you were doing and how long it took.

The most important thing you can do to manage your time at home is to create some separation between work and home. Be both fully devoted to work hours and your off time. Do not let the two bleed into each other.

Another way to stay on time and on task is to stop procrastinating. Not only does procrastination delay the completion of your work, but it creates stress which distracts from your work. According to DataQlik Inventory Management, people spend 80% of their day on non-essential tasks. Know how to discern what is important and knock those projects out first. This keeps you productive and defends against wasting time on smaller items of less importance.

GET PLANNING

No one has a crystal ball, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t plan for the future. You don’t have to have every answer when looking ahead, but you do have to consider the possibilities if you want to stay on top of things. Planning now, setting goals and prioritizing good time management skills will set you ahead of the curve in 2021.

No matter what the year brings, let’s face it with a strong plan and a flexible mindset.

Mary Kay Scully is the director of customer education at Genworth Mortgage Insurance.