Written By: Karen Deis
One of my most long-lasting and profitable niches was working with an Asian community. No, I’m not Asian. No, I do not speak the language. But I DID understand their culture, their family structures, their mindset about money and their religious beliefs.
For example, multi generations of families tend to live in the same home. Family members want to hold title and be on the mortgage (responsibility culture)—even if their income is minimum wage. My record? 7 co-signers on an FHA mortgage.
Knowing this info helped me not only understand how to do business with them, (and their Asian real estate agents), but I had to seek out loan programs that fit the culture.
Did you know that the National Association of Realtors® currently has 21 different designations and two of them are “At Home With Diversity Certification” (AHWD®) and “TransNational Referral Certification”? The California Association of Realtors® has 13 ethnic real estate organizations. (www.car.org) ranging from African American to Korean, and Latino to Vietnamese-American real estate agent groups! (Oh, and within the Latino community, Cubans, Mexican, Guatemalans, South Americans, etc).
With Realtors® developing their own diversity certifications and organizations, (Facebook has communities of ethnic agents) it’s a sign that mortgage lenders should also adapt to the changing ethnic marketplace.
Speaking a language is an added plus, however being able to communicate in “writing” has never been easier. Google has a language app that will easily “translate” an entire website (or just a website page). Yahoo’s version is Babel Fish.
You can also hire staff who speak another language. My receptionist also spoke Spanish and I had a processer who spoke Chinese. They sat in on loan applications and closings to help translate!
Here are some other ideas:
Advertise on Ethnic Radio Stations, TV or Newspapers
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