The foundations of a mortgage business are as important as the path and the destination
A well rounded set of experiences is an irreplaceable foundation for a mortgage professional’s long-term industry success, as attested to by Sadiq Boodoo (pictured), principal broker of the Ontario-based brokerage Approved Financial Services.
“I have been working for 18 years in the mortgage/lending industry, starting out with Canada Trust/TD as a teller and working my way up to management level. I then shifted into being a mortgage specialist before moving over to the brokering side,” Boodoo told Canadian Mortgage Professional.
This consideration of the entirety of a person, and not just their business-facing parts, is central to Boodoo’s work ethos.
“Outside of work, I’m somewhat of a home chef and mixologist. I can often be found in the kitchen creating new dishes and drinks for my friends and family. I also am a huge music lover, especially of music from the Caribbean. More recently started golfing; let’s just say it’s a work in progress,” he said.
The mortgage professional’s intimate knowledge of the process is another key component of their services.
“I’ve found that being able to educate my clients and referral partners with the various options and solutions I have has been the greatest contributor to my success in these areas,” Boodoo said.
Such knowledge does not come easy, but the journey towards building one’s business tends to illuminate what a mortgage professional is truly good at, Boodoo said.
“I started out as a financial advisor in the bank where I handled both investments and lending. However, I found that I enjoyed the lending side more. I got a great sense of accomplishment when helping clients with purchasing their homes or helping them get into a better financial situation,” Boodoo recounted.
“Going from knowing one lender inside and out to having to learn about various lenders, their products, and systems was overwhelming at the beginning,” he said. “Gradually, I worked my way through it by taking one day at a time and leveraged my friends and contacts to help me navigate through things until I got a good grasp of them for myself.”
Boodoo said that over the years, he has prevailed over multiple challenges like these, carving his own path of success.
“I’m especially proud of being a director of the Canadian Mortgage Brokers Association – Ontario and I am also a member of the [Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario] Technical Advisory Committee. Both roles allow me to contribute to enhancing the industry I’m committed too,” Boodoo said.
“I’m additionally proud of being named on the CMP 2021 Hot List and having my brokerage named as one of the ‘Best Mortgage Employers’ for 2020 and 2021.”
For industry newcomers, Boodoo advises patience and perseverance, as well as cultivating a personal touch.
“The most important lesson I’ve learned is not to focus on getting deals, but rather to focus on building relationships. The deals will come. Building relationships has been the foundation of my business and continues to be the number one driver for my success thus far,” Boodoo said.
“The advice I would give to anyone new to the industry is to treat this just like any other job they had: Show up every day,” he added. “Just because you can set your own hours, it does not mean you should take every day off or start your day at 11am and finish at 2pm. If you want to be successful, you must put in the time and effort.”
