My cat Myrtle never seemed to listen, but heard lots. LOs can hear the difference, when dealing with a borrower, between “What is your rate?” versus “Can you help me?” Hearing is important, listening even more so. “Rob, are you hearing that the industry is ‘conferenced out,’ especially at the national level? The MBA’s National Secondary was a few weeks ago, this week is the MBA’s Chairman’s event, next week and following weeks are more conferences at the state level. My employees want to attend, but is there really that much new? They aren’t cheap to travel to or register.” There are a lot of events, and each one has a slightly different flavor and different geographic scope. And price point. Ask the organizers and choose wisely. There are also workshops, which are more personal, and in today’s episode of Advisory Angle at 11AM PT, STRATMOR Group’s Garth Graham and Sue Woodard share key insights from their recent Consumer Direct Workshop in Chicago, highlighting how top lenders are responding to shifting consumer behavior and market challenges. Tune in for practical strategies and real-world examples to help optimize your direct-to-consumer approach and stay ahead of industry trends. (Today’s podcast can be found here and this week’s is sponsored by CreditXpert, the credit optimization platform that helps today’s top mortgage originators and more than 60,000 mortgage professionals qualify more applicants, make more competitive offers, reduce LLPA premiums, and close more loans. Hear an interview with Cotality’s Molly Boesel on what’s driving the recent rise in single-family rents, why high-end rentals are outpacing lower-end growth, and how local events, new supply, and regional dynamics are shaping rent trends across U.S. cities.)