> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.leaf360.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Why you should set up your stages before anything else

> A written walkthrough of the video explaining why your sales, loan, and business partner stages should be configured before any other setup step in Leaf360.

This is the written version of a video making the case for building your stages first — every other setup step in Leaf360 depends on them.

Prefer to watch it instead? Here's the video:

<iframe width="100%" height="400" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jkxCTa-0alg" title="Set Up Your Stages Before Anything Else" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen />

For the full reference on configuring stages, see [Pipeline Stages](/mortgage-crm/pipeline-stages). This page just follows the video.

## Three separate sets of stages, on purpose

Leaf360 keeps three stage sets apart, and that separation is deliberate:

* **Sales pipeline stages** — for pre-application leads and prospects.
* **Loan pipeline stages** — for loans actually in process with the LOS.
* **Business partner stages** — for referral partners like real estate agents and title companies.

Each one drives different screens and different automation, so mixing them together would break more than it would simplify.

## Where each one is configured

| Stage set                            | Where it lives                                                             |
| ------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Loan pipeline stages and statuses    | **Settings**, then **Loan Pipeline** under **Loans** (administrators only) |
| Sales pipeline stages and focus bars | **Manage Pipelines** on [Sales Pipeline](/mortgage-crm/sales-leads)        |
| Business partner stages              | **Manage Pipelines** on the partner pipeline, the same way as sales        |

<Note>
  A loan doesn't carry a stage directly — it carries a status, and the Loan Pipeline configuration is the map from statuses onto stages. That's why stage counts on a pipeline can change without a single loan being touched.
</Note>

## Why this comes first

Focus bars, mass actions, SLA rules, and the stage picker on every record all read from this configuration. Building it after you've already started working leads or loans just means going back and remapping things you've already touched — building it first means everything downstream already lines up.

See [How to customize your sales pipeline in Leaf360](/faq/customize-sales-pipeline) and [Build a pipeline for your real estate agents](/faq/build-agent-partner-pipeline) for the sales and partner side once your stages exist.

## Related

* [Pipeline Stages](/mortgage-crm/pipeline-stages)
* [How to customize your sales pipeline in Leaf360](/faq/customize-sales-pipeline)
* [Build a pipeline for your real estate agents](/faq/build-agent-partner-pipeline)
* [SLA Management](/mortgage-crm/sla-management)
* [How to Videos](/faq/overview)