Mortgage Broker and Loan Officer

Either a mortgage broker or a loan officer can work with you when you're looking to get a mortgage . Since both a mortgage broker and mortgage banker can help you buy a new home, it's common to confuse the two. Yet understanding the differences between them will be advantageous to the mortgage loan process.

About Mortgage Brokers

During the mortgage loan process, an individual or company who is an independent agent for both mortgage loan borrower and lender is a mortgage broker. A mortgage broker coordinates things for you and your lender, which can be one of the following: a credit union, bank, trust company, finance company, mortgage corporation or even an individual investor. Acting as a facilitator between you and your lender, your mortgage broker can match you with a bank, trust company, credit union, mortgage corporation, finance company or even an individual, private investor. Which lender has the mortgage loans that fits your needs? A mortgage broker will lead you to the right fit. Your broker will submit your mortgage loan application to one or more lenders, and works with the lender of choice until closing. The broker receives a commission from the borrower upon closing.

Mortgage Bankers

The biggest difference between a mortgage broker and a loan officer is that a loan officer is employed by a lending institution (a bank, credit union, or others) to promote and process loans solely originated from that institution. There can be a wide range of loans types to draw from even though all are programs of that particular lending institution.

A loan officer will represent you to the bank or other lending institution. From choosing a loan to closing, a mortgage banker will help the borrower through the process. Lending institutions compensate their mortgage bankers with a salary or commission.