How to Become a Loan Officer
What is a Loan Officer
If you want to be in charge of whether people are issued loans or not, then becoming a loan officer is a great place to start. Most generally, your day will consist of evaluating, authorize and even recommending approval for people or businesses that have submitted a loan application.
While movies generally paint loan officers in a bad light, these people are just doing their jobs. The majority of the time, the people asking for a loan don't even qualify. For the most part, loan officers work in banks and other financial institutions. And it's recommended that you earn a bachelor's degree. But the majority of your education will come from learning on-the-job. You'll be turning loans down left and right after no time!
What Does a Loan Officer Do
Loan officers evaluate, authorize, or recommend approval of loan applications for people and businesses.
How To Become a Loan Officer
Most loan officers need a bachelor’s degree and receive on-the-job training. Mortgage loan officers must be licensed.
EducationLoan officers typically need a bachelor’s degree, usually in a field such as business or finance. Because commercial loan officers analyze the finances of businesses applying for credit, they need to understand general business accounting, including how to read financial statements.
Some loan officers may be able to enter the occupation without a bachelor’s degree if they have related work experience, such as experience in sales, customer service, or banking.
TrainingOnce hired, loan officers usually receive some on-the-job training. This may be a combination of formal, company-sponsored training and informal training during the first few months on the job.
Licenses, Certifications, and RegistrationsMortgage loan officers must have a Mortgage Loan Originator (MLO) license. To become licensed, they must complete at least 20 hours of coursework, pass an exam, and submit to background and credit checks. Licenses must be renewed annually, and individual states may have additional requirements.
Several banking associations, including the American Bankers Association and the Mortgage Bankers Association, as well as a number of schools, offer courses, training programs, or certifications for loan officers. Although not required, certification shows dedication and expertise and thus may enhance a candidate’s employment opportunities.
Important QualitiesDecisionmaking skills. Loan officers must assess an applicant’s financial information and decide whether to award the applicant a loan.
Detail oriented. Each piece of information on an application can have a major effect on the profitability of a loan, meaning that loan officers must pay attention to detail.
Initiative. Loan officers need to seek out new clients. They often act as salespeople, promoting their lending institution and contacting firms to determine their need for a loan.
Interpersonal skills. Because loan officers work with people, they must be able to guide customers through the application process and answer their questions.
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Loan Officer Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, a Loan Officer can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as Account Executive, progress to a title such as Account Manager and then eventually end up with the title Director, Inside Sales.
Loan Officer Jobs You Might Like
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Average Salary for a Loan Officer
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12 Loan Officer Resume Examples
Build a professional loan officer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 12+ resume templates to create your loan officer resume.
Henry Spencer Loan Officer |
Ann Taylor Loan Officer Experience Loan Officer2020 - Present Wells Fargo•Charlotte, NC
Loan Processor2019 - 2020 Wells Fargo•Charlotte, NC
Branch Lending Officer2012 - 2019 Wells Fargo•Charlotte, NC
Skills Legal DocumentsLoan ApplicationsHigh VolumeFinancial ServicesPowerpointLoan PortfolioUnderwriting ApprovalReal EstateTitle CompaniesInternal Personnel Education Bachelor's Degree Economics2004 - 2007 Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey•New Brunswick, NJ |
Learn How To Write a Loan Officer Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Loan Officer resumes and compiled some information about how to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Loan Officer Resume Examples And TemplatesAnd if you’re looking for a job, here are the five top employers hiring now:
Choose From 10+ Customizable Loan Officer Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Loan Officer templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Loan Officer resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Loan Officer Demographics
Loan Officer Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among Loan Officers, 44.7% of them are women, while 55.3% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among Loan Officers is White, which makes up 68.2% of all Loan Officers.
- The most common foreign language among Loan Officers is Spanish at 66.6%.
Find the best Loan Officer job for you
Loan Officer Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Loan Officer Jobs - $69K and Up
- Work From Home Loan Officer Jobs
- Entry Level Loan Officer Jobs
- Part Time Loan Officer Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Loan Officer Jobs
Top Colleges for Loan Officers
1. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
2. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
3. University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA • Private
4. SUNY at Binghamton
Vestal, NY • Private
5. Villanova University
Villanova, PA • Private
6. San Diego State University
San Diego, CA • Private
7. Bentley University
Waltham, MA • Private
8. Boston University
Boston, MA • Private
9. SUNY Stony Brook
Stony Brook, NY • Private
10. New York University
New York, NY • Private
Find the best Loan Officer job for you
Loan Officer Jobs You Might Like
- High Paying Loan Officer Jobs - $69K and Up
- Work From Home Loan Officer Jobs
- Entry Level Loan Officer Jobs
- Part Time Loan Officer Jobs
- Actively Hiring
- No Degree Loan Officer Jobs
Online Courses For Loan Officer That You May Like
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Top Skills For a Loan Officer
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 17.0% of Loan Officers listed Loan Portfolio on their resume, but soft skills such as Detail oriented and Initiative are important as well.
Best States For a Loan Officer
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a Loan Officer. The best states for people in this position are North Carolina, New York, Maryland, and West Virginia. Loan Officers make the most in North Carolina with an average salary of $57,839. Whereas in New York and Maryland, they would average $57,764 and $56,721, respectively. While Loan Officers would only make an average of $54,239 in West Virginia, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Maryland
$56,721
Avg. Salary
2. New York
$57,764
Avg. Salary
3. North Carolina
$57,839
Avg. Salary
How Do Loan Officer Rate Their Jobs?
4.0
4.0
Loans Officer • October 2019What do you like the most about working as Loan Officer?
when a person being assisted to obtain a loan to uplift their lives Show MoreWhat do you NOT like?
when more loans are deliquent Show MoreTop Loan Officer Employers
We've made finding a great employer to work for easy by doing the hard work for you. We looked into employers that employ Loan Officers and discovered their number of Loan Officer opportunities and average salary. Through our research, we concluded that Bank of America was the best, especially with an average salary of $60,015. Wells Fargo follows up with an average salary of $60,527, and then comes JPMorgan Chase & Co. with an average of $70,400. In addition, we know most people would rather work from home. So instead of having to change careers, we identified the best employers for remote work as a Loan Officer. The employers include TD Bank, N.A., Infinity, and Citizens Bank
Loan Officer Videos
Becoming a Loan Officer FAQs
How long does it take to become a Loan Officer?
It takes 5 years of professional experience to become a loan officer. That is the time it takes to learn specific loan officer skills, but does not account for time spent in formal education. If you include the normal education requirements to complete a college degree, then it takes 8 to 10 years years to become a loan officer.
Do loan officers make good money?
Yes, loan officers can make good money. The mean salary for loan officers is around $63,000 a year, but the actual amount a person will earn depends on their level of experience and ability.
How do I start a loan officer career?
You can start a career as a loan officer by getting your high school diploma or equivalent. Since there are no educational requirements to become a loan officer, it is typically not a difficult field to get into, especially for people with the aptitude for the work.
Is it hard to become a loan officer?
No, it is not hard to become a loan officer. Since there are no educational requirements to become a loan officer, it is typically not a difficult field to get into, especially for people with the aptitude for the work.