Does Loan Officer Personality Matter?

Sometimes clients think loan officers are robots, almost unimportant. And that all we represent is a set of terms we quote, and they treat the mortgage transaction like a commodity. But getting a mortgage is enormously complicated with lots of moving parts. And the type of loan officer you are working with is critical. This includes personality traits like work ethic, integrity, organizational skills, the speed at which they work, and much more.

A real story about a doctor

I visited a doctor a few years ago that was rude, arrogant, talked too fast, and did not give me the time I needed. I did not like his personality. After doing a Google search on him I found out that his medical license had been suspended, he had low online approval ratings, most people thought he was rude and arrogant, and worst of all, he had been arrested for drugs and soliciting a prostitute. I am not kidding. Needless to say I did not work with that doctor.

A real story about a loan officer

Does anyone stop to think about loan officer personality? Below is an email from a realtor who was trying to convince a mortgage client not to go to another loan officer who was promising the client better terms than I was:

Saturday:

“Brian, you are NOT going to believe this other loan officer guy!
The client asked him to send me his Good Faith Estimate so I could help her compare. He ‘tried’ several times. I could never open it. The link was broken the 1st two times and the 3rd time it opened but was in CHINESE.
Then I get a call from this loan officer and he tells me, ‘There are a lot of things I will do for a client on the weekend but sending a GFE so my rate can be shopped isn’t one of them.’ WOW.
Then he tells me he’s going to send it tomorrow and beat whatever you come back with. I said, ‘that’s great but can you close it, and close it on TIME?’ He says, ‘if you all do YOUR jobs I can.’
THEN he ACTUALLY SAYS ‘A $240,000 deal isn’t going to make me or break me.’
What in the world?! Who SAYS such a thing?
Of course I relayed all of this back to the client out of concern.
I have such a headache I cannot even tell you. What am I going to do? He won’t get it done – I just know it.
Ugh. I need a cocktail.”

Sunday:

“Brian, okay now I am really worried. I looked up this other loan officer on LinkedIn and here is his resume:
Home Lending Officer – 4 months
Mortgage Consultant – 6 months
Senior Loan Officer – 4 months
Sr Mortgage Consultant – 1 year 11 months
Mortgage Consultant – 3 years 8 months
Mortgage Loan Processor – 2 years 1 month.

Of course I will share this with the client. I would really like to keep this loan with you since you have worked so hard on this and I know you will deliver.
We just have to be very polite with them. They don’t understand how complicated the mortgage process is, and why you can’t call just anyone for a loan. This other loan officer is just bad news. What a piece of work.”

Monday:

“Brian, thank goodness the client decided to stay with you. Please let me know once you get the signed paperwork back.
As soon as you have it I am going to go waltzing into (name redacted) on (redacted) Avenue and I am not leaving until I have a meeting with this other loan officer’s manager. I am so serious. Have you ever seen my glare?
P.S. The client was very nice tonight and very complimentary of you! (After dealing with FAST EDDIE)! Good grief.”

Conclusion

At the end of the day please don’t just shop price. I would also look for a loan officer that has excellent online reviews, seems straightforward and honest, quickly returns all calls and emails, and you just simply get a good feeling about.