Mortgage Brokers & Lenders
Market News & Data
General Info
Real Estate Strategies

Landlording & Rental Properties
Real Estate Professionals
Financial, Tax, & Legal



Real Estate Classifieds
Reviews & Feedback
Updated over 4 years ago on . Most recent reply

Switch from Realtor to Loan Officer?
I have been a Realtor for about 1.5 years and have done relatively well. However I was recently approached by a Lender who offered me a job as a Loan Officer. I wanted to see if anyone had made the switch (or visa versa) and what your thoughts were.
I've been in sales for a while and am very proficient on the phone, I imagine I can make similar money (if not more). Does anyone find that being a loan officer is more fulfilling than a Realtor? What would be different stress factors or unfavorable aspects of the job? What's better about being an LO vs a Realtor?
Thanks in advance!
Most Popular Reply

Originally posted by @Russell Brazil:
Maybe @Chris Mason will have some sight as well....but I generally feel that the personality types that make a good agent, wouldnt work as a loan officer and vice versa.
I also personally feel like what guys like Chris do is harder than what I do as an agent. (I wonder if he feels the same way about the reverse.) A loan officer has to do like 3 times as many deals a year as an agent, and they do the good ones. But I think its so much easier coming up with 30 clients a year to deal with instead of 100.
Eh, I wouldn't say harder or easier. What we do is more efficient. I'm not spending my weekends driving my 100 clients all over town and playing marriage counselor (except once in a while), but you're busy doing exactly that with your 30 as a Realtor (and for nearly all 30 too). So it scales better on our side... provided you can drum up those 100 clients. If you're a 30 clients/yr kind of person either way, stick to being a Realtor.
I do agree that it's yin/yang. If I tried to be a Realtor, was showing a home, and someone told me the kitchen didn't "feel warm," then I'd turn up the thermostat, declare the problem solved, and tell them to write an offer or GTFO. :) That sort of approach works for mortgages where it's a number you can quantify and exactly measure, but not for being a Realtor where it's an aesthetic and a feeling.
There are a lot more failed LOs that become successful Realtors, than there are failed Realtors that become successful LOs. A bunch of my successful Realtor partners, oddly enough, are former LOs.
If you are a member of NAR as a Realtor, I would never personally hire you, under any circumstances. If any of my Realtor partners found out that I had a Realtor in my employ, well, I'm sure you could figure out how that would go.